International Constitutional Law Research Articles

Jürgen Habermas

Jürgen Habermas has defended Germany’s cautious support for Ukraine against the ongoing Russian invasion. Instead of trying to defeat Russia on the battlefield, he argued that Western nations should seek a compromise with the attacker. Critics worried that this would lead to more suffering than the war, encourage further Russian aggression, and ignore the concerns of the Ukrainian population. However, one question that has not been addressed is if Habermas’s pleas are part of a wider pacifist commitment—and if so, what kind of pacifist he is. Examining Habermas’s writings on the Ukraine War, his cosmopolitan views and his idea of a “constitutionalization of international law,” I argue that Habermas can be called a political pacifist—someone who seeks to abolish the institutions that provide the ultimate causes of war. While one can still criticize his vision, it deserves to be taken seriously as a pacifist account.

Environmental Protection in the Amazon: Constitutional Dialogues for International Cooperation

Taking into consideration the increasing relevance that environmental constitutionalism has currently assumed, the aim of this article is to critically analyze the constitutional protection of the environment in the Amazonian countries. It seeks to identify whether there is a common language among the constitutions concerning environmental protection in order to improve international cooperation. The hypothesis states that: 1) the Amazon environmental constitutionalism follow the epistemological opening of contemporary constitutionalism, by assimilating innovations in each new constitution; and, 2) the constitutions establish normative elements for the improvement of international cooperation in the region. The reflection is grounded on the field of comparative constitutional law, in dialogue with international constitutional law and constitutional theory, in a functional-structural perspective, focusing the “legislative” formant.

Constitutional law in the system of international law

The article analyzes the processes of constitutionalization of international law. The purpose of the study is to substantiate the functions and principles of international law that determine the actions of subjects of international legal relations, to assess the potential of constitutional international law to ensure the constitutional legal order. The methodological strategy is built on the synthesis of general scientific and special private law methods. The main emphasis is placed on three main aspects of the constitutionalization of international law: the general values of the international community, the law-making process at the global level of subjects of international law, considered through the prism of the theory of sovereignty. The problem of finding the methodology of constitutional international law is raised. The general values of the international community as a basic prerequisite for the formation of international constitutional law are analyzed, the actions of subjects of international law are evaluated through the prism of the theory of sovereignty, the peculiarities of the norm-making process at the international level in the context of the formation of international constitutional law and the issue of the distribution of competence between different levels of the multi-level system of modern constitutionalism are investigated . The main principles of international constitutionalism are highlighted: limitation of state power in order to ensure human rights, non-use of force or threat of force, territorial integrity of states and inviolability of borders, democratization of social relations, transparency of legislative norms. Observance of these principles acquires constitutional significance in international law. The conclusions indicate the possibility and necessity of distinguishing international constitutional law as an independent field within the framework of international law due to the uniformity of its legal regulation. Considering the consequences of globalization, there is a need to replace the fragmented order based on regional, political, economic, national or cultural characteristics with a global legal order, which is ensured by the constitutionalization of international law.

The legal nature of evidence in the international doctrine of constitutional law

The article is devoted to relevant, but understudied issues related to the formation of the evidence base in the doctrine of constitutional law. Legitimation of the constitutional process by evidence can be successful regardless of the goal preferred by the subjects of the constitution. If constitutional design prioritizes the goal of substantive legitimacy, it legitimizes the broad powers of the constitutional judge through the need to maximize the evidence gathered. If, on the contrary, the constitutional design gives priority to the goal of procedural legitimacy, it legitimizes the function of the constitutional judge through the development of a fair procedure of proof. In this way, the outcome of the trial can more easily gain the approval of the community and strengthen confidence in the functioning of constitutional justice. The fundamental right to evidence is constitutionally protected to the extent that it is implicit in the right to due process. The author pays special attention to the definition of the content of the concept of proof in the constitutional judicial process based on the analysis of the norms of international constitutional law, which are characterized by the presence of a set of certain methods of cognition, that is, scientifically determined and practically tested rational methods or a system of methods of obtaining the necessary amount of knowledge for making an objective and well-founded decision. Evidence in a judicial constitutional process should be understood as a certain process of learning by the subjects of this process — judges and the apparatus of constitutional jurisdiction as a whole, which is implemented as the collection, verification and evaluation of evidence. In this extremely complex intellectual process, proof plays an important role as a logical action during which the truth of an opinion or position is substantiated and established.
 As a result of working on this topic, the author investigated and highlighted two discourses on procedural legitimation. In the first case, legitimization is the result of a test procedure check that takes place before an ordinary judge. In the second case, legitimation is the result of the absence of a complex procedure of proof before a constitutional judge.

