scholarly journals Revisiting the Legal Framework for Private Military and Security Contractors: Maritime Perspective

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 166-182
Author(s):  
Vijaya Singh Gautam ◽  
Vijay Mishra
Keyword(s):  
Legal Status ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Maritime Security ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
State Responsibility ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Training Techniques ◽  
Security Companies ◽  
Security Contractors

The paper aims to analyse legal lacunas and suggest possible solutions for the acts and wrongdoings of Private Military and Security Companies within the lens of maritime activities. The paper has been divided into three parts. Part I deals with the necessity and role of Private Military and Security Companies in the present times. Part II discusses the legal status of Private Military and Security Companies and ways of ensuring responsibility for their acts. Part III examines the legal framework for the acts of Private Maritime Security Companies. An assessment of the rules of international humanitarian law (IHL), state responsibility, applicability of the Montreux document and efforts such as GUARDCON have been discussed to highlight the inadequacy of the laws on Private Maritime Security Companies. There has been an upsurge in the employment of Private Maritime Security Companies since 2008 to cope with a myriad of problems at sea including piracy and robbery. However, an umbrella of rules including employment procedures, agreements, training techniques, responsibility in peacetime as well as in times of conflict and the guidelines of IHL must be restructured or enhanced in order to be made applicable to Private Maritime Security Companies.

The United Nations as a Party to Armed Conflict

2016 ◽  
Vol 20 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 313-341 ◽  
Author(s):  
Damian Lilly
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Legal Status ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Peacekeeping Operations ◽  
Republic Of The Congo ◽  
The United Nations

As the role of United Nations peacekeeping operations has evolved in recent decades so too has the legal interpretation of the way in which international humanitarian law (ihl) is viewed as applying to its peacekeepers. While it has been understood that the un could become a party to armed conflict, the organization has never publicly acknowledged this until the establishment of the Intervention Brigade of the of the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (monusco) pursuant to Security Council resolution 2098 of March 2013. This article addresses the legal consequences of the Intervention Brigade as a party to armed conflict and the insights it provides into the legal status of un peacekeeper under ihl. In particular, it will argue that the established legal framework for un peacekeeping operations as having the protected status of civilians under ihl has proved ill-suited for the Intervention Brigade and its experience has highlighted the inconsistencies and gaps in the rules that have been developed.

scholarly journals The role of international humanitarian law in the search for peace: Lessons from Colombia

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-16
Author(s):  
César Rojas-Orozco
Keyword(s):  
Legal Framework ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Peace Agreement ◽  
Peace Negotiations ◽  
State Actors ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract International humanitarian law (IHL) has traditionally been seen as a legal framework regulating armed hostilities, having little to do with peace. However, recent peacemaking and peacebuilding practice has consistently relied on IHL to frame peace efforts, mainly in non-international armed conflicts. This article explores the relationship between IHL and peace, looking at practice in Colombia, where IHL has been used in a creative way as a means to build trust, facilitate peace negotiations and enforce the resulting peace agreement. Looking at this case, the article offers general insights on how IHL can facilitate the end of conflict and reintegration, frame accountability and reparation, and shield peace deals under a framework in which both State and non-State actors can find a common bargaining zone in their search for peace.

The International Legal Status of Armed Groups: Can One Be Determined Outside the Scope of Armed Conflict?

2018 ◽  
Vol 51 (2) ◽  
pp. 321-335 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tom Gal
Keyword(s):  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Legal Status ◽  
International Criminal ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
International Criminal Law ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Armed Groups ◽  
Legal Personality ◽  
International Legal Personality

In 2016 Daragh Murray published his book Human Rights Obligations of Non-State Armed Groups (Hart 2016). By way of distinction from many other contributions on this widely discussed topic, Murray tries to provide the reader with a complete overview of the legal framework that enables armed groups to acquire international legal status, and preferably outside the framework of armed conflict. He walks the reader through the path of international legal personality, leading towards the acknowledgement of armed groups as addressees of the law. Murray's attempt is courageous, interesting and innovative, but it has its shortcomings. These include his reliance on international criminal law as a source for defining armed groups, and his insistence on stepping outside international humanitarian law. Nonetheless, his contribution is essential for those who wish to include even more armed groups on the international plane.

The Legal Framework for Protection of United Nations Humanitarian Premises during Armed Conflict

2014 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 68-108
Author(s):  
Lance Bartholomeusz
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
International Criminal Law ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
State Responsibility ◽  
List Type ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Operations ◽  
The Law

The United Nations, its premises and personnel are increasingly present in the theatre of armed conflict across the globe. During armed conflict, un humanitarian agencies are now more likely to stay or arrive and deliver than to evacuate.1 Parties to an armed conflict may fight in close proximity to un premises. Today, from the Gaza Strip to South Sudan to Syria, during armed conflict thousands of displaced civilians seek shelter in un premises and the protection of the blue un flag, which is perceived to give better protection than fundamental principles of international humanitarian law (ihl).2 What is the legal framework for protection offered by the un flag to un humanitarian premises, including to displaced civilians they may shelter during armed conflict? To use the language of State responsibility, this paper considers the relevant primary obligations of ihl and un law, how a possible conflict between those primary obligations is resolved, and then considers the legal consequences of a breach of the relevant primary obligation in accordance with the secondary rules of the law of State responsibility. Thus, the paper addresses four questions: (1)What protection does international humanitarian law and international criminal law provide to un humanitarian operations, in particular un premises? (2)What protection does United Nations law provide to un humanitarian operations, in particular un premises? (3)What if there is a conflict between United Nations law and ihl? (4)In case of a violation of United Nations law protecting un premises, could there be circumstances precluding wrongfulness under the law of State responsibility?

