Cosmopolitan guidelines for humanitarian intervention

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Volumn 29, Issue 1, 2004, Pages 1-21

  Archibugi, Daniele ^a  

^a CNR   (Italy)

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EID: 2442504823     PISSN: 03043754     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1177/030437540402900101     Document Type: Review

References (56)

1. A range of different perspectives on humanitarian intervention can be found in J. L. Holzgrefe and Robert O. Keohane, eds., Humanitarian Intervention: Ethical, Legal, and Political Dilemmas (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003).
2. Some of these cases are discussed in Richard Tuck, The Rights of War and Peace: Political Thought and International Order from Grotius to Kant (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999); Mona Fixdal and Dan Smith, "Humanitarian Intervention and Just War," Mershon International Studies Review 42 (1998): 283-312; and Terry Nardin, "The Moral Basis of Humanitarian Intervention," Ethics and International Affairs 16 (2002): 57-70.
3. Some of these cases are discussed in Richard Tuck, The Rights of War and Peace: Political Thought and International Order from Grotius to Kant (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999); Mona Fixdal and Dan Smith, "Humanitarian Intervention and Just War," Mershon International Studies Review 42 (1998): 283-312; and Terry Nardin, "The Moral Basis of Humanitarian Intervention," Ethics and International Affairs 16 (2002): 57-70.
4. Some of these cases are discussed in Richard Tuck, The Rights of War and Peace: Political Thought and International Order from Grotius to Kant (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999); Mona Fixdal and Dan Smith, "Humanitarian Intervention and Just War," Mershon International Studies Review 42 (1998): 283-312; and Terry Nardin, "The Moral Basis of Humanitarian Intervention," Ethics and International Affairs 16 (2002): 57-70.
5. Although Pufendorf was far too deferential to Grotius, when he dared to express his own opinions on the legitimacy of warfare, he provided much stronger constraints on the recourse to war than his predecessor.
6. Mary Kaldor, "A Decade of Humanitarian Intervention: The Role of Global Civil Society," in Helmut Anheier, Marlies Glasius, and Mary Kaldor, eds., Global Civil Society 2001 (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001) presents a useful categorization of the various motivations to undertake humanitarian interventions ("Sovereignists," "Just war," "Humanitarian peace," and "Human rights enforcement") and explores which actions these views supported in the paradigmatic cases of Bosnia, Somalia, Kosovo, and Sierra Leone.
7. Michael Walzer, "The Argument about Humanitarian Intervention, " Dissent (Winter 2002): 30.
8. I broadly share Chris Brown's disenchanted view; see " Humanitarianism and Humanitarian Intervention," chap. 8 in his Sovereignty, Rights, and Justice (Cambridge: Polity Press, 2002).
9. Alberico Gentili, De jure belli libri tres [1598; edition of 1612], reprinted and translated into English by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (Oxford, U.K.: Clarendon Press, 1933), book 1, chap. 16, "On Defending the Subjects of Another State Against their Sovereign"; Hugo Grotius, The Rights of War and Peace, in three books [1625], translated into English with "all the large Notes of Mr. J. Barbeyrac" (London: 1737), book 2, chap. 2, para. 8, "Whether that War is just which is made for the Defence of another's subjects."
10. Alberico Gentili, De jure belli libri tres [1598; edition of 1612], reprinted and translated into English by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (Oxford, U.K.: Clarendon Press, 1933), book 1, chap. 16, "On Defending the Subjects of Another State Against their Sovereign"; Hugo Grotius, The Rights of War and Peace, in three books [1625], translated into English with "all the large Notes of Mr. J. Barbeyrac" (London: 1737), book 2, chap. 2, para. 8, "Whether that War is just which is made for the Defence of another's subjects."
11. Alberico Gentili, De jure belli libri tres [1598; edition of 1612], reprinted and translated into English by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (Oxford, U.K.: Clarendon Press, 1933), book 1, chap. 16, "On Defending the Subjects of Another State Against their Sovereign"; Hugo Grotius, The Rights of War and Peace, in three books [1625], translated into English with "all the large Notes of Mr. J. Barbeyrac" (London: 1737), book 2, chap. 2, para. 8, "Whether that War is just which is made for the Defence of another's subjects."