The Constitutionalization of International Law After Liberalism

Many political changes that have taken place across the world in the last decade have been connected with the spill-over of a new narrative in the public dimension. Among other things, this narrative has emphasized returning control over the public space to the people once again, revitalization of the democratic community, restraint on an expansion of judicial power over representational politics, and in many instances, a specific national approach to the questions of governance. These trends have gained the name “illiberal democracy”, a description which Viktor Orban introduced into the language of political practice a few years later. Indeed, in many countries worldwide, from the United States of America (USA) during the presidency of Donald Trump, Central and Eastern Europe, to Turkey and Venezuela, it has been possible to observe changes which had the principal leitmotif to negate liberal democracy as the only possibility of organizing public space within the state. These trends are continuing, and there are no signs of them disappearing in the near future. The new dispensation in the USA under President Biden also does not guarantee an immediate return to the liberal internationalism of the 1990s. Political changes directed toward the constitutional space of the State have inspired researchers to consider the issues of new constitutionalism, new forms of democracy, and the rule of law beyond liberalism. This article is an attempt to transfer these considerations to the international level. The text aims to consider whether withdrawal from the liberal doctrine could also be observed on an international level and what these facts could mean for the intellectual project of constitutionalization of international law. Building upon reflections on constitutionalism and constitutionalization of international law, this text presents what has up until now been the mainstream understanding of international law as a liberal construct. This showcases the illiberal turn observed among certain countries as exemplified by the anti-liberal and realist language of their constitutional representatives. In this respect, this analysis is a modest contribution to the so far nascent field of sociology of international law. However, the main endeavor of this article is to unchain the notions of international liberalism and constitutionalization of international law as being popularly understood as two sides of the same coin. Consequently, the idea of political constitutionalism of international law is introduced. Seeing things from this perspective, this text focuses on the material rather than formal aspects of international law's constitutionalization. Within the stream of so called thick constitutionalism, there are a few elements listed with which the discussion about international law may continue to engage, if this law is to be considered as legitimate not only formally, but also substantially.

ФЕНОМЕНОЛОГІЯ МУНІЦИПАЛІЗМУ: ДО ВИОКРЕМЛЕННЯ СТРУКТУРНИХ БЛОКОВИХ ЕЛЕМЕНТ

The article is devoted to the analysis of the structural construction of the phenomenology of modern municipalism with the use of a systematic set of methods of legal knowledge. The author believes that taking into account characterological substantive, functional, narrative, connotational, contextual and identification features of the phenomenology of modern municipalism allows not only to identify, comprehend and understand the systemic criteria that form, determine, actualize and transform the studied period in the phenomenological but also to identify the relevant structural block elements that form and constitute it, including ideological, doctrinal, social, normative, praxeological, psychological, behavioral and other blocks. The conclusion is substantiated that the municipalization of public and state life, as well as the municipalization of the legal system of the state is an important driving force in the process of formation of structural block elements of modern municipalism. It is a complex process of restructuring and reorientation of social, state and normative constants of development and functioning of society, state, legal system from the needs of the state to the needs and interests of a person, its groups and collectives - to optimize social, state, normative technologies of existence and development man in a state-organized society, proper provision of its rights and freedoms. At the same time, the author added to this list the current trends of constitutionalization of international law and internationalization of constitutional law, which provide the phenomenology of municipalism of international legal personality, accompany and ensure its formation and development at the level of a state, associations and international community. Legal obligations contained in multilateral international agreements. It is concluded that taking into account the characterological content, functional, narrative, connotational, contextual and identification features of the phenomenology of modern municipalism allows not only to identify, comprehend and understand the systemic criteria that form, determine, actualize and transform the studied period in the studied but also to identify the relevant structural block elements that form and constitute it, including ideological, doctrinal, social, normative, praxeological, psychological, behavioral and other blocks. Restructuring the existing mechanisms, based on state statism and the priority of state interests in the opposite direction of the actual opposite teleological dominants, is one of the main tasks of municipal reform in Ukraine.

