Customary International Research Articles

El Banco Mundial y los Derechos Humanos: un repaso crítico a los argumentos jurídico-doctrinales

Este artículo de reflexión tiene por objeto identificar y valorar críticamente varios de los argumentos jurídico doctrinales que sostienen la obligación jurídica por parte del Banco Mundial de respetar normas internacionales de derechos humanos. Fundado en una metodología cualitativa y centrada en la dogmática del derecho internacional público, sostiene que la vinculación a las Naciones Unidas mediante acuerdo previo, los compromisos internacionales de los estados miembros del organismo y el carácter consuetudinario y/o de principio general del derecho, de esta normatividad, son los tres argumentos centrales de dicha obligatoriedad. Los mismos, sin embargo, están afectados por su generalidad, ambigüedad en cuanto a la concreción de los compromisos y no aceptación por el mencionado organismo internacional. En tal sentido, el texto propone la necesidad de promover la suscripción de los tratados de derechos humanos por parte de los organismos internacionales, identificando de paso algunos de los antecedentes ya existentes al respecto.

LIABILITY IN SPACE LAW: QUESTIONS ON PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF ABSOLUTE AND FAULT LIABILITY

With modern advances in technology, mankind is now faced with new legal problems and situations previously unanticipated. Space law in particular is relevant as, while most of the documents were drafted and assented to in the mid 1990’s, there have since been great advances in space exploration and technology. This means that potential situations exist which are not expressly provided for in International Space Law. Therefore, since the answers for hypothetical questions cannot always be found explicitly in space law, we will be relying on the sources of international law listed in article 38(1) of the International Court of Justice Statutes, namely international conventions, international custom, general principles of law and judicial decisions and teachings.1 The rules of the Vienna Convention regarding the interpretation of Treaties must also be kept in mind, including that a state is obliged to refrain from acts that would defeat the object and purpose of a treaty that it has ratified. There are therefore two main questions that will be discussed in this article: whether a state can be held absolutely liable for its actions if it, in changing the course of an asteroid affect the area of damage and whether a state can be held liable on the basis of fault for damage caused by its space craft to another space craft if the damage was anticipated and the second state was warned not to be in that specific location.

Study of the Role of Customs in Global Supply Chain Management and Trade Security Based on the Authorized Economic Operator System

The core aims of Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) are to establish an international corporate identity system and encourage supply chain enterprises to maintain high degrees of safety and security in their international trading. This paper conducts an in-depth study of customs management thinking regarding the AEO system and actively explores its implementation and integration with international customs standards common practice and fulfilling the requirements of any international obligations. The government will need to work with enterprises in developing basic conditions on AEO certification, recognising and dealing with problems as they arise, while seeking to maintain the facilitation of customs clearance for excising lawabiding and sustainable trade routes and ensuring the security.

The Legality of the Continued Use of Depleted Uranium in Warfare by the United States of America

There exists an ongoing debate regarding the legality of the continued use of munitions containing Depleted Uranium (DU). While there have been moratoriums placed upon its use by various members of the international community, widespread prohibition has not yet reached the level of international custom. While DU has been proven to be toxic in high doses, existing evidence suggests that the use of DU munitions will rarely reach levels that are unsafe. Because of this, it is unlikely that prohibitions on environmental modification enumerated within International Environmental Law or binding obligations currently in effect under International Human Rights Law would prohibit the continued use of DU. No existing legal instrument explicitly prohibits DU use and it is not legally appropriate to apply a comparison by analogy between DU and those weapons that are currently prohibited. Further, proposed alternatives to DU munitions are less effective and more toxic and therefore do not meet the thresholds of Military Necessity and Proportionality. There is the possibility that an argument exists under the Martens Clause: that DU containing weapons could be prohibited because they contrast starkly with public opinion, however, international juridical bodies do not generally enforce a prohibition on these grounds alone.

International Customs Law and Environment Protection

One of the current global challenges is protection of the environment. Due to increased deterioration in overall global ecological safety and the environment’s sharp deterioration in certain countries and regions, the global consequences for outstanding environmental problems indicate that states must unite their efforts to prevent threats to mankind. This work is devoted to some ecological aspects of international customs law. Biodiversity loss, environmental pollution, resource degradation, and climate change are among the most serious environmental challenges. The primary objective of this paper was to analyze specific examples of international customs law instruments that include relevant prohibitions and restrictions to address such challenges.

