John Locke, the state of nature and terrorism

Abstract

This paper examines John Locke's political theory in order to see if it can offer any important insights into how to deal with international terrorism. The paper begins by outlining the central aspects of Locke's social contract theory and the way that Locke thinks that it is mirrored in international relations. A general definition of ‘state of nature’ and ‘legitimate common authority’ is offered that is then applied to both civil conflict and international terrorism. The situation that nation-states find themselves in with respect to international terrorist organisations is then analysed in terms of these concepts. The United Nations and the European Union are then examined in order to see if they fulfil the criteria of legitimate common authority necessary to deal with international terrorism in a just and unbiased manner.