Two Contemporary Developments of Kant’s Cosmopolitan Project

Habermas and Rawls presented distinctive theories of new world order at the turn of the new century: the Constitutionalization of International Law and the Law of Peoples. Both theories aim to promote peace and justice all over the world. Unfortunately, their theories have been ignored by mainstream IR theorists. Since few scholars make a deep comparative study between Rawls’s Law of Peoples and Habermas’s Constitutionalization of International Law to reveal their crucial difference, this paper aims to fill this gap by clarifying their essential difference and preliminarily exploring how to formulate their proper relationship. I argue that Habermas’s project is a legalistic peace theory. In contrast, Rawls’s Law of Peoples is a modified form of democratic peace theory, putting hope for international peace on the improvement of the domestic political system of sovereign entities. Finally, I present a tentative suggestion to address their relationship, returning to Kant’s systems approach.

COVID-19 As a Catalyst for the (Re-)Constitutionalisation of International Law: One Health ─ One Welfare

The paper recalls that an infectious disease such as COVID-19 hits with disproportionate negative effects the poorer populations and thus exacerbates the wealth and income gap inside and across states. As previous diseases, the pandemic is both a driver and an outcome of international relations. Against the background that the foundations of international law have been laid by infecting the “others”, and that notably zoonoses have stimulated institution-building on the international plane, it is not out of the question that the COVID-19 pandemic will trigger developments in international law. The normative proposal is to modify and operationalise the so-far underdeveloped One Health approach, informed by the international constitutional principle of solidarity.

The Permissibility of Limiting Rights and Freedoms in the European and National Legal System Due to Health Protection

The article concerns the permissibility of limiting human rights and freedoms in European and national systems due to the protection of individual and public health. The author's goal was to analyse the current practice of states in the application of human rights limitation clauses in the European system of human rights protection. This is an important issue because the practice of limitation and margin of appreciation enjoyed by the member states of the Council of Europe is subject to scrutiny by means of complaints addressed to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, which examines the correct application of individual limitation clauses contained in the 1950 Convention. Human health is one of the main prerequisites for which it is possible to limit other human rights and freedoms. In the context of numerous epidemiological threats and natural disasters of a cross-border nature, assessing rights and freedoms becomes one of the most important issues in the field of public international law, constitutional law and public health law. Against the background of existing solutions in the universal system, the practice of the member states of the European Union and the Council of Europe was examined by comparing it with the views of the doctrine and the results of my research.

Of the epoch (on the amendment to article 79 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation)

The article is devoted to revealing the specifics of the implementation of such areas of constitutional law as the constitutionalization of international law and the internationalization of constitutional law by the example of additions to Article 79 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, as well as the practices of the Italian Constitutional Court, the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany, etc. The author examined in sufficient detail the procedures for extending the effect of international law and international treaties of Russia to the national legal system, analyzed the concept of counter-limits in European and national judicial practice, presented the basic principles of interaction between European and national courts (the principle of subsidiarity, the principle of proportionality, the principle of ‘sincere cooperation’, method of ‘dialogue of judges’). There is a need for an updated understanding of the term ‘constitutional sovereignty of the state’, which is based on domestic norms on fundamental rights and norms on the foundations of the constitutional system, which presupposes the inadmissibility of any foreign or international influence that violates the requirement of priority of the norms and principles of the national Constitution in the national legal system. The article substantiates the expediency of using the doctrine of counter-limits in the Russian Federation as an instrument of constitutional self-defense, ensuring constitutional sovereignty and preserving constitutional identity.

Jus Cogens: A Complex Case of Constitutional Reasoning in International Law

Article 53 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties famously introduced a special class of international legal rules - jus cogens norms - without specifying its content. The paper proceeds by adopting the heuristic framework of constitutionalization of international law, arguing that jus cogens norms contribute to at least two constitutionalist functions - that of limiting the international governance and hierarchizing international legal order. Hence, it is possible to argue that jus cogens reasoning is a specific type of constitutional reasoning. Despite stipulated formal qualities of jus cogens norms, in trying to establish their content state actors are in the situation similar to constitutional adjudicators dealing with underdetermined legal content of a constitutional text. What directs the process of jus cogens reasoning is, thus, the particular nature of the subject-matter with which those norms deal. The last part of the paper provides the analytical reconstruction of the jus cogens constitutional reasoning, focusing on the process of ascertainment, which is to be taken by the community of states. It is argued that what ascertainment requires is, inter alia, resorting to a unique interpretative tool - reverse teleological argument - with the use of which the state actor can extract from the fundamental values of international legal order a class of peremptory norms of international law.