Research on Teaching Reform of International Trade Documentation Based on Application Ability Training

As an important professional course for international trade major in university, international trade documentation is characterized by operation and strong practicability. However, traditional teaching of this course pays more attention to theory than practice, while ignoring developing application ability of students. Which cause the students’ actual operation ability cannot be improved, and appears to be at a loss of what to do when facing to the English documents and international customs. According to the practical teaching of this course, based on the students’ application ability, some useful teaching reform have been analyzed the in this paper, including teaching contents, teaching methods, teaching means and teaching practice.

International Customs Law and Environment Protection

One of the current global challenges is protection of the environment. Due to increased deterioration in overall global ecological safety and the environment’s sharp deterioration in certain countries and regions, the global consequences for outstanding environmental problems indicate that states must unite their efforts to prevent threats to mankind. This work is devoted to some ecological aspects of international customs law. Biodiversity loss, environmental pollution, resource degradation, and climate change are among the most serious environmental challenges. The primary objective of this paper was to analyze specific examples of international customs law instruments that include relevant prohibitions and restrictions to address such challenges.

الحصانة القضائية للمبعوث الدبلوماسي

It is an obvious matter that the Judicial immunity of diplomatic envoy is very important for providing a space of freedom to get to know serenely and being away from the intervention of the state to which he is delegated. International Custom is set to grant the envoy an immunity and is being confirmed by relevant international agreements. But, this advantage has been misused to escape from submission to justice. Some countries intended to hide this advantage from their citizens who commit crimes so they fail court appearance. However , the international community was aware of this, so it states Article 27 of the Statute of the International Criminal Court that not to counting on the official capacity to undergo the court's jurisdiction, and thus diplomatic status will no longer be a barrier from being subject to the jurisdiction of International Criminal Court if the diplomatic envoy committed the crimes set in the Statute of the international Criminal Court.

BELLIGERENT REPRISALS IN NON-INTERNATIONAL ARMED CONFLICTS

AbstractThe paper offers the first comprehensive treatment of the applicability and regulation of belligerent reprisals in non-international armed conflicts. It introduces three approaches to the topic (‘extralegal’, ‘permissive’ and ‘restrictive’ approaches) which all enjoy some support among States and scholars. The paper shows that international humanitarian law (IHL) treaties, IHL customs and other legal sources do not make it possible to decide between these approaches, as they are either silent on the topic or allow for several interpretations. It is the assessment of extralegal considerations and of the general framework of IHL which allows us to conclude that belligerent reprisals are inapplicable in non-international armed conflicts (‘extralegal’ approach). Yet, there are signs indicating that a gradual shift toward the ‘restrictive’ approach could be under way. The paper cautions against a premature acceptance of this approach drawing attention to its limits.

Does Custom Have A Source?

Customary international law often seems like a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma. According to Manley O. Hudson, even the drafters of the International Court of Justice Statute “had no very clear idea as to what constituted international custom.” The situation has not changed much since then.I got my first taste of the difficulties in identifying custom when I was a junior attorney at the U.S. Department of State and was assigned the task of preparing the U.S. submission in a juvenile death penalty case before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. The juvenile death penalty is prohibited by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the American Convention on Human Rights, but the question in the Inter-American Commission case was whether it is also prohibited as a matter of customary international law.

The Applicability of International Human Rights Law to the Regulation of International Trade of Genetically Modified Organisms: A New Haven Perspective

This article reviews the applicability of international human rights law to the regulation of international trade of genetically modified organisms (GMO) that may have adverse effects on human life and health. Rights to life and health are recognised by many international agreements as fundamental human rights. This article argues, from the perspective of the New Haven school of jurisprudence, that since the principle of human dignity as a legal source of fundamental human rights is a basic norm justifying all legal regulations and institutions, it must, in case of conflicts with provisions under the GATT/WTO Agreements, have priority over rules for free trade and investment liberalisation. In light of the rights to life and health being core human rights having the status of international custom or jus cogens, the author proposes several policy and legal requirements to ensure human dignity, as applied to regulations of international trade of GMO.

KAJIAN TENTANG PERTAUTAN HUKUM HUMANITER INTERNASIONAL DENGAN HUKUM PENGUNGSI

International Humanitarian Law and International Refugee Law are two branchs of law relevant to the protection of human rights in a specific context. This research aimed at evaluate the relationship of these two branchs of law. Legal materials that thoroughly considered and analized in this research were relevant international rules and facts embodied in international customs, general principles of law, international treaties, conventions, declarations and decisions of international organisation, recommendations, academic publications, proceedings and working papers. Based upon the analysis of the existing legal materials, eventually, it could be inferred that International Humanitarian Law has influenced International Refugee Law both in the standard setting and in the interpretation process. The rules embodied in these two branchs of law established a continuum protection for the victims of confilct with violence. Two international humanitarian agencies; International Committee of the Red Cross and the United Nations High Commissionner for Refugees has served as the guardians in the framework of promotion and implementation of these two branchs of law. Grave breaches of International Humanitarian Law and acts triggered international displacement were international wrongful acts and generate state responsibility.

