An Inquiry into the Turkish ‘School’ of International Law

Abstract

This paper seeks to examine major Turkish textbooks of public international law, focusing particularly on a small number of core areas in this discipline: historical origins and basic features; formal sources; main subjects; the law of territory; international law and development. These textbooks show a strong inclination towards Eurocentrism and positivism due to their denial of the vigour of 'soft law', as manifested for instance in UN General Assembly resolutions, and of their marginal treatment of 'international law and development'. What is more, substantive issues of international law are not discussed in a critical way; rather the procedures of the discipline are given priority. This is almost to suggest that Turkish international law scholars hold the view that their raison d'etre is confined to 'technical expertise', and that the relationship between law, other disciplines and society lies outside their domain. In the final analysis, therefore, the hard core of issues integral to international law and having a deep impact on international politics, such as the search for a New International Economic Order (NIEO), the principle of self-determination and human rights are either entirely bypassed or treated only very narrowly in Turkish international law textbooks.