global governance: human rights and environmental Flashcards
define human rights
entitlements that are inherent to all human beings irrespective of their characteristics
features of human rights
- universal- applicable to all human beings
- inalienable- should not be taken away except in specific circumstances
- indivisible- agreement to adhere to all the rights
- fundamental- a human beings entitlement cannot be removed
- UNHR and both covenants are known as international bill of human rights
different dimensions of human rights
1st dimension- political rights (negative rights), life liberty and property
2nd dimension- economic, social and cultural rights (positive rights), state intervention in work, education, healthcare and security
3rd dimension- collective rights, right to self determination and peace
history of human rights
- WW2 led to signing of UN declaration of human rights in 1948
- 1966- civil and political rights became international law through international covenant on economic, social and cultural rights became
what is international law
- rules governing relationships between states
- not codified
- sources include treaties, conventions, customs, judicial decisions and legal writings
what is international court of justice
- founded in 1945
- arbitration organ of UN
- based in the Hague
- disputes between states
strengths of ICJ
- universal jurisdiction
- settled border disputes- Costa Rica vs Nicaragua
- increased use- 65 to 166 in 2017
weaknesses of ICJ
- only applied to states and not non state actors
- no enforcement powers- ICJ ruled in favour of Nicaragua but US said court has no jurisdiction
- favour western states
what is international criminal court
- based in the Hague
- war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide
- court for individuals
- permanent creation in 2001 after war crime tribunals
- 125 members
strengths of ICC
- evidence of growing acceptance of international law
- 44 indicted
- successfully prosecuted Congolese warlord Lubangabfor using child soldiers in 2002
weaknesses of ICC
- lack of members- only 124 in 2020 ratified their signature
- new and unestablished
- targets weaker Africa. countries- DRC, Uganda
- US hostility as they get exemption from prosecution from Iraq war
- lack of involvement from great powers- india, china , russia
- not accepted by big powers- Trump sanctioned ICC as they sent an arrest for Netanyahu
what are war crimes tribunals
- prosecute individuals for war crimes
- ad hoc tribunals for specific circumstances
strengths of war crimes tribunals
- help to develop international law
- retribution and deterrence
- prompted setting up permanent ICC
- sierra leone 2002-2013, 22 indicted and 16 sentenced
- Rwanda- 93 indicted and 75 trials
weaknesses of war crime tribunals
- specific to certain countries at times
- difficulty of catching suspects- Mladic and Karadizc were hard to find
- delay and duration- Milosevic illness and death
- hypocrisy of the west
- impartiality- iraq special tribunal hands elected evidence in order to not incriminate US
- failure to deter- 750,000 deaths in Rwanda
- hard to prosecute great powers
- difficulty in determining war crimes
- expensive- Yugoslavia cost was $301 million in 2010
features of ECHR
- 47 member states
- aims to promote human rights, democracy and rule of law
- court of last resort, for those who feel their rights have been breached by the state
- not directly enforceable
define humanitarian intervention
forcible military intervention for humanitarian reasons to help others and ease suffering
why has humanitarian intervention become more prevalent
- growing acceptance of human rights
- rise of liberalism
- growing awareness with 24/7 news
- new world order
- rising inequality and corruption
just war theory and links to iraq
- war must be for a just cause (Hussein seen as a threat with WMD)
- declared by a lawful authority (some argue democracies are lawful, some say UN is the only authority)
- good intentions (UN resolution to strip Iraq of WMD)
- other methods have been tried (UN demanded Iraq scrap WMD for 12 years)
- reasonable chance of success
- proportional means of violence
strengths of humanitarian intervention
- examples of it working- end of Kosovo ethnic cleansing
- more norms of human rights
weaknesses of humanitarian intervention
- goes against state sovereignty and interfering with state affairs
- realists argue altruism does not work
- selective of when it applies- often targets African countries
- Libya didn’t work as accusations of regime change and boost for IS
- some interventions are strategic- accuse US of invading Iraq for oil reserves
- cultural imperialism- typical practices that went against christianity like denied missionaries were called for intervention, instead Islamic ideas derived from divine authority (Sharia law), Bangkok declaration of asian governments rejects Western focus on individual rights
- contravening just war theory
- western double standards- promote democracy and against human rights but Guantanamo bay naval base waterboarded detainees during war on terror
