Members of the Armed Forces and Human Rights Law

The national law of individual states is generally clear as to the criteria for defining which entities make up the armed forces, as well as who is entitled to be a member of the armed forces. Whether a state is bound by its human rights obligations while taking part in an international armed conflict outside its own territory, is a complex issue. This chapter examines the term ‘armed forces’, who are entitled to be called members of the armed forces, a state’s national law in relation to its international law obligations, and the role of human rights law from the standpoint of members of the armed forces and others who take an active part in an armed conflict. It also discusses the relationship between peacekeeping and human rights, the role of the United Nations, why members of the armed forces commit human rights violations, the human rights of soldiers, and the right to conscientious objection to military service.

Roles of the Courts in New Zealand in Giving Effect to International Human Rights - with Some History

Victoria University of Wellington Law Review ◽

10.26686/vuwlr.v29i1.6049 ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 29 (1) ◽

pp. 27 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Kenneth J Keith

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

International Law ◽

Armed Conflict ◽

Common Law ◽

General Effect ◽

International Affairs ◽

The Common ◽

The Right ◽

Domestic Law

The Right Honourable Sir Kenneth Keith was the fourth speaker at the NZ Institute of International Affairs Seminar. In this article he describes and reflects upon the role of courts and judges in relation to the advancement of human rights, an issue covered in K J Keith (ed) Essays on Human Rights (Sweet and Maxwell, Wellington, 1968). The article is divided into two parts. The first part discusses international lawmakers attempting to protect individual groups of people from 1648 to 1948, including religious minorities and foreign traders, slaves, aboriginal natives, victims of armed conflict, and workers. The second part discusses how from 1945 to 1948, there was a shift in international law to universal protection. The author notes that while treaties are not part of domestic law, they may have a constitutional role, be relevant in determining the common law, give content to the words of a statute, help interpret legislation which is in line with a treaty, help interpret legislation which is designed to give general effect to a treaty (but which is silent on the particular matter), and help interpret and affect the operation of legislation to which the international text has no apparent direct relation.

14. The law of armed conflict

International Law ◽

10.1093/he/9780198828723.003.0014 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 279-302

Author(s):

Anders Henriksen

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

International Law ◽

Armed Conflict ◽

Humanitarian Law ◽

Human Rights Law ◽

Military Operations ◽

Basic Principles ◽

Law Of Armed Conflict ◽

This chapter examines those parts of international law that regulate how military operations must be conducted—jus in bello. It begins in Section 14.2 with an overview of the most important legal sources. Section 14.3 discusses when humanitarian law applies and Section 14.4 examines the issue of battlefield status and the distinction between combatants and civilians. Section 14.5 provides an overview of some of the most basic principles governing the conduct of hostilities while Section 14.6 concerns belligerent occupation and Section 14.7. deals with the regulation of non-international armed conflict. Finally, Section 14.8 explores the relationship between international humanitarian law and human rights law in times of armed conflict.

14. The law of armed conflict

International Law ◽

10.1093/he/9780198753018.003.0014 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Anders Henriksen

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

International Law ◽

Armed Conflict ◽

Humanitarian Law ◽

Human Rights Law ◽

Military Operations ◽

Basic Principles ◽

Law Of Armed Conflict ◽

This chapter examines those parts of international law that regulate how military operations must be conducted — jus in bello. It begins in Section 14.2 with an overview of the most important legal sources. Section 14.3 discusses when humanitarian law applies. Section 14.4 examines the issue of battlefield status and the distinction between combatants and civilians. Section 14.5 provides an overview of some of the most basic principles governing the conduct of hostilities while Section 14.6 deals with the issue of regulation of non-international armed conflict. Finally, Section 14.7 explores the relationship between international humanitarian law and human rights law in times of armed conflict.

The Oxford Handbook of International Law in Armed Conflict

10.1093/law/9780199559695.001.0001 ◽

2014 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

International Law ◽

Transitional Justice ◽

Armed Conflict ◽

Forced Migration ◽

Armed Forces ◽

Cultural Property ◽

Historical Background ◽

The Law ◽

The Right

TheHandbookconsists of 32 Chapters in seven parts. Part I provides the historical background and sets out some of the contemporary challenges. Part II considers the relevant sources of international law. Part III describes the different legal regimes: land warfare, air warfare, maritime warfare, the law of occupation, the law applicable to peace operations, and the law of neutrality. Part IV introduces key concepts in international humanitarian law: weapons and the notion of superfluous injury and unnecessary suffering, the principle of distinction, proportionality, genocide and crimes against humanity, grave breaches and war crimes, internal armed conflict. Part V looks at key rights: the right to life, the prohibition on torture, the right to fair trial, economic, social and cultural rights, the protection of the environment, the protection of cultural property, and the human rights of the members of the armed forces. Part VI covers key issues such as: the use of force, terrorism, unlawful combatants, the application of human rights in times of armed conflict, forced migration, and issues of gender. Part VII deals with accountability issues including those related to private security companies, the need to focus on armed groups, as well as questions of state responsibility brought before national courts, and finally, the book addresses issues related to transitional justice.

