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4091. "The Human Right to Health"

Author:
Joia S. Mukherjee
Publication Date:
11-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Institution:
Carnegie Council
Abstract:
The modern day notion of human rights was shaped significantly by World War II and the subsequent Nuremberg Trials of 1948, which sparked a movement to codify a new standard of human dignity. The postwar campaign for a universal standard for all humans regardless of nationality, race, or religion produced the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948). And while the Declaration itself does not have the legal weight of a treaty or covenant, it nonetheless has served as a yardstick against which rights are measured. Notably, the Declaration gives weight to two aspects of the rights paradigm of the twentieth century: the need for a government not to restrict the rights of or discriminate against its citizens, and the need for a government to deliver to its citizens a basic set of services, including education and health.

4092. "Kant and the End of War: A Critique of Just War Theory" and "Kant and Cosmopolitanism: The Philosophical Ideal of World Citizenship"

Author:
Alyssa Bernstein
Publication Date:
11-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Institution:
Carnegie Council
Abstract:
Since the last decade of the twentieth century, Immanuel Kant has become central to academic discussions of international relations f or various reasons, including the end of the cold war (which renewed many people's hopes f or worldwide peace and democracy) and the publication of writings by the prominent neo-Kantians Jürgen Habermas and John Rawls and their followers and critics, as well as by a number of Kant scholars writing about war, humanitarian intervention, democracy, international law, peace, and cosmopolitanism. Kant and the End of War, by Howard Williams, and Kant and Cosmopolitanism, by Pauline Kleingeld, are new books by two of the foremost contemporary scholars of Kant's political philosophy, and the theme of international peace is central to both.

4093. The Risks Posed by Jihadist Hackers

Author:
Christopher Heffelfinger
Publication Date:
07-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
CTC Sentinel
Institution:
The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
Abstract:
The current pool of jihadist hackers (or jihadist hacktivists) is youthful, ambitious in its goals, and largely lagging in terms of its technical capabilities. This is best illustrated by the fact that these hackers have carried out few effective large-scale attacks to date. Jihadist hacktivists remain a loosely to disorganized set of individual hackers who form and disband hacking groups they create, and frequently enter into counterproductive rivalries with fellow. hackers. Perhaps as a result, despite more than seven years of efforts to construct and recruit for jihadist hacking attacks via online forums, they have yet to form a jihadist hacking group that can demonstrably perform effective cyber attacks.

4094. The Nairobi Attack and Al-Shabab's Media Strategy

Author:
Christopher Anzalone
Publication Date:
10-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
CTC Sentinel
Institution:
The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
Abstract:
After carrying out a bold attack inside the upscale Westgate Mall in Nairobi in September 2013, the Somali militant group al-Shabab succeeded in recapturing the media spotlight. This was in large part due to the nature of the attack, its duration, the difficulty in resecuring the mall, the number of casualties, and al-Shabab's aggressive media campaign during and immediately after the attack.
Political Geography:
Nairobi

4095. European Parliament Elections 2014: Europe's Fateful Choices; EJIL and ESIL; In this Issue

Author:
JHHW
Publication Date:
11-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
After many 'ostrich years' the European head is out of the sand: there really is a problem with the legitimacy – or rather, the perception of legitimacy – of the European construct. It is not a mere 'bee in the bonnet' of some irritating academics disconnected from reality. Eurobarometer indications are at their lowest and the results of a highly respected Pew Center survey, too, show a remarkable fall in support for Europe among its citizens. Political differences on how to tackle the Euro crisis are, worryingly, both reflective and constitutive of what one may call a solidarity deficit.
Political Geography:
Europe

4096. New Great Powers and International Law in the 21st Century

Author:
Congyan Cai
Publication Date:
11-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
Great Powers (GPs) have always been prominent in international relations. Their rise and fall often lead to structural transformations of international relations. In the past decade, the world has witnessed the rise of some New GPs (NGPs), which primarily consist of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS). While the effect of the supremacy of the United States, an Old GP (OGPs), on international law has been examined extensively since 2000, international lawyers have hardly discussed how the rise of NGPs may shape and reshape international law. This article endeavours to examine the implications for such rise that stem from the rise of NGPs. In particular, as an 'insider' from an NGP, the author reviews the latest development in China's international legal policy and practice.
Topic:
International Relations and International Law
Political Geography:
Russia, United States, China, India, South Africa, and Brazil

