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122. Symposium: The Human Dimension of International Law: Introduction
- Author:
- Paola Gaeta
- Publication Date:
- 02-2010
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Abstract:
- This symposium comprises the contributions presented by five distinguished international lawyers at the European University Institute in Florence in October 2008 on a very special occasion. Antonio Cassese ('Nino' to his friends and colleagues) had recently celebrated his 70th birthday and, as is customary in many European countries, a group of his former students and friends chose this occasion to celebrate his academic and professional career with the publication of a selection of his most important writings on the three branches of public international law he has most influenced – international humanitarian law, international human rights law, and international criminal law. The outcome was a book, The Human Dimension of International Law, published in summer 2008 by Oxford University Press, the intention of which is to shed light on Nino's intellectual approach to these three areas of public international law. The publication of this volume also provided an excellent occasion to convene a small number of friends and colleagues as a token of appreciation and admiration for his many achievements as an international lawyer. As Nino shies away from any personal limelight (indeed, I am certain he will be troubled by these few lines about him), it was decided that this meeting at the …
- Topic:
- International Law
- Political Geography:
- Europe
123. Warum betreibt der Europäische Gerichtshof Rechtsfortbildung? Die Politisierungshypothese
- Author:
- Martin Höpner
- Publication Date:
- 02-2010
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies
- Abstract:
- Scholars from law, political science and sociology agree that the European Court of Justice (ECJ) interprets European law extensively and that the Court has become an “engine of integration” that, de facto, conducts integration policy. On the basis of ten landmark ECJ decisions, this paper discusses whether the politicization hypothesis can help to explain this development. The politicization hypothesis posits that ECJ judges make their decisions based on the political interests of either the countries they come from or the parties they sympathize with. The party-based variant of the hypothesis does not seem to have any explanatory power. Similarly, the country-based variant delivers no systematic explanation that could supersede alternative explanations. However, the country-based variant fits quite well with some of the cases observed. I conclude that while situationally motivated acts of politicization may actually occur at the ECJ, which does not imply that the judicial code is being totally replaced by political considerations.
- Topic:
- International Law and Law
- Political Geography:
- Europe
124. Furthering Democracy through the European Union's Development Policy: Legal Limitations and Possibilities
- Author:
- Morten Broberg
- Publication Date:
- 01-2010
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Danish Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- This working paper provides an analysis of the efforts by the European Union to support democracy building in developing countries. It focuses on the specific question of the legal obligations of, and limits for, the European Union in seeking to further democracy through its policies directed at developing countries. The core of the paper is an examination of the legal framework governing the Union's relations with developing countries and the possibilities for furthering democracy. The paper considers the European Union's determination of whether a third country complies, in legal terms, with its 'democratic obligations', and how it is able to control and sanction non-compliance. On the basis of these examinations the possibilities of furthering democracy and the rule of law in the Union's development cooperation legislation are analysed.
- Topic:
- Democratization, Development, International Law, Third World, and Governance
- Political Geography:
- Europe
125. Towards a Common European Border Service?
- Author:
- Sergio Carrera
- Publication Date:
- 06-2010
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Centre for European Policy Studies
- Abstract:
- What should be the future institutional configurations of the second generation of the EU's Integrated Border Management strategy for the common external borders? The Stockholm Programme endorsed by the European Council on December 2009 and the European Commission's action plan implementing it published in April 2010 have brought back to the EU policy agenda the feasibility of setting up a European system of border guards as a long-term policy vision. This Working Document examines the origins of this proposal and aims at thinking ahead by asserting that any future discussion and study in this context should be refocused by initially addressing two central questions: First, what kind of 'border guard' and what kinds of 'border controls' does the EU need in light of the current EU acquis on external border crossings and the Schengen Borders Code? Second, what would be the 'added value' of any new institutional arrangement at the current stage of European integration?
- Topic:
- International Law and Regional Cooperation
- Political Geography:
- Europe
126. Judicial Interpretation or Judicial Activism?: the Legacy of Rationalism in the Studies of the European Court of Justice
- Author:
- Andreas Grimmel
- Publication Date:
- 01-2010
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
- Abstract:
- During the last two decades, law as a factor in European integration has attracted great scientific interest. Numerous studies and theoretical analyses have been published which have undertaken the task of examining and explaining the role of law in the progress of integration. The European Court of Justice (ECJ) in particular, as Europe's judiciary body, draws much attention in this context. However, the inflexible, mechanistic and universalistic notion of rationality that these works employ leads to serious misinterpretations and unjustified criticism regarding the role the ECJ takes in the course of integration. Within the frameworks of contemporary approaches the Court is perceived as just one more political player among other actors and institutions able to shape the EU in the pursuit of its own rational interests. By outlining the theoretical concept of context rationality, this article shows that the logics of law and judicial law making are based on a non-trivial and non-political rationality and cannot be understood appropriately without paying attention to the context of European law.
