International Advocate Volume 1 Issue 2

Â

Don Anton serves as critical observer and provocateur, with an insightful look at the development of international environmental law and its influence on the Rio+20 conference.

A Legal Solution to the South China Sea Dispute Andaleeb Akhand

Humanitarian Law and Just War Adam Spence

Non-Citizens in Latvia and the ECtHR Josefin Dahlerus

Kony 2012?

Kevin Boreham

I N T E R N A T I O N A L

ADVOCATE VOL 1

|

ISSUE 2

|

May 2012

Â

Publications Director: Andrew Swanson Publications Team: Mallory Wankel, Emily Horn, Adam Spence THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED IN ARTICLES ARE THOSE OF THE CONTRIBUTOR AND DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THOSE OF THE SOCIETY OR THE AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY.

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President: Katelyn Ewart Vice President (Administration): Carolyn Skorupa Finance Director: Anirudh Devanathan Careers Director: Stuart Bryson Events Director: Chalani De Silva

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INTERNATIONAL A DVOCA TE | M A Y 2Acherson, 012 Rebecca Williams, Robert Sarah Fledberg.

2

FEATURE

ARTICLE

ARTICLE

ARTICLE ARTICLE

ON CAMPUS

COURSE REVIEWS

STILL THIS ENDANGERED PLANET Donald K Anton

A Legal Solution to the South China Sea Dispute Andaleeb Akhand

Humanitarian Law and Just War Adam Spence

Non-Citizens in Latvia and the ECtHR Josefin Dahlerus

Kony 2012?

Kevin Boreham

Friday CIPL Seminar Series Sherwood Du Summer/Winter in Geneva Kila Skorupa The Tokyo International Negotiation and Arbitration Competition Ben Goldsworthy & James Middleton

President’s Welcome Friends, Welcome to the second issue of the International Advocate. Term two is in full swing, and exams are fast approaching. Before you retreat into study mode armed with a week’s supply of energy drinks, I encourage you to take advantage of some of the opportunities the ILS has on offer.

The Grand Final of the IHL Moot will be held in week 10, and will decide which two students will represent ANU at the ALSA conference in Melbourne. If you're new to mooting, this is a great chance to see firsthand what international law mooting is all about. An IHL Moot Dinner will be held in week 11 to recognise the outstanding effort that so many students have put into this year's successful tournament, including our wonderful director, Aleks Sladojevic. Students that initially registered but later withdrew are also welcome to attend.

The ILS is submitting a proposal to the LLB Renewal Committee to reconsider the structure of the Jessup Moot course. Please let us know your thoughts by completing the survey on our website. Our first AGM will be held toward the end of this term. Come along to the meeting to hear about the workings of the society and offer your suggestions for improvement.

Shortly after the break, we'll be hosting a Public and International Careers Fair, screening the film This is My Land Hebron, which focuses on one of the first Israeli settlements in the West Bank, and throwing an ANUSA sponsored Universal Lunch Hour with the Debating Society, who are fresh from the recent success of hosting the intervasity debating tournament, Easters.

To stay in the loop, visit our website, www.anuils.com, like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/anuils and follow us on Twitter, @ANUILS. Happy studying,

Katelyn Ewart INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

3

My role today is that of

The elimination of an ecological mindset is due

critical observer and provocateur. Today I will

in large part to the ascendance of the concept

talk about a disturbing story line in the

of sustainable development.

development

the use of sustainable development by the

Good afternoon.

of

international environmental

law and how it is shaping the approaching U.N.

international

Conference on Sustainable Development in

organizing

Brazil -- appropriately designated

Rio+20,

environmental policy and law is the main

because to call it Stockholm+40 in reference

reason why, from an environmental protection

to the first genuine environmental gathering of

point of view, the results of Rio+20 will almost

world leaders would require a much more

certainly be disappointing.

ecological focus than its “green economy”

that the use of sustainable development as our

theme can deliver.

pole star for the last 25 years helps show why,

Unlike today, it was generally recognised in 1972 that those who planned and attended the Stockholm Conference “had … the spiritual qualities of our relationship to the earth [and] the ecological health of our planet [formost in mind].” So far as I can tell, Rio+20 is devoid of this deep sort of environmental ethos.

despite

community

I maintain that

principle

the

as for

enormous

the

major

international

Indeed, I argue

proliferation

of

international environmental norms since 1972, almost all environmental indicators continue to be

in

decline

and

contain

some

deeply

disturbing prognostications. To study UNEP’s authoritative

Global

Environmental

Outlook

online data portal is to worry deeply about the prospects for posterity and to realize that we

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

4

are

-- to invoke the title of Richard Falk’s

path-breaking

1972

text

--

still

this

endangered planet.

that economic growth has become the not so beating

heart”

of

international

environmental policy and lies behind the law’s apparent inability to effectively protect the global environment. 1

The cult of economic

growth, like Toynbee’s cult of sovereignty, is a major

religion

of

although, Puhuja insightfully shows that over the last 50 years the narrow, reductionist

To explain my position: it seems clear to me “secret

society and state privilege above others --

humankind.

“Its

god

economic framework has taken account of the non-economic and non-market (including noneconomic

and

nonmarket

environmental

values) by subverting and subsuming them as part of neoliberal economic theory.

This has

allowed economics to continue to assert itself as the “master discipline” over all, including the environmental and social.

In the realm of

For Pahuja, the success of neoliberalism and

global environmental protection, the priorities

its partnership with the state has made it

of economic growth have become ascendant

“impossible for states to tell a story about

through

national ‘success’ in any terms other than

demands human sacrifice.”

a

perversion

of

the

concept

of

sustainable development rapidly embraced by

economic growth.”

states of every stripe following its detailed

ever

elaboration by the World Commission on

development growth, even though a reduction

Environment and Development in 1987 in its

in consumption or affluence is precisely what

well-known report, Our Common Future.

the planet requires. As Pahuja tells it, “we

One of my brilliant former students, Sundhya Pahuja, in her book Decolonizing International Law (a richly deserving winner of this year’s ASIL Certificate of Merit), illuminates how economic growth has “colonized” international law, including international law in the field of sustainable

development.

One

central

argument that Pahuja makes is framed around this

dominating

growth.”

influence

of

“economic

The “cowboy economy” described

by Kenneth Boulding in his well-known 1966 Economics of the Coming Spaceship Earth is still alive and well for Pajuha. Production and growth remain unqualified goods that every

1

This characterisation is drawn from the expression “secret beating heart of international law” used by Sudyha Pahuja in a faculty seminar presented at the ANU College of Law in March 2012.

must

increasing

bow

All societies must have consumption

to

growth,

and

to

drive

search

for

[euphemistically] ‘sustainable’ ways to go on consuming

[ever]

more.”