Імплементація норм міжнародного права як конституційно-правовий засіб взаємодії міжнародного та національного конституційного права

В умовах правової глобалізації активізуються процеси взаємодії та взаємовпливу національного конституційного права держав і міжнародного публічного права, результатом чого виступає формування та прояв стійкої тенденції конституціоналізації міжнародного публічного права і інтернаціоналізації конституційного правопорядку держав. Єдиним засобом взаємодії норм цих двох самостійних та автономних правових систем є запозичення норм міжнародного права національними правовими системами держав через механізм імплементації, коли норми міжнародного права входять до національної системи законодавства, отримуючи статус його норм.
 Метою статі виступає дослідження імплементації норм міжнародного права як конституційно-правового засобу взаємодії міжнародного та національного конституційного права.
 Наукова новизна. У статті розкрита роль і значення феноменології імплементації як міжнародного та конституційно-правового інституту, стратегії державного управління, державної політики, технологічного засобу у вузькому розумінні (прийом юридичної техніки) та технологічного засобу в широкому розумінні (як технології поведінки держави).
 Висновки. Підсумовуючи результати дослідження, можна охарактеризувати імплементацію норм міжнародного права в норми національного права як феноменологічне явище, що може бути визначене наступним чином: імплементація – це а) правовий інститут міжнародного публічного і національного конституційного права, що складається із сукупності міжнародних і національних конституційних норм, які регламентують і регулюють відповідні правила поведінки, що виникають в процесі виконання державами своїх міжнародно-правових зобов’язань, узятих ними в рамках підписаних міжнародних договорів, з метою їх виконання в рамках національного законодавства на своїх теренах; б) це стратегія державного управління, яка запозичена із однієї з найважливіших галузей міжнародного публічного права – права міжнародних договорів, з метою реалізації міжнародно-правової позиції держави по найважливішим питанням зовнішніх та внутрішніх відносин та розвитку у її внутрішньо політичній діяльності через здійснення відповідних організаційних, нормативних та процесуально-процедурних заходів, що здійснюються уповноваженими органами державної влади та державного управління в межах їх компетенційних повноважень; в) державна політика, що може бути визначена як сукупність телеологічно спрямованих дій відповідних уповноважених органів держави, передбачених конституційним законодавством, здійснюваних у відповідних організаційних та процесуально-процедурних формах, метою яких є досягнення відповідного соціального результату з питань взаємного співробітництва держав, що володіє відповідним соціальним ефектом, завдяки реалізації договірних домовленостей з державами-членами міжнародної універсальної чи регіональної спільноти; г) технологічний спосіб (у вузькому розумінні), що містить в собі відповідні діяльнісно-поведінкові та функціонально-інструментальні настанови-предикати, входить до арсеналу юридичної техніки з обслуговування, супроводження та забезпечення реалізації настанов демократичної правової державності, завдяки якому можуть бути здійсненими в практичній діяльності держави її міжнародно-правові зобов’язання за міжнародними договорами; ґ) технологія поведінки держави (у широкому розумінні), завдяки якій реалізується її облігаторно-діяльнісна програма дій на міжнародній арені, що повинні знайти своє відповідне відображення та реалізацію всередині держави у діяльності її органів, посадових та службових осіб, а також всіх інших суб’єктів національного конституційного права.

International Constitutional Law and Judicial Review of Domestic Human Rights Legislation

Abstract This article discusses the idea of international human rights law as ‘constitutional law’. It applies the French concept of Le contrôle de conventionnalité des lois, to demonstrate the constitutional potentials of international human rights law in the domestic sphere. In most monist constitutional systems based on the French civilian model, international law takes precedence over acts of parliament and other domestic legislation. Due in part to that hierarchy, conventionnalité permits the courts to review domestic law for compatibility with international law. From that perspective, international human rights norms can be said to have assumed a ‘para-constitutional’ function. Using two case studies from francophone Africa, this article argues that conventionnalité has the potential to play a significant role in the domestic implementation of international human rights and ultimately contributing to a more comprehensive domestic human rights regime.

Charging decisions, legal framing and transitional justice: the prosecution of Wouter Basson

Charges brought against an alleged human rights abuser vary, with some charged with core international crimes and others with ordinary crimes rooted in domestic law. This article examines such variation through the charging decisions of South African prosecutors tasked with prosecuting Wouter Basson, an apartheid official accused of egregious human rights violations. Why did prosecutors initially charge Basson with domestic crimes, only to later reframe his conduct as core international crimes? Through a frame analysis supported by interviews with trial prosecutors and trial document analysis, this article argues that domestic and international law functioned as frames shaping the interpretation of Basson’s offences. Initial characterisations of Basson’s conduct as ‘ordinary crimes’ were driven by the institutionalisation of the domestic law frame during apartheid. While the 1996 constitutionalisation of international law expanded the range of potential charges brought against Basson, this expansion was mediated by the backgrounds of individual prosecutors, counter-framing behaviour of other legal actors and changes in judicial venue. Charging decisions are a vital pathway for the indirect enforcement of international criminal law; analysis of the Basson case thus provides insight into the decision-making dynamics of prosecutors who continue to regulate South Africa’s involvement in the international justice system today.

