scholarly journals The Emerging Right to Good Governance

AJIL Unbound ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 112 ◽  
pp. 89-93
Author(s):  
Dobrochna Bach-Golecka
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Good Governance ◽  
Democratic Governance ◽  
Public Affairs ◽  
Political Community ◽  
Self Determination ◽  
Voting Procedures ◽  
The One ◽  
The Right ◽  
Procedural Aspect

From the perspective of international law, democracy may be regarded as a multifaceted phenomenon. On the one hand, it reflects the collective right of self-governance of a particular political community; on the other hand, it reflects an individual entitlement to participate in the conduct of public affairs of one's country. Democracy is connected to the principle of self-determination, understood as the freedom of a group to decide the system under which it wishes to live, while requiring a formalized set of voting procedures in order to implement this freedom. Democracy is focused on the procedural aspect of organizing elections, while not mandating any particular substantive outcome of those elections. In this essay, I propose that the right to democratic governance should be supplemented with a more robust concept: the substantive notion of good governance.

scholarly journals Toward an Instrumental Right to Democracy

AJIL Unbound ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 112 ◽  
pp. 84-88
Author(s):  
Khalifa A. Alfadhel
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Democratic Governance ◽  
Self Determination ◽  
Soviet Bloc ◽  
End Of History ◽  
The Core ◽  
Form Of Government ◽  
Famous Book ◽  
The End Of History ◽  
The Right

The downfall of the Soviet Bloc in the early 1990s led to an atmosphere of exaggerated victory, notably captured in Francis Fukuyama's famous book, The End of History, which celebrated the ideological triumph of democracy as a unanimously agreed-upon ideal form of government. The international law literature was not immune from the sense of democratic rejoicing. Of special note in this regard was the notion of an entitlement to democracy, introduced by the late Thomas Franck. Drawing on ideas of self-determination in international law, which themselves date back to the American Declaration of Independence, Franck postulated an “emerging right to democratic governance.” He stipulated that “[s]elf-determination postulates the right of a people organised in an established territory to determine its collective political destiny in a democratic fashion and is therefore at the core of the democratic entitlement.” This essay considers Franck's claims, and argues that his view of democracy was too thin; instead, the essay argues for an instrumental conception of democracy that ties it to other rights and entitlements.

Actual Problems of the Enjoyment of the Right to Self-determination in the Modern Conditions

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 (10) ◽  
pp. 0-0
Author(s):  
Марьяна Напсо ◽  
Maryana Napso
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Political Development ◽  
Self Determination ◽  
Consensus Building ◽  
Ethnic Communities ◽  
Strict Adherence ◽  
Depth Study ◽  
The One ◽  
Procedural Components ◽  
The Right

The article covers the problem of the actualization of the right to self-determination for the current conditions, when various forms of ethnic self-assertion play significant role, and therefore, the collective rights of ethnic communities. The complexity of the processes of national and political development requires, on the one hand, strict adherence to international law, on the other hand, in-depth study of the concrete historical situation and consensus-building between all concerned parties. Therefore, it is rightful to consider the question on the interpretation of the right to self-determination for the specific conditions and the development of the mechanisms for its implementation by concerned parties, taking into account the features of these conditions and the interests of the parties. This will ensure a departure from the traditional forms of enjoyment of the right to self-determination, which adequately reflect the characteristics of a particular socio-political situation. On that basis, the author considers that it is productive to examine the problem of self-determination as a process of reconciling the interests, having a substantive and procedural components.

scholarly journals The One-State as a Demand of International Law: Jus Cogens, Challenging Apartheid and the Legal Validity of Israel

2013 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-205
Author(s):  
Oren Ben-Dor
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
International Crime ◽  
Self Determination ◽  
State Recognition ◽  
Democratic State ◽  
The One ◽  
Jus Cogens ◽  
The Right ◽  
Peremptory Norms ◽  
State Of Israel