This

sort

of

“economics imperialism” privileges economic knowledge and places it in a supposedly transcendent and apolitical position. Because it is made untouchable, it precludes the possibility of real action outside of economics and

eliminates

discussion

about

whether

growth is the correct lens through which to view

environmental

questions.

Conceptual

tools other than those of the economist can only be considered once the primary question of the relative cost of action versus inaction has been addressed.

If these arguments are correct it becomes apparent that we are making little progress reversing

global

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

environmental

decline

5

global

advanced the idea of integration that has

environmental protection around a concept of

become part and parcel of the concept of

sustainable

sustainable

because

we

have

been

organising

development

that

has

been

development.

Environmental

colonised by economic growth for the last

concerns and policies were to be integrated

quarter century.

more broadly in planning by government.

Tracing the trajectory of

the same time, however, integration was not to

sustainable development bears this out.

In very abbreviated compass, let’s consider what happened. We start in 1969 and the lead up to Stockholm.

Economically poor states

were at best ambivalent, but mostly resistant, to attending because of a reasonable view that environmental problems of the time were the creation

of

because

economically

agreed

rich

states

international

and

measures

designed to protect the environment might impose new constraints on their economic development.

At

To surmount these concerns,

Maurice Strong, the Secretary-General of the Conference, proposed linking environment and

operate as a limit on economic growth for either poor or rich countries. If environmental goals

and

economic

priorities

were

in

opposition, then difficult choices and “tradeoffs” would have to be made.

According to

the Founex Report, international law must be silent about these choices because they “can only be made by … countries themselves in the light of their own situations and … cannot be determined by any rules established a priori.”

This toothless form of integration,

without

any

definite

environmental

limits,

continues to bedevil us today.

We now jump to 1987, the year the

development for the first time. Strong argued that the needs of economically poor countries

World

“would

the

Development issued Our Common Future, and

of

successfully pushed the adoption by all states

best

be

environment

as

served an

by

treating

integral

dimension

the

idea

was

initially

resisted

by

influential Southern development economists like Mahbub ul Haq and Gamani Corea, Strong was able to include (or co-opt) them and 25 others

in

an

economists,

instrumental

development

meeting experts,

of and

scientists from all parts of the world in Founex, Switzerland

in

June

1971.

The

meeting

produced the Report on Development and Environment (famously known as the Founex Report), which highlighted the urgency of environmental

problems

that

arise

out

of

poverty and made clear that for poor countries these were of priority.

on

Environment

and

of the well-known definition of the concept of

development rather than an impediment.”

While

Commission

The Report also first

sustainable development as “development that meets

the

needs

of

the

present

without

compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”

The Report,

however, did much more than this. When Our Common

Future

Governing

was

Council

of

presented UNEP

to by

the the

Commission’s Chair, Gro Harlem Brundtland, she asserted that the idea of sustainable development was really (and I quote) a “new concept for economic growth”. 2

2 Gro Harlem Brundtland, James Marshall

It did not

Memorial Lecture,

19 October 1987 (“Sustainable development itself – the overriding political concept of the Commission – is, in fact, a

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

6

take long for those with free market, free trade

If all this had entailed was a lawyerly struggle

and laissez-faire capitalist agendas to seize on

with ambiguity created by new terminology it

this and for, at least some, to recast their

would not have been out of the ordinary.

ambitions for unbridled economic growth in

However, more than just a change of name

the

has been involved.

“green

language”

of

sustainable

The change from a

development. The first step was to equate

discourse of international environmental law,

sustainable

with

development

with

sustainable

a

specific

on

protection,

sustained economic growth (unlimited in any

sustainable development, with its focus on

way) was asserted to be the way to achieve

economic

sustainable development.

impact. As Marc Pallemaerts presciently saw

1989,

this

perversion

of

sustainable

development found its way into the General Assembly Resolution convening the 1992 Rio Conference.

The Resolution affirmed in a

number of places the importance of economic growth.

In particular, though, it proclaimed

“the importance of a supportive international economic environment that would result in sustained

economic

growth

.

.

.

in

all

countries.” Note the language. The resolution highlights purely “sustained” growth in all countries (rich and poor), not sustainable growth

that

is

environmental

limited

or

conditioned.

By the time we got to Rio, the Brazilian delegate

on

Working

Group

III

of

the

Preparatory Committee of the Conference had successfully persuaded all the delegates to substitute the new term “international law in the field of sustainable development” for the established environmental

area law”

of in

all

“international the

conference

documents. It was reported that following his success, the Brazilian delegate flashed a mischievous look and said, “[t]hat will keep you lawyers busy well into the 21st Century”.

back

rhetoric

environmental

economic growth. Then, losing all pretence,

In

to

focus

growth,

in

has

1992,

subordinated

it

bound had

has

up

a

with

destructive

diminished

international

and

environmental

protection to economic growth and social development under what has become known as the principle of integration that I have already

referred

to.

The

principle

of

integration reduces environmental imperatives to just one factor (along with economic and social desires) to be weighed in decisionmaking.

The problem, of course, is that the

environment usually comes out on the losing end

because

sustainable

development

eschews any sort of legal limits that provide substantive environmental protection.

The trajectory of displacement of specific environmental concern for the planet -- in favour of the idea sustainable development informed by growth -- proceeds apace today.

Instead of law and policies to support the global

environment

by

the

necessary

modifications of our own economic and social activities, we find U.N. documents like the 4th Global Environmental Outlook turning the idea of

using

the

economy

to

support

environmental protection inside out like a glove.

The

Environment

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

4th for

Outlook Development

is

subtitled

and

states

7

“society has the capacity to make a difference

How to accomplish this transformation, though,

in the way the environment is used to underpin

is far from clear and will be a struggle no

[economic]

matter how approached.

development

.

.

..”

This

formulation clearly renders the environment an instrument of growth and development and, presumably, today, of the green economy. In this way environmental degradation is seen as a spoiler of development instead of seeing what is really needed – constraint on economic development These

to

retrograde

protect

the

environment.

views

about

sustainable

development equalling economic growth and the environment as instrumentality of the economy obtain in many of the documents now circulating around Rio+ 20. To give you a flavour, the most recent issue of Our Planet contains this economic growth dictate about Rio + 20 outcomes by Elizabeth Thompson, the Executive Coordinator of the Conference: Rio

+

20

“must

know,

confronting

however, complexity;

it

does

but

confronting

complexity with an embrace. 3 must

further

global

complicate

environmental

decoupling

Indeed, we

and

problematize

protection

economic

involve

not

growth,

by

social

considerations, and environmental priorities, but by establishing difficult and sensitive environmental limits on the main drivers of global

environmental

growth,

problems

consumption,

and

(population destructive

technological impact). These limits must be built into the principle of integration and applied at the municipal level when necessary in order to protect the planet.