Administracinio teismo įstatymo projektai tarpukario Lietuvoje

[only abstract and summary in English; full article and abstract in Lithuanian] The very first law under which Lithuanian administrative courts were established was adopted in 1999. However, the predecessors of the Administrative Court (the Commission of Legal Ministerial Advisors, Complaints and Remanding Commission of the Seimas, State Council) were created in the third decade of the 20th century. Notwithstanding this, these authorities could not match the judicial review of public administrators’ activity. Consequently, the first draft laws on the Administrative Court were drafted in the fourth decade. There were over ten of such drafts but only two remained. The goal of the article is to reveal the content and the background of draft laws on the Administrative Court developed in 1932 and 1940, which were found in the Wroblewski Library Manuscript Division. Summary The predecessors of the administrative court were created in the third decade of the 20th century in Lithuania. Notwithstanding, these authorities could not match the judicial review of public administrators’ activity. It is noteworthy that sometimes the Senior Tribunal performed the functions of the administrative court and reviewed the legality of administrative acts. However, some laws did not provide the possibility to challenge administrative acts in the courts. That was the main reason to create Law on the Administrative Court of the Republic of Lithuania. There were a number of attempts to establish judicial review in Lithuania in various laws: in Constitutions, State Council Statute, Law on the Judicial System. Around 10 draft laws on the Administrative Court were prepared by the State Council and the Seimas Commission. However, these attempts were unsuccessful. The first draft law on the Administrative Court was drafted in 1932 by the State Council. The main proposals of this document were: first, the Administrative Court is an Administrative Division of the Supreme Court of Lithuania; second, the Administrative Court disposes general jurisdiction of judicial review of individual or regulatory administrative acts due to the violation of subjective rights of natural or legal person; third, the Administrative Court is the only judicial instance and before bringing an action into court, a plaintiff must go through all lower review processes. The draft law created in 1940 by the Seimas Commission was almost the same but more detailed in the provisions of administrative process, what is more, the Administrative Court was proposed to be a separate judicial body. The main initiators of the Law on the Administrative Court were two lawyers: member of the State Council, judge of the Senior Tribunal, ad hoc judge of the Permanent Court of International Justice, constitutional and administrative law scholar M. Romeris and Memel Territory Governor, Meyer of Kaunas, member of the Seimas and last Prime Minister A. Merkys.

Interactions between International Investment Law and Constitutional Law: Promoting the Dialogue. A European Perspective on Judicial Cooperation and Deference

There are manifold constellations of potential conflict between international investment law and constitutional law. The ordering paradigm for that interaction is an unresolved and underexplored question, which is currently coming up in a number of proceedings. As prominently evidenced by the recent Achmea judgment, we seem to be steering towards supremacy claims of one system over the other with each adjudicative body claiming the final say in the matter. This approach is in line with the classic ordering paradigm of hierarchy. However, this contribution shall argue that hierarchy is ill-suited to properly conceptualize the relationship between the two systems. Instead, it proposes to embrace the heterarchical reality, along with its call for judicial dialogue, as a normatively desirable paradigm. The relationship between international investment law and constitutional law need not be and should not be perceived as inherently antagonistic because their mutual endeavour is to promote the rule of law. Precisely this realization should guide the relationship between the two systems.

La gradación de instrumentos internacionales, el pacta sunt servanda y pro homine como herramientas para la inclusión de normas de soft law en el bloque de constitucionalidad ecuatoriano

Las ramas de Derecho Internacional Público y Derecho Constitucional se encuentran en constante desarrollo y evolución, por lo que el significado de sus respectivas normas varía según la importancia que los Estados les den. Siendo así, la presente investigación se enfocará en explicar cómo se manifiesta aquella actitud estatal, así como qué implicaciones tiene para la adopción de instrumentos internacionales que tradicionalmente no han sido considerados como fuentes de obligaciones vinculantes para los Estados; a saber, las normas internacionales de soft law. Con el fin de poder profundizar sobre este tema, se comenzará por dar una explicación general de la noción de bloque de constitucionalidad en Ecuador, y del significado mismo de los instrumentos de soft law. Se continuará con el análisis de las distintas aplicaciones prácticas e influencia de las normas de soft law para el Derecho Constitucional ecuatoriano, en conexión a los principios pro homine y pacta sunt servanda. Finalmente, y a partir de todo lo mencionado, se expondrá la relevancia y exigibilidad de estas normas internacionales para el Estado ecuatoriano.

