Introduction

Author(s):  
George Ulrich ◽  
Ineta Ziemele

The 12th Annual Conference of the European Society of International Law (ESIL) took place in Riga, Latvia, on 8‒10 September 2016. The Society organized the conference together with the Riga Graduate School of Law and the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Latvia. The overall purpose of the conference was to address the theme: How International Law Works in Times of Crisis. This was a conference characterized by several firsts. It was the first time that the Annual Conference had moved to Eastern Europe. It took place in a country with a wealth of relevant history for international law. It was also the first time that among the organizers we could count a highest national court. The conference gathered one of the highest numbers of participants, that is, 420 from 43 countries representing different parts of the world. The general theme of the conference reflected on both past times and current developments and on both regional and global challenges implicating international law....

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 73
Author(s):  
Umbu Rauta ◽  
Ninon Melatyugra

Tulisan ini ingin menjawab dua isu utama mengenai hubungan hukum internasional dan pengujian undang-undang oleh Mahkamah Konstitusi RI (MKRI). Isu pertama adalah legitimasi penggunaan hukum internasional sebagai alat interpretasi dalam pengujian undang-undang, sedangkan isu kedua adalah urgensi penguasaan hukum internasional oleh hakim MKRI. Tulisan ini merupakan penelitian hukum yang menggunakan pendekatan konseptual dan pendekatan historis dalam menjelaskan perkembangan pengujian undang-undang di Indonesia sekaligus menemukan legitimasi penggunaan hukum internasional oleh MK RI. Kesimpulan dari tulisan ini menegaskan bahwa hukum internasional memiliki sumbangsih yang penting dalam perannya sebagai alat interpretasi dalam proses pengujian undang-undang oleh Mahkamah Konstitusi, khususnya terkait hak asasi manusia. Justifikasi keabsahan praktik penggunaan hukum internasional tersebut ditarik dari tradisi ketatanegaraan yang secara implisit dikehendaki UUD NRI Tahun 1945. Manfaat positif yang diberikan hukum internasional nyatanya harus disertai juga dengan penguasaan hukum internasional oleh hakim MK RI supaya hukum internasional dapat digunakan secara tepat. Pembahasan dalam tulisan ini dibagi ke dalam empat sub bahasan inti yakni, pengujian undang-undang, penggunaan hukum internasional sebagai the interpretative tool dalam pengujian undang-undang oleh MK, legitimasi penggunaan hukum internasional sebagai the interpretative tool dalam pengujian undang-undang, pentingnya penguasaan hukum internasional oleh hakim MK.This article intentionally answers two principal issues regarding the relationship between international law and judicial review by the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Indonesia. The first issue is the legitimacy of international use as an interpretative tool in judicial review. The second issue talks about the necessity of urgent international law mastery by the Constitutional Court’s judges. This legal research utilizes both a conceptual approach and a historical approach to explain the development of judicial review in Indonesia, and to find legitimacy of international law by the Constitutional Court. The analysis in this article affirms that international law positively contributes as an interpretative tool in judicial review by the Constitutional Court, particularly pertaining to human rights. A justification of a legitimate international law use is withdrawn from constitutional tradition which is implicitly desired by the Indonesian Constitution (UUD NRI 1945). Since international law has provided better insights into norms, a mastery of international law should be encouraged. There are four main discussions in this article: judicial review, application of international law in judicial review process, legitimacy of international law application in judicial review, and the importance of international law mastering by Constitutional Court judges.


Author(s):  
Christian Tomuschat

AbstractThe judgment of the Italian Constitutional Court (ItCC) of 22 October 2014 has set a bad precedent for international law by denying the implementation, within Italy, of the judgment of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) of 3 February 2012. The ICJ found that Italian courts and tribunals had violated German jurisdictional immunity by entertaining suits brought by Italian citizens against Germany on account of damages caused by war crimes committed during World War II by German occupation forces. According to a well-consolidated rule of general international law, no state may be sued before the courts of another state with regard to acts performed in the exercise of its sovereign power. In contravention of Article 94 of the UN Charter, the ItCC deemed it legitimate to discard that ruling because of the particularly grave character of many of the violations in question. It proceeded from the assumption that the right to a remedy established under the Italian Constitution was absolute and must apply even where the financial settlement of the consequences of armed conflict is at issue. However, it has failed to show the existence of any individual reparation claims and has omitted to assess the issue of war reparations owed by Germany in their broader complexity. The judgment of the ItCC might be used in the future as a pretext to ignore decisions of the World Court.


