Does The International Community Have a Responsibility To Protect?
By Laura Stanworth | Thu 25 Mar 2010 at 21.56 GMT
Categories: International Relations, Recent | Tags: Africa, responsibility to protect
In this paper, Laura Stanworth begins by assessing the basic premise for, and the origins of, the doctrine of the responsibility to protect. As states within Africa have been used as case studies to highlight the importance of this rising doctrine, the paper then flows in to a brief discussion of why the cases have been limited in this way; concluding that in a continent fraught with civil war and unrest they provide an ample discussion basis. The case studies of Somalia, Rwanda and Sudan are then investigated in turn, each highlighting different difficulties that the international community has faced in deciding, not only whether or not to act, but how and when. For a more in depth and empirical debate, the paper then discusses the international legal principles and constraints that not only prevent states acting, but also enforce them to in limited circumstances. This is followed by a brief look at the theoretical surroundings of the doctrine and how these, alongside the practical and legal implications already discussed, will shape the future of the doctrine of the responsibility to protect. To conclude, it is established that even though states do have a responsibility to protect through a developing international norm, it is yet to be seen whether this will evolve in practice, or whether states will avoid acting for reasons of self-preservation.
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