Constitutionalization of European Law by European Courts: Legitimate Constitutional Moments?

The present chapter explores the legitimate role of the two European courts in the constitutionalization of European law, in light of prominent discussions about ‘constitutional moments.’ In particular, this contribution considers possible lessons from Ackerman’s claims that the US constitution has undergone drastic changes at several ‘extra-constitutional’ ‘constitutional moments’. Ackerman argues that several features serve to legitimate the changes. Several of these issues also merit attention as concerning the constitutionalization of European – and possibly International – Law. What would count as such a phenomenon of constitutional change? How might we identify any decisive events that brought such changes – the ‘constitutional moments’ of ‘extraordinary politics’ that concern Ackerman? And what features of such ‘extra-constitutional’ events bestow legitimacy on the changed constitution? These issues are particularly important for any such ‘constitutional moments’ in the constitutionalization of international law, due to two features of the main agents of such changes: Treaty may develop beyond what states are constitutionally authorized to consent to; and international courts are often challenged as to their own legitimacy.

The role of international human rights law in South Korean constitutional court practice: An empirical study of decisions from 1988 to 2015

While both international human rights law and constitutional law protect fundamental rights of individuals, it remains a question to what extent and for what purpose constitutional justice uses IHR instruments. This article offers empirical research on the use of IHR instruments with a case study of South Korea. Quantitative and qualitative analyses were conducted for all sixty-five decisions from the Constitutional Court of Korea that mentioned IHR instruments from 1988 to 2015. Findings show that IHR instruments played a supportive but limited role in those decisions. In terms of their role in revoking domestic laws, IHR instruments were supportive but not conclusive in reaching final conclusions. The CCK showed resistance in cases of labor rights and those concerning the national security threat from North Korea despite international pressure. In the same vein, it was not statistically supported that decisions mentioning IHR instruments would have a different rate of winning a case than decisions that did not mention them. IHR instruments, however, do have a positive effect on the CCK decisions. They enriched constitutional debate, providing persuasive authority in various contexts. IHR instruments were more successfully incorporated in the CCK decisions when they were indirectly applied as interpretative tools to the Korean Constitution than when they were directly applied. The findings show guidance and possibilities for the positive use of IHR instruments in national constitutional courts. Meanwhile, resistance to IHR law in deeply rooted issues suggests that we need other methods to harmonize IHR law and domestic law.

The Need to Establish and Enforce the Liability of Refugee-Generating Entities: Addressing the Normative Lacuna in the Intersection between International Refugee Law and the Law of International Responsibility

According to UNHCR, 55 percent of the refugee population worldwide comes from three countries – 1.4 million from South Sudan, 2.5 million from Afghanistan, and 5.5 million from Syria. This highlights a significant feature of today’s refugee problems: situations and activities in a few countries are generating the majority of global refugee population. Given this feature, it is natural to ask “who are generating refugees in these countries,” “do they bear liability of any kind under international law for generating refugees,” and “if yes, are there legal mechanisms in place to enforce the liability.” This paper aims to address these questions. Queries about the liability of refugee-generating entities are nothing new. As early as 1939, Sir Robert Jennings already attempted to establish responsibility of refugee-generating States based on the abuse-of-right doctrine. However, despite scholarly endeavors, positive international law in its current shape seems unable to establish the liability of refugee-generating entities. No treaties spell out such liability, and it seems hard to argue that such liability exists in customary international law. This points out a normative lacuna in the intersection between international refugee law and the law of international responsibility. The law of State responsibility is hard to seamlessly apply to refugee-generating entities, because (1) refugee-generating entities – whose activities are most direct to and responsible for causing refugee displacement – can be non-State actors; and (2) both the breach and attribution requirements for an internationally wrongful act are too limited and formalistic to be applicable given the complexity of refugee-generating situations. Based on Louis Henkin’s theory of “constitutional international law”, this paper argues for a new way to establish the liability of refugee-generating entities under international law. After defining “refugee-generating entities” by reference to Article 1(A)(2) of the 1951 Convention, this paper envisages possible mechanisms under domestic and international law to enforce the liability of refugee-generating entities.