It may seem

utopian to make this argument, especially in these economically hard times, but one should

continued

remember the admonition of Sir Wilfred Jenks.

growth and satisfy the South’s development

Jenks famously invoked Proverbs 29:18 in

needs and nuances. It needs to assure large

arguing for idealism in international law --

emerging

development

“where there is no vision, people perish”, he

trajectories will not be halted or present gains

insisted. A message with clear resonance for

reversed.”

us today.

and

economies

desire

the

do

North’s

industrialisation

respect

I

for

…[that]

All of this is far removed from the objective of global

environmental

important end in itself.

protection

as

an

Until we put this

objective front and centre as the primary focus of

international

environmental

diplomacy,

policy and law and as long as economic

3 Thanks to Di Otto for provoking me to

think further about

complexity here.

Image courtesy of NASA

growth reigns, we will not have improvement.

Associate Professor Don Anton (Barrister and Solicitor, Victoria and High Court) specialising in International Environmental Law at the College of Law, Australian National University.

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

8

A Legal Solution to the South China Sea Dispute Andaleeb Akhand

Tensions in the South China Sea have been

area: one-third of the world’s shipping transits

steadily

through its waters, functioning as “vital arteries

growing

since

2009,

when

China,

Vietnam and Malaysia submitted their respective claims in the region under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). With China now conducting naval exercises in the area, tensions are now higher than at any moment since the end of the Cold War. 1

of world trade.”

China’s burgeoning ability to project its naval power has seen it become more bellicose in enforcing its interests. Beijing believes that some Southeast Asian claimants are “plundering” maritime resources that naturally belong to

Other Southeast Asian nations have now joined

China, and it hasn’t been shy in deploying

the staking of territorial claims, including the

aggressive

Philippines, Brunei and Taiwan. But why have

perceived injustice. Such tactics have included

these tensions flared only recently? What makes

“cutting the cables of survey ships, planting

South China Sea sovereignty and exploitation

markers on unoccupied reefs, and harassing

rights so valuable as to endanger regional

foreign fishing boats.”

stability?

tactics

in

order

to

rectify

this

With regional tensions rising, what strategies

The South China Sea – a 3.5 million square

have competing claimants been employing to

kilometre area in the Pacific Ocean bound by

resolve this impasse?

China and several Southeast Asian nations – has hundreds of uninhabited islands and coral atolls that some of the world’s most diverse marine life call home. What makes the area so coveted, however, are potentially huge reserves of natural gas and oil.2 It is also rich in fish, a vital source of protein for hundreds of millions of people

The first is bilateral solutions. While Beijing has expressed

a

preference

for

this

over

“internationalisation” of the issue, Southeast Asian states see this as China’s way of freezing resource development in its favour, while not actually resolving the various competing claims.

across Asia, and a lucrative income stream.

The second strategy is multilateral solutions,

Besides this, there is the strategic location of the

using

organisation ASEAN (Association of Southeast

1 J Hemmings, The South China Sea dispute: a legal solution needed , East Asia Forum, 7 December 2011: http://www.eastasiaforum.org/2011/12/07/the-­‐south-­‐china-­‐sea-­‐ dispute-­‐a-­‐legal-­‐solution-­‐needed/

Asian Nations) as a negotiating bloc to deal with

2

CNN Wire Staff, Philippines shuffle ships in maritime standoff with China , CNN, 12 April 2012: http://edition.cnn.com/2012/04/12/world/asia/philippines-chinanaval-standoff/

the

geopolitical

and

economic

China. But given that the dispute over the South China Sea involves only four of ASEAN’s members – Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and the Philippines – China has been able to splinter the

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

9

positions of these four members from the other

The final strategy has been

ASEAN member states.

actors, as a way of solidifying their own position

The third strategy for China’s neighbours in the region has been to forge closer ties with the United States. The US still has vital economic and strategic interests in the region, and can serve as a stabilising counterbalance to Chinese aggression. During a high-profile visit to Manila last November, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stood

on

the

deck

of

American

warship

Fitzgerald in Manila Bay, and reaffirmed the strong military relationship between the United States

and

the

Philippines.

3

Washington’s

position has been that territorial disputes in the South China Sea should be settled peacefully.

“We are strongly of the opinion that disputes that exist primarily in the West Philippine Sea between the Philippines and China should be resolved peacefully,” Clinton said in a televised conference with Philippine Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Albert del Rosario. “Any nation with a

to involve outside

and exerting pressure. India’s state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) signed a deal with Vietnam’s PetroVietnam to purchase BP’s stakes in oil and gas development in waters off the Vietnamese coast. Japan held talks with Filipino diplomats in September last year on peaceful

resolution

of

the

disputes

in

accordance with international law. It was also proposed that the two countries set up a ‘permanent working group’ to tackle disputes and

other

Asian

maritime

issues.

More

importantly, military and security ties were tightened,

with

their

bilateral

relationship

elevated to a ‘strategic partnership.’ But while outside involvement may secure some degree of protection

for

ASEAN

claimants

from

the

Chinese, it can also be a dangerous strategy, one which risks invoking a strong reaction from Beijing.6

claim has a right to exert it, but they do not have

While the aforementioned strategies have each

a right to pursue it through intimidation or

had their own merits, they have not been able to

coercion.”

4

former

effectively and comprehensively address the

wartime enemy, Vietnam has collaborated with

underlying issue of strategic competition in the

the US in staging joint naval exercises, over the

South China Sea which is continuing to fuel

objections of the Chinese.5

specific, competing claims. Tensions remain

Meanwhile,

America’s

3 J Hemmings, The South China Sea dispute: a legal solution needed , East Asia Forum, 7 December 2011: http://www.eastasiaforum.org/2011/12/07/the-­‐south-­‐china-­‐sea-­‐ dispute-­‐a-­‐legal-­‐solution-­‐needed/ 4

Floyd Whaley, Clinton Reaffirms Military Ties With the Philippines , The New York Times, 16 November 2011: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/17/world/asia/clinton-reaffirmsmilitary-ties-with-thephilippines.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=clinton%20and%20philippines &st=cse

high and claims are still unresolved. The limited diplomatic gains of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and ASEAN summits in tackling

this

issue

have

underscored

the

shortcomings of a regional diplomacy-based approach.

