C3 - Global Politics: Global Governance; Human Rights And Environment

Question 1

what are human rights?

Answer 1

• entitlements that are inherent to all human being irrespective of their characteristics or background
• deemed to be universal and inalienable

Question 2

when did human rights first become of importance?

Answer 2

• the events of WW2 led to the prioritising of human rights
• Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UNDR) - 1948 - was established and is seen as the foundation of international human rights law. the basis of the ECHR (1950)

Question 3

how did the nuremberg trials challenge westphalian principles?

Answer 3

• westphalian principles stated that a state was completely sovereign in its decision and there was no power that should be able to counter a nation
• however, the nuremberg trials (1945/46) opposed this as there was an internation focus and power that superseded this as nazis were put on trial for committing crimes against humanity
• suggested that nations were accountable to the international community, especially if they defied human rights and moral principles

Question 4

what is international law?

Answer 4

• rules that govern the relationships between states
• much like the UKSC where there is no compulsion, because the states are sovereign, but reccomendations

Question 5

what are the sources of international law?

Answer 5

although not codified:
- treaties and conventions between states
- international customs - diplomatic immunity
- general laws recognised by civil nations - things that are generally illegal everywhere
- judicial decisions
- legal writings

Question 6

what are two events of key signficance in the development of international human rights law?

Answer 6

Nuremberg and Tokyo tribunals after WW2

Question 7

what is the international criminal court?

Answer 7

• also sits in the Hague but is a separate court that is not a part of the UN family or organisations

Question 8

What are the main aims of of the ICJ?

Answer 8

• the court settles legal disputes submitted by states, it then acts as an advisory to these international disputes so as to create a more peaceful and stable world
• article 94: states that member states should comply with the ICJ’s judgement or the UNSC has to take action

Question 9

What were some of the successes of the ICJ?

Answer 9

• 1986 - border clash between Burkina Faso and Mali
• 1992 - border dispute between El Salvador and Honduras
• 2002 - dispute between Nigeria and Cameroon

Mostly LEDCs that concur with ICJ decisions and they mostly succeeded with border clashes

Question 10

What are some of the failures of the ICJ?

Answer 10

• 1980 - Iran refused to accept the ICJ sovereignty after US took it to court for seizing the US embassy in Tehran.
• 2012 - Colombia refused to accept ICJ jurisdiction and the president stated that ‘the borders of nations cannot be in the hands of the law’
• 2014 - Australia brought Japan to court for whaling but soon after accepting the decision they started again (2015)
• Israel rejected the ICJ decision that a wall between Israel and Palestine was illegal
• 2010 - Russia ignored ICJ decision on Kosovo’s independence

Question 11

What are the key reasons why the ICJ is less effective than before?

Answer 11

• The organisation conflicts with realist state egoism: that states will always seek to expand their burdens at the expense of other nations
• ICJ is limited in its nature - it can only deal with issues that are brought to it rather than initiating them
• states are able to choose whether or not they are subject to the decisions. In Feb 2017, only 72/193 members signed the optional clause to accept decisions in advance
• the UNSC cannot enforce the decisions of the ICJ according to chapter 7; coercive force can only be used if international security is threatened

Question 12

What is the background of the international criminal court?

Answer 12

• also based in The Hague
• it is a separate court to the ICJ and not a part of the UN organisations
• set up by the 1988 Rome statute and came into force in 2002
• Rome Statute states that it is the duty of every state to exercise its criminal jurisdiction over those responsible fot international crimes

Question 13

what is the purpose of the ICC?

Answer 13

• it is responsible for investigating and putting on trial individuals who have been accused of crimes against humanity
• the ICC stands as a permanent court in place of ad hoc tribunals - aims to ensure that tyrants who have committed war crimes will be punished and deterred

Question 14

what is a special tribunal? and when were they prominent?

Answer 14

it is a special criminal court established by the UN to investigate and prosecute international crimes - genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity
- most prominent during the 1990s when there was growing concern from the international community - set up for war crimes in former Yugoslavia and Rwanda

Question 15

was the special tribunal in Yugoslavia successful?

Answer 15

• 1993 the ICTY was instituted as the first criminal court since Nuremberg

+ an international court was set up and they managed to criminalise the Serb leaders for their crimes against

Question 16

when was the ECHR set up? and what was its purpose?

Answer 16

• 1949 - in response to the human rights abuses of the holocaust
• aims to promote human rights, democracy and rule of law in europe
• 47 member states, not belarus
• like the other courts, their rulings are not directly enforceable