12. See the Forum on Humanitarian Intervention in the International Journal of Human Rights 6, no. 1 (2002), with interventions material by Mohammed Ayoob, B. S. Chimni, Samuel M. Makinda, and Nicholas J. Wheeler.
13. The term (for genocide and mass murder) was introduced by Rudolph Rummel (1994), "Power, Genocide, and Mass Murder," Journal of Peace Research 31: 1 (1990): 1-10, to cover.
14. This definition is slightly different from that in J. L. Holzgrefe, "The Humanitarian Intervention Debate," in Holzgrefe and Keohane, note 1, p. 18.
15. Walzer, note 5, p. 32.
16. If a gallant neighbor intervenes earnestly to rescue only beautiful wives, he will have more difficulty gathering support in the neighborhood.
17. Richard Falk, "The Complexities of Humanitarian Intervention," chap. 4 in his Law in an Emerging Global Village (Ardsley, N.Y.: Transnational Publishers, 1998), stresses the need to make intentions consistent with implementation.
18. See, for example, Michael Ignatieff, Virtual War: Kosovo and Beyond (London: Chatto Windus, 2000).
19. William Ladd, An Essay on a Congress of Nations for the Adjustment of International Disputes without Resort to Arms ([1840] (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1916).
20. International Commission on Intervention and State Sovereignty (ICISS), The Responsibility to Protect, www.iciss-ciise.gc.ca. For a synthesis, see Gareth Evans and Mohamed Sahnoun, "The Responsibility to Protect," Foreign Affairs 81, no. 6 (2002): 99-110.
21. International Commission on Intervention and State Sovereignty (ICISS), The Responsibility to Protect, www.iciss-ciise.gc.ca. For a synthesis, see Gareth Evans and Mohamed Sahnoun, "The Responsibility to Protect," Foreign Affairs 81, no. 6 (2002): 99-110.
22. I use the expression from Nicholas Wheeler's thoughtful account in Saving Strangers: Humanitarian Intervention in International Society (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000).
23. I build upon the definitions introduced by Charles Beitz in Political Theory and International Relations (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1979); Thomas Pogge, "An Egalitarian Law of Peoples," Philosophy and Public Affairs 23 (1994): 195-224; and David Held, "Law of Peoples, Law of States," Legal Theory 8 (2002): 1-44.
24. I build upon the definitions introduced by Charles Beitz in Political Theory and International Relations (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1979); Thomas Pogge, "An Egalitarian Law of Peoples," Philosophy and Public Affairs 23 (1994): 195-224; and David Held, "Law of Peoples, Law of States," Legal Theory 8 (2002): 1-44.
25. I build upon the definitions introduced by Charles Beitz in Political Theory and International Relations (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1979); Thomas Pogge, "An Egalitarian Law of Peoples," Philosophy and Public Affairs 23 (1994): 195-224; and David Held, "Law of Peoples, Law of States," Legal Theory 8 (2002): 1-44.
26. On these two humanitarian interventions, see Wheeler, note 17, chaps. 2, 3.
27. Walzer, note 5, p. 30.
28. Michael J. Smith, "Humanitarian Intervention: An Overview of the Ethical Issues," Ethics and International Affairs 12 (1998): 78.
29. On the selectivity of media coverage, see Mariano Aguirre, "The Media and Humanitarian Spectacle," in Humanitarian Studies Unit, ed., Reflections on Humanitarian Action: Principles, Ethics, and Contradictions (London: Pluto Press, 2001).
30. United Nations, The United Nations and Rwanda, 1993-1996 (New York: United Nations, 1996), p. 268.
31. See Fernando R. Tesòn, Humanitarian Intervention: An Inquiry into Law and Morality, 2d ed. (Irvington-on-Hudson, N.Y.: Transnational Publishers, 1997). The first edition of this study was published at the end of the cold war, when humanitarian interventions could be unilateral only for lack of consensus among the superpowers. The second edition acknowledges the changing international regime and discusses the differences between unilateral and collective interventions. See, in particular, chap. 9: "Collective Humanitarian Interventions." A detailed judicial analysis is carried out in Simon Chesterman, Just War or Just Peace? Humanitarian Intervention and International Law (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001).