6

5

US-Vietnam naval drill begins against China s wish , AFP, 15 July 2011: http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jz1XaFjQ V9k9m17ombCaZ18PBBRQ?docId=CNG.9fbf1bb211a93e1890 ad9c91706d0f6e.e1

Andy Yee, India and Japan s involvement in the South China Sea disputes , East Asia Forum, 10 November 2011: http://www.eastasiaforum.org/2011/11/10/india-and-japan-sinvolvement-in-the-south-china-sea-disputes/

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

10

One way forward could be the introduction of a

compromise. Conceding to another country

legal framework for the South China Sea. This is

would be tantamount to betraying national

a strategy that has long been discarded by

sovereignty, for China and other countries. A

academics, analysts and policymakers, but it

legal ruling, which places the responsibility on a

nevertheless should be seriously considered.

third, outside

Various international legal mechanisms have been

developed

to

arbitrate

and

party

however, would

neatly

sidestep this dilemma.

resolve

Moreover, as China grows both as a regional

precisely these kinds of disputes – the arbitral

and a global power, Beijing can be persuaded of

tribunals under the jurisdiction of UNCLOS, the

the benefits of working through the international

International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the

legal system. The international legal system

International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea

safeguards the rights of smaller states like those

(ITLOS).

in ASEAN, but also provides an opportunity for

With such high stakes involved, and the failure of the regional diplomatic route to come to a consensus, it is important that the ASEAN

big countries like China to demonstrate that they can be responsible global players as they comes of age. 7

member states collectively push for a legal solution to the issue. While China has resisted legalising the disputes, if ASEAN can unify behind this approach, China may be amenable to being persuaded. Moreover, the decade or so

7

John Hemmings, ‘Law not War in the South China Sea’, Maritime Security, 23 November 2011: http://maritimesecurity.asia/free-2/maritime-security-asia/lawnot-war-in-the-south-china-sea/

over which legal proceedings would take place can be used to educate public perceptions and allocate funds for university workshops and seminars on international law.

ONLINE RESOURCES UN Convention on the Law of the Sea

With a neutral body ruling on the matter, domestic populations are less likely to be concerned because it will be less likely that they

Overview and full text of the convention. http://www.un.org/depts/los

perceive that their government has been forced to

make

concessions

to

another

country.

Understanding nationalist sentiments is key to understanding why the various players in the South China Sea dispute have been loath to

Andaleeb Akhand is completing a Master of Studies at the Australian National University.

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

11

has

paramount consideration in resorting to war. 4

demonstrated the great cost to lives and

The inhumanity that results is an unavoidable

The

course

of

human

history

1

property that inevitably comes with war. As

side effect or even necessary activity given the

war has evolved over time, so too have diverse

pressures faced in conflict. 5 Representing the

perspectives on thinking about it. At one

other extreme is pacifism, contending even

extreme sits realism, asserting that in the

one who is attacked should not fight back,

pursuit

much less launch an offensive war. 6

of

advantage,

violence

is

human

nature. 2 Karl Von Clausewitz suggested that war had neither intrinsic limits nor could be externally limited. 3 General William Sherman later described war as cruelty incapable of refinement. For realist thinkers Carneades and Machiavelli, maintaining the sovereign was the

1

Christian Enemark and Christopher Michaelsen, “Just War Doctrine and the Invasion of Iraq,” Australian Journal of Politics and History 51:4 (2005) 545. 545.

Both

extremes

elucidate

very

simplistic

viewpoints. Despite the evils of war, it would be wrong to deny its necessity at times. While war has served those who seek conquest, so too has it served to defend against them, marked in recent history by the defeat of Nazism in Europe. Just as war may serve as

4

Ibid.

2

Gregory M Reichberg, “Just Ad Bellum”, in War: Essays in Political Philosophy. Ed. Larry May (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008) 11. 14.

3 Michael Walzer, Just and Unjust Wars (New York: Basic Books, 1977) 23.

5

Michael W Lewis, The War on Terror and the Laws of War (New York: Oxford University Press, 2009) 4.

6

Larry May, Aggression and Crimes against Peace (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008) 26.

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

12

an implement for those with evil intentions, so

a just cause (traditionally self-defence), who

too can it serve those who, as Thomas

does so with the right intention. To go to war

Aquinas posited, wage it out of a desire for

must be the last preferred option (“last resort”).

peace.

7

The war must have a reasonable prospect of

Balancing these two extremes, just war theory contributes to a tradition of thought and principles

regarding

the

recourse

to

and

conduct of war. Some of these principles are now reflected in humanitarian law, the laws of war.

However, as with war itself, just war

theory and humanitarian law are capable of serving

both

those

with

good

and

bad

intentions. For while they have spurred the creation of limits that seek to restrict the harm of war, they have also been invoked by those seeking to justify what is arguably unjust.

succeeding, with costs not disproportionate to what can be gained from it. 10 The jus in bello attempts to limit the carnage in conflict by requiring parties to recognise the immunity of non-combatants, and ensure that harm is not disproportionate to the good that may come from conduct within the conflict. 11 Some of these principles are reflected in humanitarian law. The United Nations Charter of 1949 and preceding instruments mirror the ad bellum principle of just cause, limiting recourse to war to self-defence. codified for

Just War and Humanitarian Law

12

The Geneva Conventions

distinction between and standards

treatment

of

combatants

of

just

and

non-

theory

and

combatants.

Existing between pacifism and realism, just war theory shares the aversion to violence of

Those

the former while accepting that circumstances

humanitarian law point to their perceived

may arise where war is ethically justified. 8 The

failures to deal with the costly wars of the

tradition

twentieth

has

evolved

over

time

with

critical

century.

war

Humanitarian

law

often

contributions from thinkers seeking to answer

developed as a reactionary tool, with major

two basic questions; when may war be used

instruments

forming

in

response

and how must it be waged? 9 The principles

ravages of the world wars.

that

history,

have

developed

to

answer

these

the

just

war

13

to

the

For periods in

tradition

has

been

questions are categorised as the jus ad bellum

forgotten or dismissed in favour of the belief

and jus in bello respectively.

that states should be able to wage war based on their subjective interests - the doctrine of

The jus ad bellum deems war permissible only where it is waged by a competent authority for

7

Anicee Van Engeland, Civilian of Combatant? A Challenge for the 21st Century (New York: Oxford University Press, 2011) 7.

raison d’état. 14 To be sure, there are examples

10

David Fisher, Morality and War (New York: Oxford University Press, 2011) 66.

11

Ibid., 67.

12

Reichberg, War: Essays in Political Philosophy, 11.

8

Raymond Kuo, “Occupation and Just War”, International Relations 22:3 (2008) 299. 300.

9 Larry May and Emily Crookston, “Introduction” in War: Essays in Political Philosophy, ed. Larry May (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008) 1. 2.

13 Gabor Rona, “Interesting Times for International Humanitarian Law: Challenges from the War on Terror”, Political Violence 17:1 (2005) 157. 158.

14

Reichberg, War: Essays in Political Philosophy, 11.

