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Law and Society
Matthew Lippman
Chapter 13: International Human Rights and
International Crime
Lippman, Law and Society 2e SAGE Publishing, 2018
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Evolution of the International
Law of Human Rights
• WWI inspired the formation of the League of
Nations in 1920
• 1932 signing of Kellogg—Briand Pact in which
60 countries renounced war as a mode of
conflict resolution
• Ideas of creating an international criminal court
• WWII and the Nuremberg trials:
• Court comprised of judges from United States,
United Kingdom, France, and the Soviet Union
• Convicted Nazis for international crimes
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The International Law and
Human Rights
• Principles established by the International
Military Tribunal in Nuremberg
• 1) Individual liability—liable regardless of
whether they are military, government leaders,
or low-level combatants
• 2) International crimes—war crimes, crimes
against humanity (offenses against civilians),
and crimes against peace (initiating or waging
a war of aggression)
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The International Law and
Human Rights
• 3) Superior orders: not a defense to criminal
liability, although mitigating
• 4) Supremacy of international law: liable of
committing an international crime even in the
instances where the act is legal under
domestic law
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The United Nations and
Human Rights
• United Nations Charter aspires to maintain
international peace and the respect for human
rights and for fundamental freedom of all people
• 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights: all
human beings are born free and are equal in
dignity and rights
• Negative rights: prohibit the government from
interfering with the individuals'’ freedom
• Positive rights: impose obligations on governments
towards individuals (right to work, adequate
standard of living, etc.)
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The United Nations Human
Rights System
• The Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
protects a broad range of rights, including:
• 1) the right to life
• 2) the right to be free from slavery or forced
labor
• 3) the right to due process of law throughout
the justice process
• 4) the right of incarcerated individuals to
humane treatment
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The United Nations Human
Rights System
• 5) the right to freedom of movement and
residence
• 6) the right to freedom of thought, conscience,
and religion
• 7) the right to freedom of expression and
peaceful assembly
• 8) the right to be free from discrimination
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Domestic Enforcement of
International Human Rights
Diffusion of international human norms
depends on the domestic acceptance and
enforcement of various human rights:
1) Country: must accept the international
human right
2) Enforcement: institutions within the country
must enforce right
3) Individual: individuals must embrace the
right
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Conflicting Perspectives on
International Human Rights
• Civil and political and economic, social, and
cultural rights
• Hierarchy of rights
• Derogable rights
• Rights and duties
• Sovereignty
• Private and public
• Reservations
• Cultural
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Domestic Courts and Human
Rights
Universal jurisdiction: signatory states
obligated to prosecute or extradite abroad an
offender detained in their territory
Without universal jurisdiction war criminals,
maritime pirates etc. would not be brought to
justice as their state of nationality might not
want to prosecute
Extradition request: needs to be filed by a
country that wants to prosecute an individual
who is located in another country
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U.S. Congressional Statutes and
International Human Rights
• 1974 formal integration of human rights into
U.S. foreign policy
• 1995 introduced a provision that prohibited
economic developmental assistance to
countries that don’t respect internationally
recognized human rights
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Child Soldiers and the
Humanitarian Law of War
• Any individual under 18 who is engaged in
combat or support as part of armed force or a
group
• Used in ¾ of armed conflicts
• Against humanitarian law of war
• Children are easily recruited into insurgent
groups
• Lack a full understanding of danger
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Corporations and Human
Rights
• Not uncommon for textile workers to labor 14–16
hr a day, 7 days a week
• Nike received severe criticism for the use of child
workers
• Subsequently established itself as leader in the
humane treatment of workers by intensely
monitoring suppliers and adopting a code of
conduct
• In the absence of government action, private
corporations can come together to protect the
rights of textile workers
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Drones and Counterterrorism
• Humanitarian law of war places strict
restrictions on aerial attacks must be directed
at military target and not civilians or their
objects
• Drones-small, remote-operated, pilotless aerial
vehicles, used in counterterrorism strategy
• Increase under Obama administration
• American law prohibits the government from
engaging in assassination and murder abroad
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Torture and Crimes Against
Humanity
Torture, cruel, inhuman, or degrading
punishment is prohibited under the
humanitarian law of war
May not be violated under any circumstances
under international law
1984 International Convention Against Torture
and Other Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading
Treatment or Punishment-document prohibiting
torture
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Torture and Crimes Against
Humanity
Definition of torture:
1) the intentional infliction of severe mental or
physical suffering
2) by a public official
3) for a specific purpose
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Torture and Crimes Against
Humanity
• Acts viewed as torture:
• 1) Physical—waterboarding, electric shock to
various parts of the anatomy, beatings, stress
positions, and sexual abuse
• 2) Subjecting an individual to intense heat or cold,
long periods of sleep deprivation, and sensory
deprivation
• 3) Psychological—mock executions, destruction of
sacred religious objects, use of psychotropic
drugs, threats to family members, or abuse of
family
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Torture and Crimes Against
Humanity
• Five techniques that Great Britain used, as
found by the European Court
•
•
•
•
•
Wall-standing
Hooding
Noise
Sleep deprivation
Deprivation of food and liquids
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The United States and
Enhanced Interrogation
• Enemy combatants entitled to limited legal
protection
• Memo defining torture and cruel, inhuman, and
degrading treatment
• Interrogation has to meet a high standard to be
defined as torture
• President as commander in chief has unlimited
authority to combat the enemy, which cannot be
restricted by Congress
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• Open-Access Student Resources
• — Quizzes
• — eFlashcards
• — SAGE Journal Articles
• — Video Links
And more at study.sagepub.com/lippmanls2e
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