2021 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 100-127
Author(s):  
Dmitry Shustrov

The idea of supra-constitutionality was formulated in the science of constitutional law in the second quarter of the 20th century and associated with the names of M.Hauriou and K.Schmitt, who for the first time noticed the possibility of the existence of norms that are higher than the constitution. This article is an attempt to give the doctrine of supra-constitutionality an actual theoretical and dogmatic meaning in the context of the study of the material limits of constitutional changes. The doctrine of supra-constitutionality claims to play an important role in explaining that unchangeable norms can exist in constitutional law and that they cannot be excluded, changed, limited, overcome, affected by the other sources of constitutional law, including the constitution itself. Supra-constitutionality is viewed as a characteristic of unchangeable constitutional norms that constitute the material limits of constitutional changes. Supra-constitutionality presupposes the existence of norms that surpass the rest of the constitutional norms and predetermine their content through the definition of what can, should and should not be included in the constitution or excluded from it. The basis of constitutional supra-constitutionality is the argument of hierarchical differentiation. In addition to recognizing unchangeable constitutional norms as supra-constitutional, the article raises the question of the existence of natural law and international law supra-constitutional norms. Natural law supra-constitutional norms have an external and non-positive character. They are not enshrined in the constitution, but stem from a reasonably understood concept of what is due in the most civilized societies, which is determined by the constitutional court. International law supra-constitutionality is understood as the superiority of the norms of international law over the constitution. It has an external and positive character. International law supra-constitutionality can cause political objections from opponents of the absolute rule of international law. Supra-constitutional constitutional, natural and international law norms can come into conflict with each other. The paradox of the doctrine of supra-constitutionality lies in the fact that it creates a hierarchy of norms within the constitution itself, distinguishing between simple and supra-constitutional constitutional norms, or distinguishes certain non-positive norms that are outside the constitution, as having priority over the constitution, or puts some norms of international law over all norms of national law, including the constitution. The purpose of the doctrine of supra-constitutionality is to preserve the inviolable fundamental (natural or generally recognized) values, which justifies its logical flaws and paradoxicality.


2021 ◽  
pp. 136-146
Author(s):  
Tom Ginsburg

This chapter focuses on the abuse of international rights to political participation so as to facilitate a leader's remaining in office beyond the constitutionally mandated term. This involves not only the abuse of the interpretation of rights, but also the abuse of the doctrine of unconstitutional constitutional amendments, which has spread around the world in recent years. How does this happen and what, if anything, can international law do about it? After introducing a motivating case — the famous decision of the Colombian Constitutional Court in the second re-election decision, in which courts stood for the protection of democracy — the chapter examines recent 'bad' cases in which rights and constitutional amendments are abused to extend leaders' terms. It surveys recent developments in the law of term limits, and briefly proposes a normative interpretation of the right to political participation which ought to be consistent with the emerging doctrine. The chapter suggests that there is an emerging consensus, at least in some regions of the world, that there are limits in states' ability to modify term limits unconditionally.


2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 225-252
Author(s):  
Elisabeth Madeleine Patterson

This article examines two recent landmark cases in Guatemala. The first one is the 2013 Rios Montt genocide case, which led to one of the first convictions of a former Head of State for genocide in a national court. The second one is the 2016 Sepur Zarco case, which marked the first time former military commanders were convicted in a national court of crimes against the duties of humanity for sexual and domestic slavery. In both cases, almost all the victims were Indigenous. The author was present for parts of both trials as an international observer and interviewed individuals directly involved in the prosecution. Considering that Guatemalan and international law require that legal decisions give due consideration to the customs of the Indigenous peoples concerned, the article assesses to what extent Indigenous culture was taken into account during the trial and how Indigenous concepts and customs were considered in the judgements. In both cases, the tribunal did not modify usual court procedures, except to provide interpreters for the testimony of the unilingual Q’eqchi and Ixil witnesses. Both judgements did, however, take into account several concepts and customs from the Mayan worldview and these were key to the Court’s reasoning leading to the guilty verdicts.


Author(s):  
Raffaela Kunz

AbstractSentenza 238/2014 once more highlights the important role domestic courts play in international law. More than prior examples, it illustrates the ever more autonomous and self-confident stance of domestic courts on the international plane. But the ruling of the Italian Constitutional Court (ItCC) also shows that more engagement with international law does not necessarily mean that domestic courts enhance the effectiveness of international law and become ‘compliance partners’ of international courts. Sentenza 238/2014 suggests that domestic courts, in times of global governance and increased activity of international courts, see the role they play at the intersection of legal orders also as ‘gate-keepers’, ready to cushion the domestic impact of international law if deemed necessary. The judgment of the ItCC thus offers a new opportunity to examine the multifaceted and complex role of these important actors that apply and shape international law, while always remaining bound by domestic (constitutional) law. This chapter does so by exploring how domestic courts deal with rulings of the World Court. It shows that despite the fact that in numerous situations domestic courts could act as compliance partners of the International Court of Justice, in reality, more often than not, they have refused to do so, arguing that its judgments are not self-executing and thus deferring the implementation to the political branches. Assessing this practice, the chapter argues that domestic courts should take a more active stance and overcome the purely interstate view that seems at odds with present-day international law. While it seems too far-reaching to expect domestic courts to follow international courts unconditionally, the chapter cautions that there is a considerable risk of setting dangerous precedents by openly defying international judgments. Domestic courts should carefully balance the different interests at stake, namely an effective system of international adjudication on the one hand and the protection of fundamental domestic principles on the other hand. The chapter finds that the ItCC’s attempt to reintroduce clear boundaries between legal orders lacks the openness and flexibility needed to effectively cope with today’s complex and plural legal reality.