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

13

that point against the efficacy of just war

enforcement and criminalising specific acts. 18

theory and humanitarian law. US strategy in

Following the attacks, US strategy shifted,

Korea deliberately targeted locations to harm

declaring a “war” on terrorism and vowing to

civilian morale while campaigns in Vietnam

defeat

resulted in the destruction of farmland and

Reconciling the war on terror and US conduct

forests, neither of which showed regard for the

toward terror suspects with just war theory

principles of proportionality and discrimination

and humanitarian law is problematic.

in war.

15

However, to deny that just war theory

and humanitarian law can serve a useful purpose would be akin to dismissing domestic law as invalid if some do not obey it. One cannot ignore the progress made on issues such as land mines, a weapon deplored for lacking discrimination, where humanitarian law has done much to limit their use and spur their clean up.

16

Nor can we ignore the broad

legitimacy with which humanitarian law and just war principles are held in the international arena.

all

groups

with

global

reach.

19

Terrorism is a broad concept, for which an internationally proven

recognised

elusive.

The

US

definition

has

Department

of

Defence describes terrorists as those who use “force or violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce.” 20 Bellamy asserts that a war against such a vague foe cannot be “just” given the inability to assign a just cause to all terror groups alike. 21 In light of the number of groups to which the definition above could apply, I would agree. Vitoria spoke of the sole just cause for war being defence when harm

States, though, are able to interpret them in

has been suffered, a view reflected in the UN

ways that are repugnant to their spirit and

Charter. 22 While this may apply to Al-Qaeda for

invoke them to justify what is arguably unjust.

sponsoring 9/11 and the Taliban via state

The actions and strategic pronouncements of

responsibility in international law, one cannot

the US regarding the war on terror have on

attribute this just cause to terrorism, with its

occasion mirrored raison d’état , dismissing

diverse actors and aims as a whole.

their applicability.

17

Yet the United States has

invoked both of them to give legitimacy to their strategic endeavours too. Rather than regulating global conflict, they can become weapons for global conflict.

The war on terror and Afghanistan Prior

to

responses

the to

attacks terrorism

of

September focused

on

11, law

With such a vague target, the ad bellum and in bello

principles

of

proportionality

become

18 Nigel White, “Terrorism, security and international law” in International Law, Security and Ethics, eds. Aidan Hehir, Natasha Kuhurt and Andrew Mumford (London: Routledge, 2011) 9. 15.

19 Evangelista, Law, Ethics and the war on terror, 60.; Nicholas Wheeler, “Dying for ‘Enduring Freedom’ Accepting Responsibility for Civilian Casualties in the War against Terrorism”, International Relations 16:2 (2002) 205. 205.

20 Uwe Steinhoff, On the Ethics of War and Terrorism (New York: Oxford University Press, 2007) 110.

15

Mathew Evangelista, Law, Ethics and the War on Terror (Cambridge: Polity Books, 2008) 35.

16

17

Ibid., 13.

Ibid., 69.

21

Alex Bellamy, “Is the war on terror just?” International Relations 19:3 (2007) 275. 291.

22 Alia Brahimi, Jihad and Just War in the War on Terror (New York: Oxford University Press, 2010) 24.

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

14

more difficult to calculate. Rodin ponders

connected outlets rather than a single body. 27

whether the millions who died and lasting

Bin Laden’s views have been rejected even by

effects on Europe were worth the price in

fellow radical Islamist figures such as Hamas

defeating Nazism.

23

Walzer concluded the

founder (and according to the definition above,

effort, including bombing German cities was,

terrorist leader) Ahmed Yasin. 28 While the US

given the “immeasurable evil” of Nazi victory. 24

has attempted to draw parallels between the

Calculating proportionality is difficult, for the

threat of Nazism and terrorism, the latter has

length and stakes of war cannot be predicted

fragmentation and subtlety the other did not. 29

with certainty. Murray spoke of the need to make a “moral calculus” based on factors including who is to be fought and what is at stake. 25 Though Walzer described the Nazi triumph as immeasurable, the allies knew of the size and capacity of the axis powers and of the populations at risk of being subject to their rule.

Characterising the war on terror as war brings with it responsibilities and freedoms regarding the in bello principle of discrimination and treatment of persons under humanitarian law.

The indeterminate boundaries of the conflict have given the United States broad latitude, including carrying out the targeted killing of terror suspects that would otherwise be more

The same cannot be said for terrorism. Osama

clearly prohibited as extra judicial punishment

Bin Laden (citing the Quranic equivalent of just

under international law.

war theory) characterised the group’s actions

capitalised on this wartime freedom, it has

as defensive against the perceived western

obfuscated

invasion of the “umma,” and more specifically

treatment of those captured. Afghan suspects

the “occupation” of the holy lands.

26

At other

its

for

the

from 2002 onwards were denied any of the recognised

American. The gravity of the threat defines the

conventions

level of force we may use and the cost we are

combatants” instead. 31

whose intent, capacity and numbers are fluid

As the US has

responsibilities

times though, Al-Qaeda spoke of killing every

willing to pay, yet against an abstract foe

30

classifications and

under

labelled

relevant “unlawful

Expanding the war: Iraq

and ill-defined, determining the potential costs

The 2003 invasion of Iraq demonstrated the

against the potential benefits of going to war

strained invocation of just war principles and

is difficult. Even a single target like Al-Qaeda

is more akin to a franchise with loosely

27

Ibid.

28

Ibid,. 99.

23

David Fisher, Morality and War (New York: Oxford University Press, 2011) 74.

24 Terrence Kelly, “The just conduct of war against Islamic terror and insurgencies”, in The Price of Peace, eds. Charles Reed and David Ryall (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007) 25

Ibid.

26

Brahimi, Jihad and Just War in the War on Terror, 112.

29 Nicholas Wheeler, “Dying for “Enduring Freedom’ Accepting Responsibility for Civilian Casualties in the War against Terrorism, International Relations 16:2 (2002) 205. 215 30 Elizabeth Bates, Terrorism and International Law: Accountability, Remedies and Reform (New York: Oxford University Press, 2011) 234.

31

Evangilista, Law Ethics and the War on Terror, 62.

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

15

humanitarian law for an unjust cause. 32 Formal

humanitarian law come responsibilities that

justification

on

attach to parties to a conflict and legitimacy

reactivating UN resolutions from the 1990s, a

for the actions engaged in. 38 It is neither

move of doubtful legal soundness given the

possible to attach those responsibilities to a

passage

different

foe as vague as terrorism nor is it desirable to

resolutions

give terrorists the legitimacy of engaging in

specified. 33 This also casts doubt on whether

formal armed conflict. Terrorist activities are

ad bellum authority existed, as neither the US

criminal, as recognised by international legal

itself possessed it justly nor is it likely it was

instruments,

34

accordingly.

for

of

intervention

time

and

to

those

circumstances

rested

vastly the

legally derived from an international body.