Introduction

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tilman Rodenhäuser
Keyword(s):  
Legal Framework ◽  
International Criminal Law ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Human Rights Law ◽  
General Introduction ◽  
Legal Personality ◽  
Key Terms ◽  
International Legal Personality

The general introduction sets the scene for the legal issues addressed in this book by presenting their relevance in most recent conflicts and other situations of violence, including in Syria, Iraq, Libya, Ukraine, the Central African Republic, and Kenya. It also introduces the legal framework the book sets out to examine, notably international humanitarian law, human rights law, and international criminal law. The introductory chapter further presents the book’s methodology, introduces its structure, and explains key terms and concepts. These include, in particular, the terms ‘non-state armed group’, ‘international legal personality’, and ‘degree of organization’, which are especially relevant throughout the book.

The Application of International Humanitarian Law by the Israel Defense Forces

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amichai Cohen ◽  
Eyal Ben-Ari
Keyword(s):  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Advocate General ◽  
The Past ◽  
Junior Officers ◽  
Military Commanders ◽  
Legal Frameworks ◽  
Israel Defense Forces ◽  
The Military

This chapter describes how increased juridification and demands to apply international humanitarian law (IHL) have influenced the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The authors analyze the IDF’s compliance with IHL and other legal frameworks through a multilevel and multidimensional model of military compliance describing the law and external institutions involved in applying it. The past decades have seen the relatively autonomous sphere of the military increasingly come under judicial overview. Judicial and international pressures have also increased the role of the operational legal advisors. The chapter ends by discussing the ceremonies intended to promote compliance with IHL involving soldiers and junior officers. It is based on interviews (with Israeli academic experts, members of nongovernmental organizations [NGOs], and military commanders), off-the-record conversations with members of the IDF’s Military Advocate General, and newspaper articles, reports of NGOs, and secondary material.

scholarly journals Caught in the Crossfire: Challenges to Migrant Protection in the Yemeni and Libyan Conflicts

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 318-331
Author(s):  
Danielle Flanagan
Keyword(s):  
Legal Framework ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Armed Groups ◽  
Migration Routes ◽  
Conflict Zones ◽  
Conflict Situations ◽  
Stable Conditions ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Migration Pathways

In spite of the prevailing security dynamics in Yemen and Libya, both states continue to serve as areas of transit along some of the world’s largest mixed migration routes, leaving migrants caught in the crossfire of the two conflicts. This article examines the legal framework governing the protection of migrants in armed conflict under international humanitarian and human rights law. It also identifies two adverse incentives produced by the conflict situations that impede the exercise of these legal protections: (1) profits derived from migrant smuggling and trafficking, and (2) the use of migrants to support armed groups. In the absence of stable conditions in Yemen and Libya, individuals have little reason to respect international legal protections and discontinue migrant abuse connected with the lucrative businesses of smuggling and trafficking. The intractable nature of the two conflicts has also led to the strategic use of migrants as armed support, and more specifically as combatants, weapons transports, and human shields. Given these realities, the article outlines several recommendations to address the issue of migrant abuse in conflict. It recommends that states, particularly those neighboring Yemen and Libya, strengthen regular migration pathways to help reduce the number of migrants transiting through active conflict zones. It further advises that the international community increase the cost of noncompliance to international humanitarian law through the use of accountability mechanisms and through strategic measures, including grants of reciprocal respect to armed groups that observe protections accorded to migrants in conflict situations.

scholarly journals ‘Not dead but sleeping’: Expanding international law to better regulate the diverse effects of ceasefire agreements

2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 731-743
Author(s):  
Marika Sosnowski
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Development Studies ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Economic Networks ◽  
Citizenship Rights ◽  
Geneva Conventions ◽  
Governance Institutions ◽  
New Research

AbstractCeasefire agreements are legally governed by international humanitarian law because they have generally been considered in relation to how they affect levels of violence. However, new research in the fields of anthropology, security, and development studies suggests that ceasefires can have many more ramifications. These range from their ability to influence governance institutions, property and citizenship rights, economic networks, and security mechanisms. Consequently, this article suggests that a broader legal framework is needed through which to consider ceasefires and their consequences. While canvassing the option of ceasefires being types of contractual documents or as special agreements under Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions, the article concludes that the best way to regulate ceasefire agreements is through an expanded version of lex pacificatoria. Rather than being governed by hard international law, such a move would allow for the implementation of more flexible programmatic standards to influence the myriad ways ceasefires are negotiated, the conduct of belligerents, and their diverse effects on the ground during wartime.

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