features of deep ecology
- environmental movements which regards human life as just one of the many equal components in a global system
- appreciates the environments intrinsic value
- rejection of anthropocentrism- belief that humans are the most important
- used as a radical form to protest to justify violent and extreme action
- reject consumerist and materialist values
- strong sustainability- preserve the earth and its feosuces
features of shallow ecology
-social environmentalism
- anthropocentric
- environment matters because it benefits society- extrinsic value
- conservation of environment
- use of green technology and green consumerism- enviro,enrolls friendly products (weak sustainability)
features of UNFCCC
- treaty came into force in 1994 and by 2012 was ratified by 194 states
- states have met every year
- earth summit in 1992 was largest environmental conference in the world
- aim to stabilise greenhouse gas emissions
evaluation of UNFCCC
- did not consider developing states would rapidly increase
- only recommendations and not legally binding
features of IPCC
- set up 4 years before UNFCCC
- 195 members
- provide impartial information and advice about climate change to decision makers
- made up of a panel of climate change scientists
- make regular reports on impacts and risks
evaluation of IPCC strengths
+ influences understanding of policy making it on climate change
+ made it increasingly difficult for states to ignore the issues
+ assessment reports are open and comprehensive
+ near universal membership- 195 member states
evaluation of IPCC weaknesses
- reliance on already published research means findings may be be out of date
- question validity of scientific assumptions
- accused of scaremongering- 2014 assessment reports claimed there was risk of death and injury for people in low lying coastal zones
- lacks power of enforcement
explain what tragedy of the commons is
- idea that where resources are shared there will be misuse of exploitation
- competing interests of states, like in Antarctica
explain what sustainable development is
- development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the future
- current economic growth should be limited so there is enough resources for future generations
- for example, AT protect antarctica from exploitation
what is the rio earth summit 1992
- first international conference that gave significant attention to climate change
- created UNFCCC
- developed states agreed to restore 1990 levels of emissions by year 2000
evaluation of rio earth summit 1992
+ starting point in discussing climate change
+ focus on sustainable development
- not legally binding
- gg emissions continued to rise in 90s
- developing nations were not bound to the agreement
why is kyoto protocol 1997
- set legally binding targets for 37 developed states to reduce emissions by at least 5.2%
- differential targets depending on country- EU 8% vs USA 7%
- carbon trading scheme
evaluation of kyoto protocol 1997
+ legally binding
+ emissions reduced in countries with targets
- excluded developing nations- Chinas emissions steeply rose and overtook USA in 2008
- USA didnt ratify
- carbon trading can be abused
- cutting emissions by 5% is not efficient
what was copenhagen accord 2009
- attempt to construct post kyoto agreement
- acknowledge climate change was anthropogenic
- aimed to keep global temp within 2C pre industrial
- developed countries to provide $30 billion in aid to help poorer countries cut emissions
evaluation of copenhagen accord 2009
+ big states like US involved, and pledged to cut emissions by 4% by 2020
- not legally binding
- unclear how target can be achieved
- financial crisis undermined efforts
what is uk climate change act 2008
- reduced emissions by 50% by 2050
evaluation of uk climate change act 2008
+ achievable
- leads to an increase in energy prices
- climate change is global
what was paris agreement 2015
- commitment to reduce global carbon emissions during 2nd half of century
- keep global temp well below 2C, and not below 1.5C pre industrial levels
- climate finance to help poorer nations switch to renewable energy- $100 billion a year
evaluation of paris agreement 2015
+first truly global agreement
+ participation of countries like US and China
+ countries to submit reports every 5 years
- trump has pulled out twice
- timescales are vague
- 2020 was first year to pass 1.5C limit
- uncertain where money is coming from and to who
why is it difficult to reach climate change agreements
- objection from developing nations as they believe they have the right to industrialise and were not responsible
- realists argue it goes against state sovereignty
- pressure from public- bush withdrew from kyoto to appeal to republican sceptics
- sustainable development can be more costly- renewable energy
- trump and uncertainty from US
- climate change denial
what does friends of the earth do
- international network of environmental organisations
- 2 million members worldwide
- aims to promote environmental protection and sustainable development