Author(s):  
Mariam Saidona Tagoranao ◽  
Alizaman D. Gamon

Religious rights for minorities are not merely a privilege policy but an important commitment that should be acknowledged by any organization, state or nation. The contemporary legal systems of the world recognize religious rights particularly in today’s multicultural societies. This system has been acknowledged by the international law of human rights and the United Nations Conventions. Religious faith and religious practices are inherently protected by the Constitution of the Republic of Philippines. International law of human rights becomes the basis for a non-Muslim government to provide commitments in promoting spiritual and conventional infrastructures for Muslim minorities. The main objective of this paper is to discuss the national laws that can accommodate Muslim religious rights based on how Islam defines it, in order to achieve a lasting peace in the Philippines. The paper recommends that the universal principle of peace must be contained in the legal reform of every sovereign nation. In addition, religious obligations and liberties must be fairly treated and regarded as a national agenda towards promoting peace and justice.  Keywords: Religious rights, Muslim minorities, Philippine Constitution, Peace and Justice. Abstrak Hak keagamaan untuk golongan minoriti bukan sekedar dasar keistimewaan semata, tetapi merupakan suatu komitmen penting yang harus diakui oleh mana-mana organisasi, negara atau bangsa. Sistem undang-undang kontemporari di dunia mengiktiraf hak beragama, khususnya dalam masyarakat pelbagai budaya hari ini. Ia telah diakui oleh undang-undang hak asasi manusia antarabangsa dan Konvensyen Pertubuhan Bangsa-Bangsa Bersatu. Kepercayaan dan amalan keagamaan pada dasarnya dilindungi oleh perlembagaan negara. Undang-undang ini menjadi asas bagi sebuah kerajaan bukan Islam untuk memberikan komitmen dan keprihatinan dalam mempromosikan infrastruktur rohani dan konvensional bagi golongan minoriti Muslim. Objektif utama kajian ini adalah untuk mengetahui sejauh mana undang-undang negara boleh menampung hak agama Islam berdasarkan bagaimana Islam mentakrifkannya, untuk mencapai keamanan yang kekal di Filipina. Keadaan menjadi amat malang apabila makna sebenar perdamaian akhirnya terhakis akibat penyelewengan yang lazimnya berlaku dalam sistem dan amalan perundangan. Walau bagaimanapun disyorkan, bahawa prinsip sejagat kedamaian mesti terkandung dalam reformasi undang-undang bagi setiap negara berdaulat. Di samping itu, kewajipan dan kebebasan beragama mesti dilayan dengan adil dan dianggap sebagai agenda nasional untuk mempromosikan keamanan dan keadilan. Kata Kunci: Hak keagamaan, minoriti Islam, Perlembagaan Filipina, Keamanan dan Keadilan.


2003 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 149-153
Author(s):  
Silke Sahl

Like most members, I always look forward to the Association's Annual Course on International Law Librarianship. The program offers countless learning opportunities, including scholarly lectures, visits to libraries and information centers, and meetings with publishers and vendors. Last but not least, it offers the chance to meet new colleagues as well as to renew friendships and contacts with law librarians from around the world. I anticipated the 2002 Course with particular excitement, because this would be the first time that I would attend one in my own country. Indeed, it would be the first time IALL met in the United States for over a decade. Having experienced the hospitality of law librarians in many different countries over the years, I knew it would be especially meaningful to be able to welcome colleagues from abroad to the United States.


2020 ◽  
Vol 168 ◽  
pp. 00010
Author(s):  
Abduboki Khakimov ◽  
Gullola Kutumova ◽  
Zamira Mirzaeva

The article discusses the basic principles and conditions for the use of the latest underground navigation system. An example is given of the second new Yunusabad line of the Tashkent Subway using the shield method. For the first time in the Republic of Uzbekistan, in the construction of the Tashkent metro stations by underground, the Tunneling Mechanized Complex (TMC) was used - a movable prefabricated metal structure manufactured in Germany by the company HERRENKNECHT, which is the leading company in the world and produces machines for the construction of tunnels of any diameter in the range from 0.10 to 19 m in any engineering-geological conditions. The disadvantages and advantages of the underground navigation system are indicated; conclusions are drawn about the prospects for its application. The patterns of development of technical aspects of the automation of surveying concerning general historical trends are examined.


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