world order: legal studies y12

World Order

the activities between states, that occur within a legal, political or economic framework (‘New World Order’)

The need for World Order

1. Interdependence & Global threats

2. Benefits of interdependence (incl. Healthy global economic, political and social order)

Nation state

a government and the people it governs

State sovereignty

a nation state’s legal power that occurs within its own state

Multilateralism

cooperation between multiple states so that members benefit from the outcome, state sovereignty may need to be sacrificed (The Concert of Europe 1815 and The Hague Peace conferences 1899 & 1907)

Treaty of Westphalia 1648

the treaty ended the Thirty Years War of the Roman empire/Eighty Years War of Spain and Dutch Republic, which begun peace treaty agreements and the notion of state sovereignty

League of Nations 1919

aimed to work towards international peace under collective security, but flaws existed in its framework and lack of political will (failed in 1945)

United Nations

created as a world order organisation through the 8 point plan/Atlantic Charter by Theodore Roosevelt and Winston Churchill (1942), used by 50 states in 1945 (absence of multilateralism in the league of nations reasoned failure)

Interstate conflict examples

conventional warfare, cold war, nuclear war, cyber-warfare

Conventional warfare

use of large, well organised military forces e.g WW1 & 2

Nuclear war

use of atomic and hydrogen bombs

Cyber-warfare

shutting down a system of infrastructure that is controlled electronically e.g power stations, dams etc.

Cold War

period of tension between USSR and USA (1947-1991), yet, war was avoided due to threat of mutual annihilation

Intrastate conflict examples

civil wars, guerilla wars, terrorism, communal violence/ethnic cleansing/genocide

Civil war

a conflict between two or more sides in one country e.g Lebanese Civil War

Guerilla war

hit and run tactics, a superior army vs. a primitive army e.g Vietnam War

Terrorism

intended actions to cause death by coercing a government to meet certain demands

War waged by governments

dictatorial regimes that engage in campaigns of mass genocide or ethnic cleansing (unrestricted power)

Communal killing

violence and warfare within communities, not necessarily associated to a government (UN cannot deal with this issue due to state sovereignty)

Access to resources as a source of conflict

USA global military bases to secure resources for the economy, China chases further access to resources eg iron ore and Sudan’s oil, Food scarcity, Ideological disputes, religion, global or regional hegemony, ethnic/racial tolerance

State sovereignty

the right to make all laws within the territory they govern

For state sovereignty

makes and enforces treaties, political will to act and cooperate with international law

Against state sovereignty

refuse to participate in international law, may conflict with national interest

Security Council

5 permanent/10 non-permanent members (elected by the general assembly for 2 year terms. The five permanent members (US, UK, France, China. Russia) have the power to veto.

UN charter (purposes of the UN)

To maintain international peace and security, to develop friendly relations among nations, to achieve international cooperation in solving international problems of economic, social, cultural, humanitarian character

5 organs of the UN

general assembly, security council, secretariat, the economic and social council, the international court of justice

Bilateral treaties

treaties between two states e.g Free Trade Agreement between the US and Australia (2004)

Multilateral treaties

treaties between a number of states e.g Nato

Jus Cogens

a legal harm accepted by the international community and therefore is binding on everyone regardless of whether or not a particular leader or nation state accepts it eg. slavery

International Criminal Court (ICC) (2002)

aims to prosecute individuals including leaders who commit the worst international crimes

Rome Statute (1998)

prosecutes individuals from signatory states or UNSC referrals for four core international crimes; genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, crimes of aggression (added in 2017)

3 circumstances that the ICC can investigate

Crime takes place in a country that has signed the Rome Statute ie Australia, Crime takes place by people from the Rome statute signatory state, Crime was referred to the prosecutor by the UNSC

ICC effective points

Permanent court/deterrent, may prosecute and punish

ICC limitation points

Cannot overrule State Sovereignty, slow and expensive, support is not universal ie China and Russia, structural issues

International Court of Justice (ICJ) (1945)

organ of the UN which deals with disputes between states

Disputes between states (ICJ)

court produces rulings between states that have agreed to be bound by the rulings of the courts

Advisory opinions (ICJ)

provides non-binding rulings on questions of international law submitted by the UN General Assembly

ICJ effective points

Settles disputes between nations, heavy international influence, advisory opinions are a clear determination of precise cope of obligations

ICJ limitation points

Losing party’s unwillingness to abide by the ruling due to SS, reluctance of the UN security council to enforce rulings, advisory opinions are non-binding

International Tribunals

set up by the UN and international community to investigate and prosecute individuals responsible for war crimes (specific conflict)

Nuremberg Trials

established to hold Nazi powers accountable (first example of an international court

International Criminal Tribunal of the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY)

established by a security council resolution in 1993, breaches Geneva convention and international customary law

Ad-hoc

after the fact

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR)

established in 1994, based on the ICTY, with jurisdiction over genocide of the Rwandan government (closed in 2015). Dealt with the mass crimes against minority Tutsi people by the majority Hutu ethnic group (transferred back to national jurisdiction in 2012)

Intergovernmental Organisations (IGOs)

alliances of nation states aligned on the basis of common interest (often regional) concerning matters such as defence, trade, international/regional security e.g African Union, NATO, EU, Commonwealth, AUKUS

European Union (EU)

27 member states who have a shared purpose in cooperation and multilateralism within the European region (most impactful, binding decisions as a lot of state sovereignty is given up)

Supra-organisation

decisions are made by the appointed or elected representatives of the member states as they are made by majority votes (possible for a member state to be forced to do something that it doesn’t want to)

Europol

responsible for coordinating the various state police efforts in this area (European Law Enforcement Agency)

North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO)

32 countries, established in 1949, with a mission to safeguard through political and military means (ex-communist countries join NATO to ensure Russia’s power remains limited)

Australia United Kingdom United States (AUKUS)

a trilateral security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States intended to "promote a free and open Indo-Pacific that is secure and stable." (established in 2021)

Non-governmental organisations

independent, non-profit group that often play an important role in advocating, analysing and reporting on human rights issues worldwide (non-legal response)

Aims of NGOs

to inform, expose issues through ‘naming and shaming’, lobby and encourage states/UN to apply diplomatic pressure to take action against violating states, work directly with violators of victims

International crisis group (ICG)

founded in response to the failure of the international community to anticipate/respond effectively the genocides ie Somalia, Rwanda and Bosnia (in 1995 by some retired international leaders)

Aims of ICG

supply support and advice in peace negotiations, provide highly detailed analysis on policy issues, offering strategic thinking on the world’s most intractable conflicts, such as Burma/Iraq and Israel/Palestine, giving an early warning on full crisis

The Media

means of mass-communication and broadcasting (free-unbiased media enforces the rule of law)

Responsibility to protect (R2P)

affirmed at the 2005 UN World Summit, arose in response to controversy of international ‘right to humanitarian intervention’

3 Responsibilities of R2P

prevent, react, rebuild (must keep population safe or international community intervenes)

International Coalition for the R2P

aims to raise awareness about R2P and educate NGOs

Global Centre for the R2P

established in 2008 to promote implementation of R2P and support governments

Regional situations that threaten peace

Russia/Ukraine, Syria, Libya, Israel/Gaza, Asia Pacific (AUKUS)

Global situations that threaten peace

Nuclear Weapons (ie CWC Conflict Resolution), UNSC, Syria as a proxy-war