- Topic:
- International Law, Regional Cooperation, and Law Enforcement
- Political Geography:
- Europe
127. Preventive Detention and the "War on Terror": Keeping the Response to Terrorism within the Law
- Publication Date:
- 09-2010
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Atlantic Council
- Abstract:
- During what the U.S. government formerly called the “war on terror”, both U.S. and European governments resorted to preventive detention. But holding individuals deemed to be a security risk indefinitely and without charge is a controversial strategy. Not only have there been miscarriages of justice, but detention may actually fuel the terrorist cause and attract more recruits. Yet, without recourse to preventive detention, military and security forces may be tempted to resort to more extreme, and perhaps prohibited, measures against an individual suspected of being a terrorist threat. If, therefore, U.S. and European governments are to employ preventive detention as a tool in fighting international terrorism, particularly in overseas operations, it must be done in a way that reinforces the legitimacy of their efforts and is in keeping with international law.
- Topic:
- International Law, Terrorism, and International Security
- Political Geography:
- United States and Europe
128. How International Law Standards Pervade Discourse on the Use of Armed Force: Insights into European and US Newspaper Debates between 1990 and 2005
- Author:
- Swantje Renfordt
- Publication Date:
- 05-2010
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The Kolleg-Forschergruppe (KFG)
- Abstract:
- For almost a decade, 'public legitimacy' has remained largely unaddressed in empirical international relations (IR) analyses of international legalization. Yet, this concept has behavioral consequences. IR scholars for long assume that a belief in the legitimacy of a norm may be one reason for a 'compliance pull' on the international stage. The present study addresses this gap. It suggests a sociological conception of legalization observable in mass media debates and encompassing law's 'public legitimacy', understood as the congruence between legal regulations and discursive practices to that effect that these rules are also accepted by the larger public. This conception is illustrated in European and US newspaper reporting about military interventions in the post-Cold War era (1990-2005). Based on a large-n media analysis, the study not only concludes that an 'international rule of law' frame is heavily diffused across the communicative practices of European and US public spheres. It also shows that two legal norms in particular – human rights and United Nations (UN) multilateralism – generate a shared sense of 'public legitimacy' across the six countries analyzed.
- Topic:
- International Law and Mass Media
- Political Geography:
- United States, Europe, and United Nations
129. The Kosovo Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice and its Political Consequences
- Author:
- Pál Dunay and Steven Haines
- Publication Date:
- 10-2010
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Geneva Centre for Security Policy
- Abstract:
- Ever since NATO's Operation Allied Force in 1999 resulted in a withdrawal of Serb forces from Kosovo and the establishment of governance arrangements for the province that included an important external presence (with UN, EU, NATO and OSCE missions) as well as Kosovo's own Provisional Institutions of Self Government, the precise future status of Kosovo has been in doubt. Two extreme options were favoured by Serbia and Kosovo, respectively: either for Kosovo to continue as a part of Serbia or for it to achieve independent status (most likely by attaining statehood). On 17 February 2008, a group of Kosovo leaders issued a Declaration of Independence. Serbia responded with a request that the UN General Assembly seek an opinion on the legality of Kosovo's action from the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The Court delivered its Opinion on 22 July 2010. What did the Court say and what are the political consequences of its Opinion?
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, International Law, and Sovereignty
- Political Geography:
- Europe, Kosovo, United Nations, and Balkans
130. Challenges and Prospects for the EU's Area of Freedom, Security and Justice: Recommendations to the European Commission for the Stockholm Programme
- Author:
- Sergio Carrera, Elspeth Guild, and Anaïs Faure Atger
- Publication Date:
- 04-2009
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Centre for European Policy Studies
- Abstract:
- The upcoming Swedish presidency of the EU will be in charge of adopting the next multiannual programme on an Area of Freedom, Security and Justice (AFSJ), during its tenure in the second half of 2009. As the successor of the 2004 Hague Programme, it has already been informally baptised as the Stockholm Programme and will present the EU's policy roadmap and legislative timetable over these policies for the next five years. It is therefore a critical time to reflect on the achievements and shortcomings affecting the role that the European Commission's Directorate-General of Justice, Freedom and Security (DG JFS) has played during the last five years in light of the degree of policy convergence achieved so far. This Working Document aims at putting forward a set of policy recommendations for the DG JFS to take into consideration as it develops and consolidates its future policy strategies, while duly ensuring the legitimacy and credibility of the EU's AFSJ within and outside Europe.
- Topic:
- Security, International Law, International Organization, and Regional Cooperation
- Political Geography:
- Europe