32. See Fernando R. Tesòn, Humanitarian Intervention: An Inquiry into Law and Morality, 2d ed. (Irvington-on-Hudson, N.Y.: Transnational Publishers, 1997). The first edition of this study was published at the end of the cold war, when humanitarian interventions could be unilateral only for lack of consensus among the superpowers. The second edition acknowledges the changing international regime and discusses the differences between unilateral and collective interventions. See, in particular, chap. 9: "Collective Humanitarian Interventions." A detailed judicial analysis is carried out in Simon Chesterman, Just War or Just Peace? Humanitarian Intervention and International Law (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001).
33. See Fernando R. Tesòn, Humanitarian Intervention: An Inquiry into Law and Morality, 2d ed. (Irvington-on-Hudson, N.Y.: Transnational Publishers, 1997). The first edition of this study was published at the end of the cold war, when humanitarian interventions could be unilateral only for lack of consensus among the superpowers. The second edition acknowledges the changing international regime and discusses the differences between unilateral and collective interventions. See, in particular, chap. 9: "Collective Humanitarian Interventions." A detailed judicial analysis is carried out in Simon Chesterman, Just War or Just Peace? Humanitarian Intervention and International Law (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001).
34. Walzer, note 5, p. 32.
35. A comprehensive report on the Security Council's legal practice can be found in Simon Chesterman, note 24.
36. See Mohammed Ayoob, "Humanitarian Intervention and State Sovereignty," International Journal of Human Rights 6, no. 1 (2002): 94-95.
37. Klaus Naumann, "Nato, Kosovo, and Military Intervention," Global Governance 8 (2002): 13-17. Similar concerns are expressed in Evans and Sahnoun, note 16, p. 106.
38. Klaus Naumann, "Nato, Kosovo, and Military Intervention," Global Governance 8 (2002): 13-17. Similar concerns are expressed in Evans and Sahnoun, note 16, p. 106.
39. These two fears are also shared by Mohammed Ayoob in "Humanitarian Intervention and International Society," Global Governance 7, no. 3 (2001): 225-230, and in Ayoob, note 27.
40. These two fears are also shared by Mohammed Ayoob in "Humanitarian Intervention and International Society," Global Governance 7, no. 3 (2001): 225-230, and in Ayoob, note 27.
41. Ayoob, note 27, has proposed the creation of a UN Humanitarian Council, modeled on the Economic and Social Council, with fifty elected members, to deal with the issue. This proposal is very much in line with the institution-building approach supported here. Such an institution, however, would continue to be intergovernmental, no less than the Security Council. In the same issue of International Journal of Human Rights as Ayoob's article, B. S. Chimni, Samuel M. Makinda, and Nicholas J. Wheeler discuss this proposal.
42. This dreamy idea, already suggested by William Penn, Claude-Henri Saint-Simon, and many others, has never disappeared from international thought. For recent restatements, see Daniele Archibugi, "From the United Nations to Cosmopolitan Democracy," in Daniele Archibugi and David Held, eds., Cosmopolitan Democracy (Cambridge: Polity Press, 1995); David Held, Democracy and the Global Order (Cambridge: Polity Press, 1995); Richard Falk and Andrew Strauss, "On the Creation of a Global Peoples Assembly: Legitimacy and the Power of Popular Sovereignty," Stanford Journal of International Law 36, no. 2 (2002): 191-219; Richard Falk and Andrew Strauss, "The Deeper Challenges of Global Terrorism: A Democratizing Response," in Daniele Archibugi, ed., Debating Cosmopolitics (London: Verso, 2003).
43. This dreamy idea, already suggested by William Penn, Claude-Henri Saint-Simon, and many others, has never disappeared from international thought. For recent restatements, see Daniele Archibugi, "From the United Nations to Cosmopolitan Democracy," in Daniele Archibugi and David Held, eds., Cosmopolitan Democracy (Cambridge: Polity Press, 1995); David Held, Democracy and the Global Order (Cambridge: Polity Press, 1995); Richard Falk and Andrew Strauss, "On the Creation of a Global Peoples Assembly: Legitimacy and the Power of Popular Sovereignty," Stanford Journal of International Law 36, no. 2 (2002): 191-219; Richard Falk and Andrew Strauss, "The Deeper Challenges of Global Terrorism: A Democratizing Response," in Daniele Archibugi, ed., Debating Cosmopolitics (London: Verso, 2003).
