Individuals and international law

1
Individuals and international law

• Lecture 21
• March 6

2
ASSIGNMENTS-1

• Monday, March 9
• Individuals as subjects of intl law - Continued
• The UN and Human Rights Law
• Universal Declaration of Human Rights -at the
  back of our textbook
• International Covenant on Civil and Political
  Rights
• http//www.unhchr.ch/html/menu3/b/a_ccpr.htm
• International Covenant on Economic, Social and
  Cultural Rights
• http//www.unhchr.ch/html/menu3/b/a_cescr.htm
• Soering Case

3
ASSIGNMENTS-2

• International Criminal Law p.395
• ICC http//www.icc-cpi.int/Menus/ICC/
• Rome Statute of the ICC http//www.icc-cpi.int/NR
  /rdonlyres/EA9AEFF7-5752-4F84-BE94-0A655EB30E16/0/
  Rome_Statute_English.pdf
• You need to read Articles 1-21, at least.
• Find out which article states that ICC takes
  cases where the state is unwilling or unable to
  prosecute
• Who are the judges of the ICC -
  http//www.icc-cpi.int/chambers/judges.htmlfdd

4
ASSIGNMENTS-3

• Wednesday, April 1 Guest Speaker
• Professor Kanner Terrorism and International
  Law
• Attendance compulsory
• Today
• Individuals and International Law
• Individuals as objects of intl law
• - Review Nottebohm Case
• Individuals as subjects of intl law
• Assignment find a right for individuals in the
  Universal Declaration and then find the
  correlative right in one of the covenants.

5
International Criminal Law

• Which of the following categories is NOT included
  in the definition of genocide?
• A. Race
• B. Ethnicity
• C. Gender
• D. Nationality
• E. Religion

6
INDIVIDUALSAs Objects of intl law

• individuals could be objects of state v. state
  litigation.
• State protection and state responsibility
• Limitations
• - only protected by their national states
• - national links extended to corporations
• - leaves nationals open to abuse by their own
  states not practical to imagine a state
  protecting its own natl against itself in intl
  law.

7
Nottebohm Case

• Issue May a state legitimately protect a
  national who doesnt have real and effective ties
  to that state?
• Whether the naturalization thus granted could be
  validly invoked against Guatemala and therefore
  entitled L. to seize the Court of a claim
  relating to him.

8
traditional concept of intl law

• governing relations betw. states did not
  cover the relationship betw states and
  individuals an offense to an alien was
  considered an offense only to the aliens native
  state. The modern intl law of human rights
  makes nationality irrelevant.
• A states treatment of individuals in its
  territory was considered a domestic affair not
  an intl law matter. Except aliens.

9
Post WWII

• modern concept of intl human rights reaction
  to the Holocaust- human rights became a matter of
  intl concern, not just a matter left solely to
  each state.
• An important outcome of the Nuremberg trials
  that there are individual international rights
  and obligations that transcend state boundaries.

10
UN Charter

• UN Charter Art. 1, para.3 one of its principle
  purposes the promotion and protection of human
  rights.
• UN Charter Art. 55 and 56 foundation of modern
  human rights law.
• Quick emergence of the rules of intl human rights
  law
• But development of effective intl hum rights
  legal process more gradual
• - creating enforcement mechanisms at the level
  of UN
• - regional human rights systems, especially
  Europe

11
International Bill of Rightshttp//www.unhchr.ch/
html/intlinst.htm

• 1. Universal Declaration on Human Rights 1948
  UNGA adopted it unanimously
• 2. Intl Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,
  1966 US is a party
• 3. Int Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
  Rights 1966 US not a party
• Optional Protocol to the Civil and Political
  Covenant US not a party
• Second Optional Protocol to the Civil and
  Political Covenant Aiming at the Abolition of the
  Death Penalty - US not a party

12
Treaty-based and charter-based bodies

• Treaty-based
• Human Rights Committee
• - Art. 28 International Covenant on Civil and
  Political Rights
• Charter-based Rights
• Commission on Human Rights
• - established by ECOSOC 1946
• Replace by the Human Rights Council

13
International Human Rights Law

• 1st generation of rights
• Intl Covenant on Civil and polit rights
• 2nd generation of rights
• Int Covenant on economic, social, and cultural
  rights
• 3rd generation rights
• no covenant - collective rights to peace,
  development, and a healthy environment