4- History of IL (II) Flashcards
IL and imperialism in the 19th century (2)
During the long 19th century, international law was increasingly being used to legitimize European imperialism.
1) recognizing the sovereignty of their territories to establish a control while giving he appearance that they’re respecting them!
2) IL regulated the takeover of new territories and mediated conflicts btw colonial powers.
examples of semi-sovereign and non-sovereign entities within the westphalian system
1) vassal states of the UK
2) colonies (jamaica)
3) protectorates
4) Canadian dominiums (jointly shared)
5) Congo Free State (private company and Belgium)
what’s the standard of civilization?
a set of criteria that Non-western states had to meet before being admitted to the “Family of Nations”
-> Some argue that the standard of civilization was an objective criteria to be achieved (Gong)
-> Others argue that the standard of civilization is a moving goal that could never be achieved (Anghie)
position of non-western states with legal sovereignty during the westphalian era
Japan and China were recognized as sovereign but did not enjoy the privileges of it because they weren’t “fully civilized”
(?)th century marked the beginings of new types of international legal institutions
19th century!
the 19th century marked new beginings of new types of international legal institutions. this ran parallel with the shift …..
from NATURAL LAW to POSITIVISM
why was there a growing belief that IL should be based on positivism in the 19th century?
they thought it would provide a more objective basis for resolving disputes.
(…) were the first entities other than states to have a distinct legal personality.
IGOs
- IGOs have an independent legal existence- they can make contracts etc. In the context of IR, this was a radical development.
first IGO created
Central Commission for Navigation on the Rhine.
what’s codification?
the process whereby bits of laws spread across different documents in a single treaty, which would be authoritative.
the idea of codification goes back to “???”s like “???”s who pushed for the codification of IL
Utilitarians like Bentham
-> “The happiness of the human race would be fixed if it were possible to raise two classes of laws to rank of complete and organized laws”
(3) what are some important codification landmarks?
1) Congress of Vienna (1815) -> law on diplomatic agents
2)First Geneva Conventions (1864) -> treatment of wounded combatants and civilians (foundations of humanitarian law)
3) Hague Conventions (1899-1907) -> permanent court of arbitration, laws of war, prohibition of certain weapons
which treaty created the league of nations in 1920?
treaty of versailes
how did the treaty of versailles aim to maintain world peace? (3)
1) disarmament -> stopping arms race throguh legal means
2) collective security -> if someone invaded illegally, others come to protect
3) peaceful settlement of disputes-> permanent court of ij
what made the league of nations special in relation to imperialism?
It was the first time the idea that territories should be sovereign at some point, was recognized by IL.