The Role of Necessity in International Humanitarian and Human Rights Law

Israel Law Review ◽

10.1017/s0021223713000265 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 47 (2) ◽

pp. 225-251 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Lawrence Hill-Cawthorne

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Law Enforcement ◽

Armed Conflict ◽

Humanitarian Law ◽

Human Rights Law ◽

Current Article ◽

The nature of armed conflict has changed dramatically in recent decades. In particular, it is increasingly the case that hostilities now occur alongside ‘everyday’ situations. This has led to a pressing need to determine when a ‘conduct of hostilities’ model (governed by international humanitarian law – IHL) applies and when a ‘law enforcement’ model (governed by international human rights law – IHRL) applies. This, in turn, raises the question of whether these two legal regimes are incompatible or whether they might be applied in parallel. It is on this question that the current article focuses, examining it at the level of principle. Whilst most accounts of the principles underlying these two areas of law focus on humanitarian considerations, few have compared the role played by necessity in each. This article seeks to address this omission. It demonstrates that considerations of necessity play a prominent role in both IHL and IHRL, albeit with differing consequences. It then applies this necessity-based analysis to suggest a principled basis for rationalising the relationship between IHL and IHRL, demonstrating how this approach would operate in practice. It is shown that, by emphasising the role of necessity in IHL and IHRL, an approach can be adopted that reconciles the two in a manner that is sympathetic to their object and purpose.

The Limits of Law

Feeding the Hungry ◽

10.7591/cornell/9781501751165.003.0006 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 109-130

Author(s):

Michelle Jurkovich

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

International Law ◽

Human Rights Law ◽

Human Right ◽

International Human Rights ◽

Right To Food ◽

International Human ◽

The Right

This chapter considers the puzzling role of international law around the right to food and examines why the existing law has been unable to generate norms within the advocacy community. It explores the reasons why international anti-hunger organizations rarely legitimate the right to food in legal terms and how this case can challenge the understanding of the relationships between norms, human rights, and law. It also provides a conceptual discussion of the distinction between formal law and norms, underscoring the importance of not conflating the two concepts. The chapter argues that many international anti-hunger organizations still do not conceptualize food as a human right, making international human rights law less relevant. It looks at the hunger case that suggests there is nothing automatic about law generating norms among activists or society at large.

The use of nuclear weapons and human rights

International Review of the Red Cross ◽

10.1017/s1816383116000096 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 97 (899) ◽

pp. 663-680

Author(s):

Stuart Casey-Maslen

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

International Law ◽

Nuclear Weapons ◽

Armed Conflict ◽

Humanitarian Law ◽

Human Rights Law ◽

Healthy Environment ◽

The Right

AbstractInternational human rights law is an as-yet underused branch of international law when assessing the legality of nuclear weapons and advocating for their elimination. It offers a far greater range of implementation mechanisms than does international humanitarian law (IHL), and arguably strengthens the protections afforded to civilians and combatants under IHL, particularly in non-international armed conflict. Of particular relevance are the rights to life, to humane treatment, to health and to a healthy environment, associated with the right to a remedy for violations of any human rights.

Human Rights, National Regulation, and Armed Conflict

To Serve the Enemy ◽

10.1093/oso/9780198788898.003.0006 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 171-210

Author(s):

Shane Darcy

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Armed Conflict ◽

Humanitarian Law ◽

Human Rights Law ◽

National Regulation ◽

The Right ◽

Human Rights Standards

The role of international human rights law and national regulatory regimes regarding the use of informers is considered in Chapter 5. The chapter begins by outlining human rights standards of relevance to the use of covert human intelligence sources in national policing, criminal justice, and intelligence activities, as interpreted by various international courts and human rights bodies. It then considers national approaches to the regulation of the use of informers, including a case study of Northern Ireland, where human rights law played an ostensibly greater role in regulating conduct than humanitarian law. Informers were both victims and perpetrators of serious crimes during the conflict. The chapter then examines the application of human rights law in times of armed conflict through the lens of the right to life, and considers how national regulation and oversight of the use of informers may be of relevance in situations of armed conflict.

14. The law of armed conflict

10.1093/he/9780198869399.003.0014 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 273-295

Author(s):

Anders Henriksen

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

International Law ◽

Armed Conflict ◽

Humanitarian Law ◽

Human Rights Law ◽

Military Operations ◽

Basic Principles ◽

Law Of Armed Conflict ◽

This chapter examines those parts of international law that regulate how military operations must be conducted jus in bello. It begins in Section 14.2 with an overview of the most important legal sources. Section 14.3 discusses when humanitarian law applies and Section 14.4 examines the issue of battlefield status and the distinction between combatants and civilians. Section 14.5 provides an overview of some of the most basic principles governing the conduct of hostilities while Section 14.6 concerns belligerent occupation and Section 14.7 deals with the regulation of non-international armed conflict. Finally, Section 14.8 explores the relationship between international humanitarian law and human rights law in times of armed conflict.

THE OBLIGATION OF A STATE UNDER INTERNATIONAL LAW TO PROTECT MEMBERS OF ITS OWN ARMED FORCES DURING ARMED CONFLICT OR OCCUPATION

Yearbook of International Humanitarian Law ◽

10.1017/s1389135906000031 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 9 ◽

pp. 3-24 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Peter Rowe

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

International Law ◽

Armed Conflict ◽

Armed Forces ◽

Humanitarian Law ◽

Human Rights Law ◽

Friendly Fire

AbstractThe article considers whether a state owes any obligation under international humanitarian law or under human rights law to its own soldiers killed or injured during an armed conflict or an occupation of territory. Whether a soldier's own state can beacause (in conjunction with the acts of enemy forces) of his death during combat is explored through situations such as poor training, equipment, and leadership and of specific issues such as ‘friendly fire’ incidents. It marks out a distinction between causation and the responsibility of a state. Whilst there may be political, or even national law, pressures upon a government which is at fault to some degree in causing casualties amongst its own soldiers this article suggests that, in certain limited circumstances, a duty may crystallise under customary international humanitarian law or arise under human rights law on a state to prevent it beingacause of the death or wounding of its own soldiers. It concludes that soldiers are, perhaps, the last group involved in an armed conflict to be recognised as individuals who should be owed some obligation of protection, in this case, by their own state under international law.