The US additionally invoked the language of just war theory to support its cause, using the controversial notion of preventative versus pre-emptive war. The US justification centred on Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction and perceived

willingness

to

share

them

with

terrorists. 35 That Iraq had neither attacked the US nor was there any indication an attack was imminent meant US action was preventative, described by Grotius as an unjust cause. 36 US doctrine framed just cause as preventing a “serious” threat rather than pre-empting the “imminent” threat more readily accepted in just war theory. 37

of war against terrorism Considering the problematic nature of fighting terrorism with war, is this approach suitable, even

desirable?

With

just

war

and

32

Brahimi, Jihad and Just War in the War on Terror, 2.

33

Christine Enemark and Christopher Michaelsen, “Just War Doctrine and the Invasion of Iraq”, Australian Journal of Politics and History 51:4 (2005) 545. 556.

34

35

36

should

be

treated

It must also be recognised that entering into a conflict characterised as war may serve the purposes of terrorists. Bin Laden framed AlQaeda’s campaign as defensive jihad against western invasion of the holy lands. 39 Though Bin Laden’s interpretation is widely held to be faulty, utilising large-scale armed force risks lending credence to his claims, at least to those who may choose to support him. Indeed using force can push different people and groups

together

for

a

common

unifying terrorist elements.

40

interest,

One concludes

from this that a return to the emphasis on law enforcement would be desirable.

The perils of using just war theory and laws

or

and

Ibid.

Ibid,. 550.

Conclusion “Those who have been attacked are permitted to take up arms because they have been wronged.” 41 Though similar, these are not the words of just war thinkers like Augustine, Aquinas, Vitroria or Suarez, but a Quranic verse cited by Osama Bin Laden justifying

38

Rona, Terrorism and Political Violence, 159.

39

Brahimi, Jihad and Just War in the War on Terror, 112.

40

Reichberg, War: Essays in Political Philosophy, 27.

Robert Trager and Dessislava Zagorcheve, “Deterring Terrorism: It can be done”, International Security 30:3 (2005/06) 87. 121.

37

Marc Weller, Iraq and the use of force in International Law (New York: Oxford University Press, 2010)

41

Brahimi, Jihad and Just War in the War on Terror, 113.

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

16

FURTHER READING attacks on America. It is poignant for it illustrates the inherent weakness of law and theory… the reliance on those who interpret and use it. The Islamic equivalent of just war

Selected works from this article’s bibliography.

The War on Terror and the Framework on International Law Helen Duffy (Cambridge University Press, 2005)

theory was invoked by Al-Qaeda to justify its deeds, though their interpretation of it was judged as flawed by Islamic thinkers. 42 Just war theory and humanitarian law cannot be dismissed

as

intellectual

practical

purpose.

They

continue

to

the

have

folly

serving

no

have

done

and

great

potential

to

promote good. They however are merely tools

Terrorism and International Law: Accountability, Remedies and Reform Elizabeth Stubbins (Oxford University Press, 2011)

Iraq and the Use of Force in International Law Marc Weller (Oxford University Press, 2010)

that require a hand to wield them. If a state interprets them vulgarly or chooses to ignore them, the culpability belongs to the state that

In War: Essays in Political Philosophy Larry May (Cambridge University Press, 2008)

does so. Vitoria spoke of circumstances where both sides believe their cause just, stating that decision makers should exercise diligence and probity

while

seeking

arbitration and mediation.

opportunities 43

Just Wars Alex Bellamy (Polity Press, 2006)

for

The United States

though has not demonstrated this, instead

The War on Terror and the Laws of War Geoffrey Corn (Oxford University Press, 2003)

turning to just war theory and humanitarian law as a weapon of war.

Just War on Terror: A Christian and Muslin Response David Fisher and Brian Wicker (Ashgate, 2010)

42

Ibid., 112.

43

Reichberg, War: Essays in Political Philosophy, 21.

Morality and War David Fisher (Oxford University Press, 2011)

Image courtesy of United States Army

International Law, Security and Ethics Aidan Hehir, Natasha Kuhrt & Andrew Mumford (Routledge, 2011)

Adam Spence is a combined Law/Arts undergraduate, majoring in Political Science and International Relations. Outside of university, he’s an internationally awarded photographer and published writer. www.adamspence.com.au

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

17

Non-Citizens in Latvia and the ECtHR Josefin Dahlerus

Located between the Baltic Sea and the Russian

Other State.” In essence, this law designates

Federation, Latvia occupies

the geographical

former citizens of the USSR as “non-citizens,”

and cultural borderland between Western and

provided that their last registered place of

Eastern Europe. Having endured decades of

residence before July, 1992 was in Latvia.

Soviet occupation, this multi-ethnic state has recently sought to distance itself from the influence of its Russian neighbor by joining both NATO and the European Union. Yet the heritage of the red tsars continues to influence Latvian politics today. During the Soviet era, the share of ethnic Russians residing in the Latvian territory increased significantly; in 1989, ethnic Russians constituted 34 percent of the population, after only having made up 10.5 percent of the population in 1935. This shift was the combined result of mass deportations of ethnic Latvians and 'Russification' policies instituted by the Soviet

regime.

When

Latvia

finally

gained

independence in 1991, a large number of ethnic Russians and other ex-Soviet nationals remained in the country. As former citizens of a defunct empire,

however,

they

effectively

became

stateless.

“non-citizens cannot be compared with any other status of a physical entity, which has been determined in international legal acts, as the rate of rights, established for non-citizens, does not comply with any other status. Latvian noncitizens can be regarded neither as the citizens, nor the aliens and stateless persons but as persons with ‘a specific legal status.’” 2 Noncitizens hold special passports, but are deprived of a number of rights—the most significant of which is the right to vote.3 Non-citizens are also not allowed to hold government jobs. As of 2011, nearly 14.4 percent of Latvia’s total population of 2,224,230 held non-citizen status. Over 65 percent (or 209,934 individuals) of these noncitizens were ethnic Russians.

It is worth noting that the average share of

Relying on a “restorationist policy of nationbuilding,” which aimed to revive the pre-war Latvian state and cultural identity, the fledgling Latvian legislature was reluctant to grant the stateless

According to the Constitutional Court of Latvia,

ex-Soviet

nationals

citizenship.