This article provides the initial contours of an argument that uses International Law to challenge the validity of Israeli apartheid. It challenges the conventional discourse of legal debates on Israel's actions and borders and seeks to link the illegalities of these actions to the validity of an inbuilt Israeli apartheid. The argument also connects the deontological doctrine of peremptory norms of International Law (jus cogens), the right of self-determination and the International Crime of Apartheid to the doctrine of state recognition. It applies these to the State of Israel and the vision of a single democratic state in historic Palestine.

scholarly journals The Issues of Secession in the Process of the Rise and Fall of States in the Light of International Law

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Boubacar Sidi Diallo
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
International System ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Global Perspective ◽  
Self Determination ◽  
Simple Fact ◽  
The One ◽  
The Right ◽  
Constituent Elements ◽  
Secessionist Movement

The aims of this contribution is to check the validity of the old theory, which goes back to Jellinek but is still dominant, which states that secession as well as the process of forming a new state, fall under the scope of a “simple fact” and thereby escape through definition to any law of way. According to this theory, secession is not a question of “Law” but a question of pure fact, failure or success: if a secessionist movement succeeds in establishing a new effectiveness, that is to say, puts in place the “Constituent elements” of a state, a new state is born. It is interesting to observe that with the phenomenon of the rise or the collapse of States, from the global perspective of international order and especially from the point of view of international law, the States concerned are, in practice, not simply left to their fate. On the contrary, the rise or the collapse of a State anywhere in the world is seen as a matter of concern for the international community, since the international system as a whole is felt to be affected. In such cases, international reactions have not been manifested primarily through the States as such, either indi-vidually or together. Basically, these reactions had to cope with the dilemma of choos-ing between two fundamental principles of legitimacy in international law: on the one hand, the sovereignty and equality of States and, on the other, the right of peoples to self-determination.

Sovereignty, Self-Determination, and Natural Resources

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jérémie Gilbert
Keyword(s):  
Natural Resources ◽  
International Law ◽  
Indigenous Peoples ◽  
Potential Role ◽  
Food Sovereignty ◽  
Self Determination ◽  
International Human Rights Law ◽  
Human Rights Law ◽  
Ambivalent Relationship ◽  
The Right

The issue of sovereignty over natural resources has been a key element in the development of international law, notably leading to the emergence of the principle of States’ permanent sovereignty over their natural resources. However, concomitant to this focus on States’ sovereignty, international human rights law proclaims the right of peoples to self-determination over their natural resources. This has led to a complex and ambivalent relationship between the principle of States’ sovereignty over natural resources and peoples’ rights to natural resources. This chapter analyses this conflicting relationship and examines the emergence of the right of peoples to freely dispose of their natural resources and evaluates its potential role in contemporary advocacy. It notably explores how indigenous peoples have called for the revival of their right to sovereignty over natural resources, and how the global peasants’ movement has pushed for the recognition of the concept of food sovereignty.

Russland und das Selbstbestimmungsrecht der Völker im postsowjetischen Raum

2021 ◽  
Vol 67 (1) ◽  
pp. 8-26
Author(s):  
Johannes Socher
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Self Determination ◽  
Legal Rhetoric ◽  
Power Politics ◽  
Regional Comparison ◽  
State Practice ◽  
Soviet Space ◽  
The Right ◽  
Fragmentation Of International Law ◽  
Post Soviet Space

