The Rule of Law as a Vehicle for Intervention

Until recently, the concept of the ‘rule of law' (ROL) was exclusively used in relation to the domestic legal order of the state. Over the last two decades, however, it has entered the vocabulary of international legal scholars and experts. This journey of ROL from the domestic to the international sphere has provoked fierce debates between practitioners of international law, notably because, far from being a mere doctrinal controversy, it gave rise to practices impinging on the exercise of power at the international level and enabling diverse international experts to interfere in internal affairs of target states. This article argues that, in a somewhat paradoxical way, these developments impair the concept of ROL rather than expanding it into new domains. Indeed, while the established concept of ROL to a certain extent presupposed the principles of sovereignty and non-intervention, current reformulations of ROL weaken them while making new interventionist practices easier. Analysis of the legal rationalizations used in the context of contemporary EU and UN crisis management operations makes this clear. Drawing on insights gained from legal theory and international political sociology, this article highlights how the concept of ROL cannot simply be transposed into the ‘international' realm without hampering its internal coherence.     

联合国经济制裁中的人权保护问题研究

联合国经济制裁通常以安理会决议的形式出现,安理会决议具有法律效力,各国有义务全面、严格地执行安理会决议。安理会决议应当遵循《联合国宪章》的宗旨及原则,不得与一般国际法强制规律相抵触。当一国出现严重侵犯人权的罪行并怠于履行人权保护义务时,安理会可以代表国际社会对其采取保障人权的必要措施。联合国制裁经历了从"传统制裁"到"聪明制裁"的转变。由于缺少对公正审判权的保护,各国执行"聪明制裁"面临选择困境。针对"聪明制裁"可能引发的人权危机,有必要从制度设计层面入手,明确安理会决议的授权范围,完善"和平之威胁"的判断标准,加强对各国执行安理会决议的监督与审查,保障制裁对象的公正审判权,建立多元化的人权保护救济渠道。在联合国经济制裁中加强人权保护,有利于积极应对国际安全形势变化,有利于促进和平解决国际争端,有利于推动构建人类命运共同体。     

Introduction: Authority Building in International Administered Territories

This introduction to the special section on “Authority Building in International Administered Territories” begins by summarizing the relevant literature on international administrations. To conceptualize authority building as an ongoing process in which international and local actors confirm – or refuse – authority claims, secondly, two types of authority are differentiated: ‘interpretative authority’ and ‘performing authority’. This sociological conceptualization of authority building allows, thirdly, a discussion on the restrictions and challenges that international administrations face in their attempts to establish authority on the ground. Finally, an overview of the section’s articles is provided.     

对区域性国际组织运用武力的法律控制浅析

区域组织运用武力在新的世纪中更引人关注。在联合国宪章体系下,区域组织运用武力有三种类型。其中,集体自卫和授权型运用武力对及时有效地反对地区霸权主义、维护国际和平与安全具有重要意义。但从国际关系实践来看,区域组织运用武力尤其是授权型运用武力存在着较多问题,只有对其实行有效控制,才能发挥区域组织在维护国际和平与安全方面的作用。     

The Sri Lankan Transitional Justice Process: Too Little,Too Late?

ABSTRACT

Three years after Sri Lanka committed to a comprehensive transitional justice (TJ) process through the co-sponsoring of UN Human Rights Council Resolution 30/1, progress on the TJ front has not been satisfactory. In fact, delays in decision-making have hindered progress on transitional justice. First, the nation-wide consultations that were supposed to precede the establishment of the proposed TJ mechanisms lasted for nearly a year. This prevented swift progress at a time when political conditions for TJ were arguably most favourable. In addition, decisions were made to implement the 2015 reform agenda in a way that would not give priority to TJ as a whole and would further delay the implementation of its most controversial measures. These delays have been constructed or exploited by those—including within government—who do not support the TJ agenda. In fact, since 2015, the President as well as ministers have made statements that cast doubt on their commitment to TJ. The government’s lack of genuine interest in TJ was further evidenced by its failure to present a comprehensive plan for the implementation of UNHRC Resolution 30/1 and carry out a public outreach campaign based on such a plan.     

Assessing the G77: 50 years after unctad and 40 years after the nieo

This article views the history of the Group of 77 through the lens of its relations with unctad’s establishment in 1964, its unsuccessful struggle for the nieo in the 1970s, and the subsequent loosening of ties. The debt crisis of the 1980s, the Uruguay Round negotiations, and the arrival of the wto are seen as crucial forces unravelling the previously close links. Growing differentiation among developing countries and the changing leadership of the G77 are also cited as important influences on its current relationship with unctad.     

Technology and democracy: validity in measurements of e-democracy

The use of information and communication technologies in democratic processes, often summarized by the term e-democracy, has seldom been analysed from a global perspective. Although the United Nations E-Participation Index provides one of the few examples of an international measurement of e-democracy, it has been thoroughly criticized; at the same time, however, a number of studies have broadened our understanding of the global determinants of e-democracy by using this very index. In this study, I approach this problem by considering (i) whether the UN E-Participation Index is a valid measurement of e-democracy and (ii) whether any alternative measurements of e-democracy present themselves. In answer to these questions, it would seem that the index, despite its flaws, is not necessarily as problematic as is assumed, although there are observations that violate essential theoretical assumptions and so reduce its validity. Furthermore, its use in combination with measurements of democracy agrees with the emphasis in the literature on e-democracy being embedded in democracy, and results in a measurement that better corresponds with theoretical ideas of e-democracy.     

International Law,European Union,and Case of Kosovo in 1991 and 2008

As the extraordinary session of Kosovo＇s parliament held on February 17, 2008, the declaration for independence of Kosovo was enacted. From the aspect of European Union （EU） which consists of 28 member states, Kosovo was recognized by 23 member states of the union until the present. This means that the process of the international recognition of Kosovo by the member states of the EU is carried out in satisfactory direction for the Kosovo＇s authorities, unlike the first attempt in 1991 when Kosovo also demanded international recognition from the union during the process of the dissolution of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia （SFRY）, however, this application of Kosovo＇s recognition was not reviewed at all. Hence, in conditions of the same legal status of Kosovo in Serbia as well as the same legal foundation in 1991 and 2008, we can notice the double criteria in application of the international law by the EU. Therefore, the issue that we would like to raise is whether the international law for the EU is a true law or moral/law of choice. In other words, the author would like to present the idea whether the international recognition of Kosovo meets the international law.     

大陆与台湾涉外税收协定之比较析论(下)——兼谈两岸避免双重征税之议题

国际税收协定是国际税收协调的基本形式。大陆与台湾经贸往来日益密切,因双方未签订避免双重征税协定．关于避免双重征税的议题在两岸经贸实践中日显突出。作为解决该问题的积极探索,应从国际征税现象之原因导入．运用归纳分析和比较研究的方法对国际上两个主要国际税收协定范本OECD范本和UN范本展开论述．进而对大陆与台湾各自对外签订的税收协定做一比较。     

国际恐怖主义与国家自卫

国际恐怖主义的共同特征是 :行为关涉两个或两个以上国家 ;目标具有明确政治性 ,指向外国国家 ;主体多元 ,既有个人也有国家。国际恐怖主义属国际犯罪。国家对国际恐怖主义可以行使自卫 ,但必须有充分理由证明国际恐怖主义是由一个国家实施的或在国家支持下进行的。美国对阿富汗的军事行动可认为是自卫。