1

Instead, these individuals were granted a status of “permanent resident non-citizens.” Today, the non-citizen status is regulated by a 1995 law which, very appropriately, is titled “On the status of those former U.S.S.R. Citizens who do not have the Citizenship of Latvia or that of any

1 David J. Galbreath and Niels Muižnieks, “Latvia: Managing Post-Imperial Minorities,” in Minority Rights in Central and Eastern Europe, ed. Bernd Rechel (New York: Routledge, 2009), 137.

foreign or non-citizens among EU member states is 6.4 percent. Moreover, approximately third of these individuals have migrated within the EU. In other words, these statistics indicate that Latvia (along with Estonia) is unique within the EU in terms of hosting a large stable population that is not granted the rights of regular citizens. The

European

Commission

argues that in"the case of Latvia and Estonia,

2 Case No. 2004-15-0106, The Republic of Latvia Constitutional Court, March 7, 2005. Available at http://www.satv.tiesa.gov.lv/upload/2004-15-0106E.rtf.

3 An extensive list of difference between the rights and privileges of citizens and non-citizens has been made available online by the Latvian Human Rights Committee at http://www.cilevics.eu/minelres/count/non_cit-rights_2.htm.

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

18

the proportion of non-EU citizens is particularly

Hopefully, the ECtHR can continue to serve as a

large due to the high number of ‘recognised

mechanism for improving the situation of non-

non-citizens’. They are mainly citizens of the

citizens in Latvia—especially since the political

former Soviet Union, permanently resident in

pressure from the EU has waned after the entry

these countries, but who have not acquired

of Latvia a a member state. While subscribers to

Latvian, Estonian or any other citizenship.”4

the realist school of thought will undoubtedly

While

the

pro-Russian,

left-wing

Harmony

Center today is the single biggest party in the Saeima having gained nearly 30 percent of the total vote in parliamentary elections last year, it is not included in the governing coalition.

argue that international institutions

which rely

on voluntary cooperation, such as the ECtHR, are essentially toothless, the Latvian eagerness to integrate further into the European community may be a sufficient incentive for change.

Likewise, a proposal to adopt Russian as a

The ECtHR can serve an important role in

second official language was rejected by an

highlighting democratic deficits in the country.

overwhelming majority this spring (non-citizens

Considering the rapidly increasing number of

were

the

applicants, it seems that aggrieved individuals in

Niels Ušakovs, party leader of

Latvia are becoming ever more willing to take

not

referendum).

allowed

to

participate

in

Harmony Centre, was not surprised by the result.

“This referendum is not creating problems,”

their legal battles to the ECtHR after exhausting their options in the domestic court system.

Ušakovs commented.“ It is a reflection of existing problems.” 5 The non-citizens of Latvia have recently, however, turned to international law for the enforcement of their rights. In 2009, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) issued a significant ruling in Andrejeva v Latvia.

ONLINE RESOURCES European Court of Human Rights

citizen, had been discriminated by the state on

Case law, pending cases, reports and information about the court.

the basis of her citizenship status. The applicant,

http://www.echr.coe.int

In this case it was held that the applicant, a non-

who was born in Kazakhstan but arrived in Latvia at the age of twelve, had received a lower pension than regular Latvian citizens, despite the fact that she had spent her entire working life in Latvia. The ruling was the first of its kind.

4 European Commission, Demography Report 2010: Older, More Numerous and Diverse Europeans (Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2011), 48.

5 David M. Herszenhorn, “Latvians Reject Russian as Second Language,” New York Times, February 19, 2012, http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/20/world/europe/latviarejects-bid-to-adopt-russian-as-second-language.html.

Josefin Dahlerus is completing an undergraduate thesis in the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University in May 2012, specialising in Russian and East European studies.

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

19

Kony 2022?

Kevin Boreham

The consensus has rapidly formed: Kony 2012

crimes and the fact that he is still at large and

was ‘like sooo 10 minutes ago’.

Our fickle

committing atrocities, if on a diminished scale.

attention has moved on, Joseph Kony is still

Madeleine Albright, the former US Secretary of

free and You Tube has reverted to pop star

State, told Nicholas Kristoff of the New York

and sports trivia.

Times that ‘Shining a light makes a lot of

We should ask just what

happened when Invisible Children’s video hit You Tube and obtained 89 million views, before we completely forget the whole thing.

difference’.

The broader question is whether the Kony 2012 episode shown us anything new about

Google searches for Kony rapidly slipped back

how to enforce international law, especially

to their negligible pre-Kony 2012 level.

international criminal justice.

The

follow-up video ‘Beyond Famous’ has had only 2 million views. ‘Cover the Night’ on 20 April was a fizzer, although there was some local activity in Canberra. ‘Slacktivism’ couldn’t get us up off our couches and actually doing something.

First, ‘shining a light’ has a useful effect. The late Louis Henkin sought to explain why ‘almost

all

nations

observe

almost

all

principles of international law almost all of the time’.

1

Part

of

the

answer

was

that

‘democracies tend to observe international law

The campaign itself has somewhat hit the wall.

more than do others’ because ‘free institutions

Invisible Children has been criticised for over-

make it more difficult for a government to risk

simplifying and distorting a complex issue,

violation in the hope that it will not be

advocating, military intervention to capture

detected’. 2 Social media spread the deterrent

Kony and, by gay organisations, for pushing

effect of detection beyond the borders of

Christian fundamentalism in Africa. There has

democratic states.

been an angry reaction to Kony 2012 in Uganda: at one screening ‘the mood turned more to anger at what many people saw as a foreign, inaccurate account that belittled and commercialised

their

suffering’.

Most

notoriously, and irrelevantly, Jason Russell, the director of ‘Kony 2012’ and co-founder of Invisible

Children,

suffered

a

very

public

personal meltdown.

community

of

international

crimes,

particularly

the

recruitment of child soldiers, and international justice.

The

attention

to

video the

provoked

guilty

verdicts

enhanced against

Democratic Republic of Congo militia leader Thomas Lubanga in the International Criminal

1

Louis Henkin, How Nations Behave (Columbia University Press, 1979) 47.

Kony 2012 has drawn attention in the social media

Secondly, Kony 2012 has increased awareness

and

beyond

to

2

Ibid 63.

Kony’s

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

20

Court on 14 March, for conscripting and enlisting child soldiers, and against former Liberian

President

Charles

Taylor

in

the

Special Court for Sierra Leone on 26 April, for war crimes and crimes against humanity, including recruitment, enlistment and use of child soldiers.

international law actors: all of us.

Twenty

years

effect’,

drawing

we

noticed

attention

‘the

of

CNN

the

international

community to scenes of mass suffering.

The

Kony 2012 effect came, not from a huge media corporation, but from the individuals who made it and the millions of individuals who watched it.

on Invisible Children we have tended to forget that they achieved their objective to ‘to make Kony famous’. One survey found that 58 per cent of adult Americans had heard of Kony after Kony 2012 hit You Tube.

