1. International Law

2. Is International Law Real?
How willing would nations be to surrender sovereignty to some higher authority such as a world government?
What type of government would enforce penalties throughout the entire world?

3. The United Nations
International agency that has facilitated solutions to problems throughout the world
Not a world government but has aided individual governments in reaching common goals

4. “Punishments”
Economic sanctions: any actions that minimize or prevent economic activity that would otherwise occur
Trade boycott: a form of protest whereby people abstain from buying or using services/goods of a particular country
Trade embargoes: laws or policies that countries initiate to prohibit or restrict the import or export of goods

5. Sources of International Law

6. Formal Agreements Most common means of establishing rules
Might be called treaties, conventions, protocols, covenants, or acts
Treaties:
Bilateral: between two nations
Multilateral: 3 or more nations
Codify: laws are organized & assembled
Ratified: formally approved and authorized

7. International Peace and Security

8. Diplomacy: Mediation: Arbitration:
Peaceful negotiation between or among nations, safeguard
Mediation:
Appointed or neutral party facilitates an agreement between two or more parties
Arbitration:
Dispute is referred to a third party who makes a final decision

9. Treaties in Action chart paper activity: Antartica, the seas, the stars

10. Customary Practices
Countries may choose, in the absence of any formal written agreements, to engage in practices that they feel ethically bound to followenv
May also feel legally bound by their domestic laws

11. General Principle of Law
Third option
Based on the “general principle of law” based on “civilized nations”
Very difficult to achieve an international consensus on “civilized” or “general”

12. Concepts in International Law
Sovereignty:
Most important concept
The right, unhampered by outside influences to engage in relationships with foreign states
Extradition:
The legal surrender or delivery of a fugitive to the jurisdiction of another state to face trial

13. Diplomatic Immunity:
Diplomatic corps: branch of government that provides foreign service and carries it out
An embassy and its grounds are treated as if they belong to the diplomats’ home country
Therefore the embassy staff (and sometimes family members) cannot be arrested
If a country is unhappy with their ambassador, they can declare them persona non grata, meaning a person that is no longer able to stay in their country

14. Seatwork Case Study: U.S. v. Burns pg. 446-447
Case Study: Augusto Pinochet pg
Questions: pg. 450 Q# 1, 3, 4
Answering Key Questions pg

15. Issues in International Law

16. Environment Protection
Affected by political, economic and moral considerations
UN agencies: UN Environment Programme and UN Division for Sustainable development
Customary law: a state should never do environmental harm to another state
Precautionary Principle: damage to the environment can be irreversible so we shouldn’t wait for harmful proof, we should take action

17. International Trade Exchange of goods between countries
Allows each country to specialize in goods and services
Consumers benefit from the diverse range of goods available
Protectionist policies: shield domestic products from international competition

18. The United Nations

19. Structure of the UN handout

20. Human Rights

21. UN Declaration of Human Rights
1948
Outlines the basic rights and freedoms that all human beings can claim:
The right to life, liberty and nationality
Freedom of opinion, conscience, & religion
Right to work
Right to education
Right to take part in the nation’s public business

22. 1993 the UN created a new department called the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
Role of the H.C. is to coordinate all the activities of the UN, to prevent violations of basic rights, investigate violations and work with gov’ts to assist in solving problems

23. NGO’s Non-governmental Organizations
Non-profit organizations that work to foster political and economic co-operation
Played a critical role in improving protections for human rights
Strength: their ability to mobilize public opinion, spread info and pressure gov’ts to conform to international human rights standards
E.g. amnesty international

24. Rights of Refugees
Refugees: people who have escaped from their homeland due to persecution or justifiable fear of persecution based on their religion, race, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group
Genocide: the act of killing, or causing serious harm with the intent to destroy, national, ethnic, or religious groups
Political asylum: protection given by one country to refugees from another

25. July 1951, Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees: defines who qualifies as refugees and outlines the kind of legal protection and rights that refugees are entitled to in their host country, details the obligations they have to their host
Geneva convention defines war crimes as various acts that are “not justified by military necessity and [are] carried out unlawfully and wantonly.”
Crime against humanity: act of violence that is committed as part of a full scale or systematic attack on a civil population
By 2003, Canada was accepting refugees annually

26. International Peace and Security

27. Diplomacy Mediation Arbitration
Peaceful negotiations between or among nations, created to safeguard and promote a nation’s interests
Mediation
An appointed neutral third party facilitates an agreement between two or more parties
Arbitration
Dispute is referred to a neutral third party who makes a final decision

28. NATO & NORAD

29. Resolving Conflicts

30. Rules of War
“war crimes” arose because actions that were viewed as necessary by one party party in order to win a war may violate standards and principles that another society considers to be humane
The founder of international law, Hugo Grotius, wrote a book examining the laws of war

31. Geneva Conventions
Four international agreements that govern the humane treatment of civilians and soldiers during war
Complex but essentially a series of dos and don’ts to apply during conflict to protect vulnerable and defenceless individuals
Underlying principles are based on the idea that human dignity of individuals must be respected at all times

32. International Criminal Court
In the 70’s & 80’s, human rights groups lobbied for a permanent tribunal for the purpose of placing suspected war criminals on trial
120 UN members adopted a treaty called the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, came to force in 2002, 60 states ratified it

33. Has a mandate to place individuals on trial
Crimes against humanity include torture, rape, enslavement, and forced disappearance, as well as persecution on political, racial, national, and ethnic grounds
Located in Hague