4097. The Concept of Monetary Sovereignty Revisited

Author:
Claus D. Zimmermann
Publication Date:
11-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
Few legal concepts have been subject to as little critical scrutiny over the past few decades as that of monetary sovereignty. This stands in contrast to the renewed interest in different aspects of broader concepts of sovereignty. Filling this important gap in the literature, this article examines whether the concept of monetary sovereignty is subject to evolution under the impact of globalization and financial integration. This article fully takes into account the dual nature of monetary sovereignty as a concept with not only positive but also important normative components. It is argued herein that the concept of monetary sovereignty is more than a mere framework for debates on rights and duties of states, but that it is still relevant as a legal concept for evaluating the contemporary exercise of sovereign powers in the realm of money and for improving our understanding of the driving forces behind the evolution of the law in this crucial field. After a review of the conceptual foundations of monetary sovereignty, this article assesses its conceptual evolution under the impact of contemporary constraints on its exercise, and examines the main implications of the proposed new understanding of monetary sovereignty, with its normative components providing normative guidance and serving as a legitimacy benchmark.
Topic:
Globalization

4098. The Power to Kill or Capture Enemy Combatants

Author:
Ryan Goodman
Publication Date:
11-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
During wartime a critical legal question involves the scope of authority to choose whether to kill or capture enemy combatants. One view maintains that a combatant is lawfully subject to lethal force wherever the person is found – unless and until the individual offers to surrender. In contrast, this article concludes that important restraints on the use of deadly force were a part of the agreement reached by states and codified in the 1977 First Additional Protocol to the Geneva Conventions. When nations of the world focused their attention on balancing principles of humanity and military necessity, and making higher law, they agreed on two important sets of rules. Under Article 35, states agreed to prohibit the manifestly unnecessary killing of enemy combatants. And, under Article 41, they agreed that combatants who are completely defenceless, at the mercy of enemy forces, shall be considered hors de combat. – including alternative specifications of standards and burdens of proof. Nevertheless, the general constraint – and its key components – should be understood to have a solid foundation in the structure, rules, and practices of modern warfare.
Political Geography:
Geneva

4099. Wound, Capture, or Kill: A Reply to Ryan Goodman's 'The Power to Kill or Capture Enemy Combatants'

Author:
Michael N. Schmitt
Publication Date:
11-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
This article examines two issues raised by Professor Goodman's article published in this volume of EJIL: (1) a purported obligation under international humanitarian law (IHL) to minimize harm to enemy fighters; and (2) a purported IHL duty to capture rather than kill when doing so is feasible in the circumstances. It notes that situations in which it is possible to wound rather than kill enemy fighters are rare on the battlefield. However, even when such circumstances do present themselves, there is no obligation under the extant IHL to do so. Similarly, there is no duty to capture rather than kill under the existing law. Nevertheless, the article offers an analysis that would extend hors de combat status to enemy fighters who have been effectively captured, thereby shielding them from attack. Accordingly, the approach would often arrive at the same conclusion as that proposed by Professor Goodman, albeit through a different legal lens. The article concludes by noting that although there is no 'capture-kill' rule in IHL, for operational and policy reasons, capture is usually preferred.

4100. The Power to Kill or Capture Enemy Combatants: A Rejoinder to Michael N. Schmitt

Author:
Ryan Goodman
Publication Date:
11-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
I wrote the article, 'The Power to Kill or Capture Enemy Combatants', to correct an oversight in recent law of armed conflict (LOAC) scholarship and practice. In the article, two of the leading LOAC experts with whom I disagree are Colonel Hays Parks and Professor Michael Schmitt. In his Reply to my article, Professor Schmitt thoughtfully engages with my analysis. His representation of my argument is fair, and he interrogates the merit of my position squarely. In addition, he shows a willingness to modify his earlier positions in light of my research, another feature of his writing that demonstrates an extraordinary quality of mind and intellectual character. I am honoured to engage with his ideas in this Rejoinder.