As a concept of international law, the right to self-determination is widely renowned for its unclarity. Broadly speaking, one can differentiate between a liberal and a nationalist tradition. In modern international law, the balance between these two opposing traditions is sought in an attempt to contain or ‘domesticate’ the nationalist conception by limiting it to ‘abnormal’ situations, i.e. to colonialism in the sense of ‘alien subjugation, domination and exploitation’. Essentially, this distinction between ‘normal’ and ‘abnormal’ situations has since been the heart of the matter in the legal discourse on the right to self-determination, with the important qualification regarding the need to preserve existing borders. This study situates Russia’s approach to the right to self- determination in that discourse by way of a regional comparison vis-à-vis a ‘western’ or European perspective, and a temporal comparison with the former Soviet doctrine of international law. Against the background of the Soviet Union’s role in the evolution of the right to self-determination, the bulk of the study analyses Russia’s relevant state practice in the post-Soviet space through the prisms of sovereignty, secession, and annexation. Complemented by a review of the Russian scholarship on the topic, it is suggested that Russia’s approach to the right to self-determination may be best understood not only in terms of power politics disguised as legal rhetoric, but can be seen as evidence of traits of a regional (re-)fragmentation of international law.

Grotian Moments and Peremptory Norms of General International Law: Friendly Facilitators or Fatal Foes?

Grotiana ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 335-353
Author(s):  
Dire Tladi
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
The Other ◽  
High Threshold ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
State Practice ◽  
The One ◽  
Jus Cogens ◽  
The Right ◽  
Peremptory Norms ◽  
Law Making

Abstract The concept of a Grotian moment remains rather obscure in international law. On the one hand, it can refer simply to an empirical fact which galvanises the ordinary law-making processes, whether treaty-making or State practice, resulting in major shifts in international law. On the other hand, a Grotian moment might be seen as an event so significant that it results in an extraordinary shift in international law without full adherence to the processes for law-making. The former understanding has little legal significance, while the latter, which would be legally significant, would be controversial and without legal basis. Against this background the article discusses the intersections between peremptory norms and Grotian Moments. It does this by looking at the intersection between the two concepts as well as the intersection between Grotian Moments, on the one hand and, on the other hand, particular jus cogens norms. With respect to the former, for example, the article will consider whether the high threshold of peremptory status facilitates and hinders Grotian moments. With respect to the latter, the article will consider particular norms that have been said to have shifted on account of the Grotian moments, namely the right to use of force in self-defence as well humanitarian intervention.

scholarly journals Crimean conflict – from the perspectives of Russia, Ukraine, and public international law

2015 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 23-45
Author(s):  
Milena Ingelevič-Citak
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Legal Status ◽  
Self Determination ◽  
Historical Background ◽  
Public International Law ◽  
Russian Law ◽  
The Right ◽  
Crimean Crisis ◽  
Secessionist Movement

Abstract The article presents the Crimean conflict from Russian and Ukrainian standpoints, confronting them with international law analysis. It is worth to mention, that Crimean crisis is still extremely controversial, since both parties are justifying their actions with norms of international law. This article starts with brief introduction of historical background of the Crimean crisis. Second chapter assesses the Crimean secessionist movement claiming the right of self-determination, and its compliance with Ukrainian law. Third chapter examines Russia’s position and its actions on the basis of Russian law. Fourth chapter presents the international law analysis of events in Crimea and its current legal status. Results of the analysis are presented in a conclusion.

Introduction

2019 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Ian Hurd
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Social Practice ◽  
Good Governance ◽  
World Politics ◽  
International Conflicts ◽  
Legal Forms ◽  
The One ◽  
International Rule

This introductory chapter provides an overview of the politics of the international rule of law. The big debates in world politics today are inseparable from international law. Controversy over what is and is not legal is standard fare in international conflicts, and commitment to rule of law is presumed a marker of good governance. Yet the politics of the international rule of law are not so simple and are rarely investigated directly. This book shows that international law is properly seen not as a set of rules external to and constraining of state power but rather as a social practice in which states and others engage. They put the political power of international law to work in the pursuit of their goals and interests. Indeed, governments use international law to explain and justify their choices. This is both constraining and permissive. On the one hand, states must fit their preferences into legal forms. On the other hand, they are empowered when they can show their choices to be lawful. Thus, international law makes it easier for states to do some things (those that can be presented as lawful) and harder to do others (those that appear to be unlawful). The book then looks at how the concept of international law is used in world politics and to what ends.

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