Thirdly, Kony 2012 has added a new cohort to ago

But in the welter of criticism which has fallen

ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno-

Ocampo may have exaggerated in the follow-

Beyond that, as Charli Carpenter, an American academic commentator has said, value

of

the

KONY2012

‘the real

campaign

is

to

encourage a discussion about the optimal recipe,

given

today’s

technological

infrastructure, for inciting the right level of engagement / attention that will lead to the right kind of international law enforcement at the right time’. We have to continue with that discussion.

up video in saying ‘It’s a revolution’. But Kony 2012

has

achieved

quantitative

change

a in

qualitative

and

international

law

stakeholders.

It would be silly to claim that there is any

ONLINE RESOURCES

direct effect between a social media uproar

If you’re viewing an electronic version of

and effective action.

Moreno-Ocampo has

been criticised for declaring that Kony 2012 would ‘produce the arrest of Kony this year’.

An Adelaide radio station asked me the day after

the

guilty

verdict

against

Lubanga

this article, click on the blue underlined links throughout the text to see more, including online video content.

whether Kony 2012 had prodded the Court to take action on Lubanga.

The Court was

probably not panicked into producing a 600 page judgment over the weekend.

Kevin Boreham (Barrister and Solicitor High Court and Supreme Court ACT) is a lecturer in International and Humanitarian Law at the College of Law, Australian National University.

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

21

Friday CIPL Seminar Series Sherwood Du

After signing up as a member of the ANU

The US Ambassador-at-Large Stephen Rapp who

International Law Society during Orientation Week

has

and looking through the complimentary bag, I

Justice and currently leads up the US Office of

found a letter inviting members to attend the

War Crimes Issues, former International Court of

‘Friday CIPL Seminar Series.’ As an impoverished

Justice

law student, my eyes fixed upon the words, ‘light

Narelle Morris from The University of Melbourne

lunch provided.’ Without further thought of what I

Asia Pacific Centre for Military Law and Professor

was getting myself into, over the following weeks I

William Buss from The University of Iowa, the

began to feel quite at home in the Phillipa Weeks

audience was provided with a valuable perspective

Staff Library.

on public international law, complementing legal

Held bimonthly on Fridays, the Staff Library is transformed, becoming a place where academics and seasoned legal experts such as Emeritus Professor Leslie Zines, Professor Kim Rubenstein, Associate Professor Don Anton and Dean Michael

served at the US Office of Global Criminal

Judge

Christopher

Weeramantry,

Dr

concepts you learn in lectures. It also prompted reflection on the impact that the law is making in the wider world, a rare opportunity to learn from the people who influence the shape of International Law.

Coper can casually mingle with students, chat

The CIPL Seminar Series initiative is a must-attend

about their work and ask students how they are

event

finding their studies. This in itself is quite exciting,

experienced legal professionals to share their

and

knowledge in a format that is easily digestible even

is

altogether

different

to

reading

or

paraphrasing their academic work!

Once we had been watered and fed, we were

for

all

students.

An

opportunity

for

for non-law students — as my PhD friend who attends tells me (he majors in physics).

ushered by the Director of the Centre for

So for all the budding students interested in the

International and Public Law Professor Rubenstein

relevance of the law in the international arena, the

to take our seats and warmly welcome the

Seminar Series is free to attend!

presenter of the day. After thirty minutes of listening to speakers such as

Sherwood Du is studying for a Bachelor of Arts (International Relations & Political Science) and Bachelor of Laws at the Australian National University. He is a student assistance editor at Anton’s Weekly Digest of International Law.

INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

22

COURSE REVIEWS

Summer/Winter in Geneva (SWinG) Value and Assessment: 6 units, 20% class participation and 80% essay (due during the following semester) Location: Geneva, Switzerland! Economic, Social and Cultural home of the UN, also the location of the WTO and the WHO headquarters.

Structure: Three weeks, with a three day and a four day weekend during the course. Working days run from approximately 9am to 4 or 5pm (depending on security processes for the various international organisations).

Pros: Learn international law from the international lawyers who are doing it all right now- speakers come from a wide range of areas (among others: nanotechnology, armed non-state actors in humanitarian law, climate change, disaster relief, refugees, human rights, intellectual property, health regulation, bilateral investment, multilateral trade negotiation, etc… if you can think of it, you’ll probably learn about it). You can also get valuable tips about becoming an international lawyer (how the speakers got to where they are today… sometimes the answers will surprise you!). Also, because of the structure of the course, you’ll be more than able to do a bit of traveling in Europe while you’re there. From skiing in the Swiss Alps, to beers in Berlin, the Queen in England or gelato in Italy, it’s all just a hop, skip and a jump from Geneva.

Cons: The cost. Start saving now if this sounds like something you’d like to do. You do have to get to Geneva for it, the city itself has a quite high cost of living, and administration and accommodation fees add up quickly.

- Kila Skorupa

The

Tokyo

International

Negotiation

and

Arbitration Competition The "Tokyo Competition" is offered as a course at the ANU, but you can also join the team without enrolling if you have an interest in Japanese or international law.

The competition is held in Tokyo, generally in the first week of December. It will involve substantial work in the months before December and tests three areas, namely negotiation skills, mooting or arbitration skills and argument writing skills. All areas will need to be covered if the team is to succeed. There are two teams to join, either the English-speaking team or the Japanese-speaking team. Preference is usually given to English team applicants who will be likely Japanese team competitors in future years. In most years the competition comprises four English team members and four Japanese team members; both of these are made up of students from the ANU and University of Sydney, so another interesting aspect is that you get to work with like minded students from another university.

Pros: This course is a great pathway, not only for travel to Japan, which is amazing, but to hone skills that will be of great use after graduation. Also, some of our team members have secured internships in Tokyo commencing after the competition ends.

Cons: The competition involves a substantial amount of work before the actual competition in December and the due dates for memorial submission are usually just after or during final exams. You should not apply to the team if you are not prepared to contribute, but we can guarantee that the hard work will pay off in the end, especially for those with an interest in Northeast Asian law.

- Ben Goldsworthy and James Middleton

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The Blogroll After more to read? Here are some of the blogs we’re following at the moment. If you know of any other great blogs or online publications, let us know!

United Nations: un.org/news The Anton Weekly Digest of International Law: theantonweeklydigestofinternationallaw.com Voices on International Law, Policy and Practice: intlawgrrls.com The Long War Journal: longwarjournal.org Opinio Juris: opiniojuris.org Supreme Court of the United States: scotusblog.com Marc Lynch, Foreign Policy: lynch.foreignpolicy.com

© 2012 ANU INTERNATIONAL LAW SOCIETY

I N T E R N A T I O N A L

ADVOCATE INTERNATIONAL ADVOCATE | MAY 2012

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