Your Rule of Law is Not Mine: Rethinking Empirical Approaches to EU Rule of Law Promotion

Marc Hertogh

doi:10.2139/ssrn.2514979

Abstract

Your Rule of Law is Not Mine: Rethinking Empirical Approaches to EU Rule of Law Promotion

Highlights

The promotion of the “Rule of Law” is a leading ambition of the EU’s external action vis-à-vis emerging powers like Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa
There are nine temporary shelters on the Thai–Burma border. Seven of these are “Karen” camps and two of them are “Karenni.” More than 20 international agencies and organizations operate in these refugee camps, including the UNHCR and a consortium of donor organizations known as The Border Consortium (TBC)
This study showed that two thirds (61 %) of all refugees used several camp structures, and only 5 % went to the UNHCR or NGOs and 4 % went to Thai authorities (McConnachie 2014, 113)

Summary

Introduction

The promotion of the “Rule of Law” is a leading ambition of the EU’s external action vis-à-vis emerging powers like Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. Following Pound’s approach, it is suggested that “entrenching the ‘Rule of Law’ requires shifting our attention from the positive law of that country (“law in the books”), to how it is applied and enforced in practice (“law in action”)” (Nicolaidis and Kleinfeld 2012, 23) Most of these studies have an instrumental (policy) focus, aimed at closing the gap between both types of law. With regard to the World Justice Project, Pech (2012, 41) argues that “the WJP index offers a sound footing on the basis of which one can assess practical compliance with the rule of law in any given country, identify weaknesses and strengths, which in time should help devise appropriate policies [...]” (2012, 41) As discussed, this particular empirical approach to the rule of law has several important shortcomings. The events on the Thai–Burma border are highly relevant considering the EU’s growing interest in Southeast Asia (Schmitz 2012).

Background

Findings

Conclusion