44. This dreamy idea, already suggested by William Penn, Claude-Henri Saint-Simon, and many others, has never disappeared from international thought. For recent restatements, see Daniele Archibugi, "From the United Nations to Cosmopolitan Democracy," in Daniele Archibugi and David Held, eds., Cosmopolitan Democracy (Cambridge: Polity Press, 1995); David Held, Democracy and the Global Order (Cambridge: Polity Press, 1995); Richard Falk and Andrew Strauss, "On the Creation of a Global Peoples Assembly: Legitimacy and the Power of Popular Sovereignty," Stanford Journal of International Law 36, no. 2 (2002): 191-219; Richard Falk and Andrew Strauss, "The Deeper Challenges of Global Terrorism: A Democratizing Response," in Daniele Archibugi, ed., Debating Cosmopolitics (London: Verso, 2003).
45. This dreamy idea, already suggested by William Penn, Claude-Henri Saint-Simon, and many others, has never disappeared from international thought. For recent restatements, see Daniele Archibugi, "From the United Nations to Cosmopolitan Democracy," in Daniele Archibugi and David Held, eds., Cosmopolitan Democracy (Cambridge: Polity Press, 1995); David Held, Democracy and the Global Order (Cambridge: Polity Press, 1995); Richard Falk and Andrew Strauss, "On the Creation of a Global Peoples Assembly: Legitimacy and the Power of Popular Sovereignty," Stanford Journal of International Law 36, no. 2 (2002): 191-219; Richard Falk and Andrew Strauss, "The Deeper Challenges of Global Terrorism: A Democratizing Response," in Daniele Archibugi, ed., Debating Cosmopolitics (London: Verso, 2003).
46. Stalin supposedly once asked his military staff: "How many divisions has the pope?"
47. William Penn, An Essay Towards the Present and Future Peace of Europe [1693].
48. Naumann, note 28.
49. A humanitarian catastrophe does not necessarily lead to a military intervention; such action may not be feasible. The lack of feasibility might be due to the government that is committing a democide being too strong to be overwhelmed by an external military intervention (too difficult); or it might because there is not the technical feasibility to reach the population needing help in time (too far away); or it might be because the violations of human rights have already occurred and are unlikely to occur again (too late) or because there is a danger that the number of casualties among civilians and rescuers will be higher than that of rescued individuals (too risky).
50. For a review of the possibilities of military engagement for human rights protection, see Lorraine Elliott and Graeme Cheeseman, "Cosmopolitan Militaries in the 21st Century," paper presented at the Cosmopolitan Militaries Workshop, Balliol College, Oxford, July 10-12, 2002.
51. Mary Kaldor, New and Old Wars (Cambridge: Polity Press, 1999) has discussed at length how an integration of military peacekeepers and civil society could help to deprive local warlords of social roots.
52. Scholars like David Chandler, From Kosovo to Kabul: Human Rights and International Intervention (London: Pluto Press, 2002), and Danilo Zolo, Chi dice umanità: Guerra, diritto, e ordine globale (Turin: Einaudi, 2000) have rightly denounced the abuses made of the concept of humanitarian intervention, but they fail to provide any suitable alternative to terminate exceptional violations of human rights.
53. Scholars like David Chandler, From Kosovo to Kabul: Human Rights and International Intervention (London: Pluto Press, 2002), and Danilo Zolo, Chi dice umanità: Guerra, diritto, e ordine globale (Turin: Einaudi, 2000) have rightly denounced the abuses made of the concept of humanitarian intervention, but they fail to provide any suitable alternative to terminate exceptional violations of human rights.
54. See Hans Kelsen, Das Problem der Souveränität und die Theorie des Völkerrechts (Tübingen: Mohr, 1920).
55. Immanuel Kant remarked that "a violation of rights in one part of the world is felt everywhere": "Towards Perpetual Peace: A Philosophical Project" [1795], in Hans Reiss, ed., Kant's Political Writings (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991), p. 107.
56. To apply again the same metaphor, what ought we to think about a neighbor who earnestly intervenes when he hears that the wife is being beaten by her husband, but does nothing if the house is burning? Should the neighborhood (public opinion) trust such a neighbor?