The importation of building environmental certification systems: international usages of BREEAM and LEED

A proliferation of the development of building environmental assessment methods has occurred for application within many individual countries' domestic markets. However, the demand for ‘brand recognition’ in a global market, the desire for international standards and the motivation of the owners of some systems to expand the adoption of their assessment systems abroad are among many of the forces driving toward the increased international use of the two most established methods: BREEAM and LEED. Drawing on published databases of projects assessed by these two systems, an examination is presented of their international use, with particular attention paid to the relationship between their use and the existence of national systems developed in the countries of application. A more detailed analysis of the types of projects that have been assessed is provided using data from six specific countries with qualitatively different cultural, economic and environmental contexts and some of which that have national assessment systems: Chile, Colombia, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the United Arab Emirates. The influence of national Green Building Councils in promoting environmental assessments is also considered.

La place de la coutume internationale en droit public français

Abstract Bernard Stirn’s presentation examines the status of international custom in French public law. He notes that international custom may be considered as covered by the reference in the preamble of the Constitution to the rules of public international law. He underlines the increased effects of international custom in the French domestic legal order as enshrined in the latest developments of the case-law of the Conseil d’Etat. He stresses that whilst French administrative judges may set aside a law in the event of a conflict with the provisions of an international treaty, they do not possess a similar power in the case of a conflict with a rule of customary international law. He concludes by citing cases in which the French constitutional court has made reference to international custom.

Le juge et la coutume internationale : perspective de l’Union européenne et de la Cour de justice

Abstract Jiří Malenovský presents the perspective of the European Union (EU) and of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) with regard to the issue of the judge and international custom. His presentation focuses notably on (I) the EU’s contribution to the formation of customary rules and on (II) the various approaches taken by the CJEU over time as to the binding force of international custom in the EU’s legal order. Furthermore, Jiří Malenovský illustrates (III) the various degrees of openness towards international custom in the case-law of the CJEU. He also presents (IV) the criteria used by the CJEU in its cautious attempts to identify both the existence and the content of the rules of international customary law. Finally, he provides information with regard to (V) the CJEU’s evaluation of the direct effect/applicability and enforceability of customary international rules.

International Custom in the Political Branches

International Custom in the Political Branches

The Judge and International Custom

The Judge and International Custom

Customs regulation in the cooperation council for the arab states of the gulf

Today, processes of regionalization are expressed, among other ways, in the establishment of various international regional organisations. Many of these organisations are aimed at economic and customs cooperation. Regulation of customs relations among states and international organisations is realized through the norms of international customs law, a branch of international public law. In this study, we investigate customs regulation in the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC) from the point of view of international law. The main objective of this paper is to analyse concrete examples of the regulation of international customs cooperation in the GCC such as multilateral agreements, the GCC Customs Union and the GCC Free Trade Area. This paper attempts to cover the organisational and legal aspects of customs cooperation among the GCC States, both among themselves and with other countries.

МЕЖДУНАРОДНОЕ ТАМОЖЕННОЕ СОТРУДНИЧЕСТВО В УСЛОВИЯХ ТАМОЖЕННОГО СОЮЗА И ЕДИНОГО ЭКОНОМИЧЕСКОГО ПРОСТРАНСТВА

In article consider questions of the international customs integration. The reached results in unification of customs procedures within the CIS are analyzed. The considerable attention is given to prospects of the international cooperation in the field of customs matter in conditions of the Customs union and uniform economic space.

Quando cangurus voarem: a declaração unilateral brasileira sobre direito de pesquisa além dos limites da plataforma continental - 2010

In 2010, the Inter-ministerial Commission for Sea Resources decided that Brazil has the right to appraise requests for authorization of research beyond the 200 nautical miles limit of its continental shelf, despite the fact that the outer limit of the continental shelf was not yet defi nitely established by the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf. Such decision – a unilateral decision – might be understood as illegal and contrary to the international law, while it also might be understood as a unilateral act based on an international custom, on the principle that the continental shelf is a natural extension, ipso facto and ab initio, of the continental border that stretches towards the ocean. Th e objective of this article is to analyze the lawfulness of that declaration. Firstly, the “fl ight of the kangaroo” will reveal the importance of investing in human resources, and consequently in studies on the continental shelf. Secondly, the article will present the doctrine on unilateral acts of international law, with the purpose of determining the nature of the Brazilian declaration. At last, it will analyze the lawfulness, consequences and eff ects – practical and legal – of that declaration.