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Search: Affective Justice: Book Symposium: A Response

15 Nov

...old chestnut in legal theory, and in making some interesting methodological claims about the best way to conduct a jurisprudential argument about the concept of law. With respect to the philosophy of international law, on the other, the authors broach the neglected question of the legality of international law, and rightly deem it an important issue and not one that is trumped by others such as the legitimacy of international law in particular. In this response, I question the authors’ argument with respect, first of all, to their underlying reasoning...
15.11.11 | |

22 Nov

...to COVID-19. National health systems have frequently neglected public health systems for disease prevention, and national responses have undermined sexual and reproductive health and rights, disproportionately impacted a range of marginalized populations, and failed to ensure equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines. Echoing criticisms from authorities within the UN human rights system, independent reviews of the WHO response have taken states to task for, amongst other things, their inability or unwillingness to cooperate in adopting human rights-based approaches to preventing and curtailing public health emergencies. These violative public health responses have...
22.11.21 | , , , , , , , , , and |

14 Oct

There are numerous problems with Mike’s response to my posts (here and here) about how the amicus brief distorts the ICTY’s jurisprudence. Before getting to them, though, it’s important to acknowledge that he and I agree about one thing: decisions of the ICTY are not primary sources of international law. That, too, is international law 101. Even here, though, the brief is problematic. The brief could have acknowledged that the ICTY has adopted knowledge as the customary mens rea of aiding and abetting but insisted that the tribunal’s analysis of...
14.10.11 | |

09 Apr

...matter further, and the lack of any serious response by the Financial Stability Forum, the putative network of financial regulatory networks, suggests that there are some things networks cannot do. And the primary role played by the G20 – really, a modern day Concert of Europe – in developing and coordinating what international regulatory response we have seen should give anyone pause about the primacy of law or law-like institutions in a world where political actors will continue to play a critical role. But in the end, the problems of...
09.04.09 | |

10 Jun

First, I would like to thank Opinio Juris and the Yale Journal of International Law for hosting this symposium and providing the opportunity to discuss my recent article, Who is the “Sovereign” in Sovereign Debt? Reinterpreting a Rule-of-Law Framework from the Early Twentieth Century. I would also like to thank Tai-Heng Cheng and Mark Weisburd for their thoughtful comments on the piece. Given that their comments raise overlapping themes, I address them jointly in this response. I structured the article in three sections, which deal with the potential non-continuity of...
10.06.08 | |

09 Aug

...a ‘crisis’ response by the EU and its Member States. Several commentators, including the present authors, framed the situation as a crisis of solidarity, triggered by particular policies (see e.g. here, here, and here). The Emergency Relocation Mechanism, the EU–Turkey Statement, the reintroduction of internal border controls and the intensification of external border controls, combined with restrictive individual state policies (see e.g. Sweden, Austria), have resulted in downgrading protection and in shifting responsibilities to particular countries in and outside Europe. The crisis was one of solidarity on (at least) three...
09.08.19 | |

15 May

Last week, The Huffington Post published an article with the provocative title, Epidemiologist Slams U.S. Coronavirus Response: ‘Close To Genocide By Default’. The epidemiologist in question was Prof. Dr. Gregg Gonsalves, PhD (Public Health, Yale University), who, according to his online curriculum vitae, is an Assistant Professor in Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases at the Yale School of Public Health, as well as an Associate (Adjunct) Professor of Law and Research Scholar in Law at Yale Law School, co-director of the Yale Law School/Yale School of Public Health Global Health Justice Partnership, and the Yale...
15.05.20 | |

07 May

...intervention – devoid of Security Council authorization – is legally invalid. However, as a recent post in Just Security demonstrates, though many states share this view, an increasing group now employ justificatory rhetoric in defense of the recent attacks. This rhetoric signals a potential shift. Following the NATO-led intervention in Kosovo, states and scholars vindicated the military response through universal appeals to human rights and justice. This language often remained non-specific. More recently, however, the language assumes precision. It abandons general assessments of an atrocity’s gravity and favors identification of...
07.05.18 | |

21 Nov

politically appropriate international legal response to secessionist demands, can still be challenged on two accounts: conceptual and prescriptive. On the one hand, I wish to take issue with the claim that it is impossible to discern—even if it may undesirable to prescribe—any normative ideals concealed in the idea of self-determination. In his response, Roth claims for instance that “any external effort to resolve the issue through ‘the democratic ideal of the consent of the governed’ would, ironically, have had to impose solutions to the issue’s central elements – including, …...
21.11.13 | |

08 Apr

...Whelan must really be focused only on the specter of so-called “transnationalist” judges overturning the will of democratically elected leaders. But this concern is also without foundation. After all, when interpreting constitutional provisions, not a single sitting U.S. Supreme Court justice has taken the position that international or foreign law constitutes binding authority. As to concerns about customary international law, there are, as Whelan points out, hundreds of pages of academic debate on the precise nuances of how customary international law and federal common law interact, but the key point...
08.04.09 | |

15 Feb

Call for Papers International Criminal Justice: A Counter-Hegemonic Project: The Berlin University Alliance is pleased to announce a call for papers for “International Criminal Justice: A Counter-Hegemonic Project?” International criminal law, since its origins, has been mired in controversies and critique inter alia on account of its understanding as victor’s justice as well as its colonial legacy. Some states have challenged the International Criminal Court and its practice on the grounds of selectivity, and the perpetuation of double standards. Additionally, critical scholarship has made a significant contribution in calling out...
15.02.21 | |

28 Aug

[ Dr Aaron Matta is a Senior Researcher at The Hague Institute for Global Justice , Rule of Law Program. Anda Scarlat is a Summer Fellow with the Rule of Law Program at the Institute.With many thanks to Dr Lyal Sunga, Jill Coster van Voorhout and Thomas Koerner for their helpful feedback on earlier drafts of this commentary.The views expressed here do not represent the views of the Hague Institute for Global Justice.] Following on from our previous commentary on potential state responsibility, this post will look at the role...
28.08.15 | |