| In an age of terrorism, guerilla and
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| | according to the United Nations Charter,
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| total warfare the medieval doctrine of
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| | exclusively, self-defense);
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| Just War needs to be re-defined.
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| | Being (formally) declared by a proper
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| Moreover, issues of legitimacy, efficacy
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| | authority;
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| and morality should not be confused.
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| | Possessing a right intention;
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| Legitimacy is conferred by institutions.
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| | Having a reasonable chance of success;
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| Not all morally justified wars are,
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| | The end being proportional to the means
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| therefore, automatically legitimate.
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| | used."
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| Frequently the efficient execution of a
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| | Yet, the evolution of warfare - the
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| battle plan involves immoral or even
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| | invention of nuclear weapons, the
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| illegal acts.
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| | propagation of total war, the ubiquity of
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| As international law evolves beyond the
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| | guerrilla and national liberation
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| ancient percepts of sovereignty, it
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| | movements, the emergence of global,
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| should incorporate new thinking about
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| | border-hopping terrorist organizations,
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| pre-emptive strikes, human rights
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| | of totalitarian regimes, and rogue or
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| violations as casus belli and the role
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| | failed states - requires these principles
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| and standing of international
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| | to be modified by adding these tenets:
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| organizations, insurgents and liberation
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| | That the declaring authority is a
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| movements.
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| | lawfully and democratically elected
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| Yet, inevitably, what constitutes
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| | government.
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| "justice" depends heavily on the cultural
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| | That the declaration of war reflects the
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| and societal contexts, narratives, mores,
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| | popular will.
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| and values of the disputants. Thus, one
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| | (Extension of 3) The right intention is
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| cannot answer the deceivingly simple
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| | to act in just cause.
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| question: "Is this war a just war?" -
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| | (Extension of 4) ... or a reasonable
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| without first asking: "According to whom?
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| | chance of avoiding an annihilating
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| In which context? By which criteria?
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| | defeat.
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| Based on what values? In which period in
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| | (Extension of 5) That the outcomes of war
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| history and where?"
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| | are preferable to the outcomes of the
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| Being members of Western Civilization,
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| | preservation of peace.
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| whether by choice or by default, our
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| | Still, the doctrine of just war,
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| understanding of what constitutes a just
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| | conceived in Europe in eras past, is
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| war is crucially founded on our shifting
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| | fraying at the edges. Rights and
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| perceptions of the West.
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| | corresponding duties are ill-defined or
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| Imagine a village of 220 inhabitants. It
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| | mismatched. What is legal is not always
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| has one heavily armed police constable
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| | moral and what is legitimate is not
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| flanked by two lightly equipped
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| | invariably legal. Political realism and
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| assistants. The hamlet is beset by a
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| | quasi-religious idealism sit
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| bunch of ruffians who molest their own
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| | uncomfortably within the same conceptual
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| families and, at times, violently lash
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| | framework. Norms are vague and debatable
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| out at their neighbors. These delinquents
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| | while customary law is only partially
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| mock the authorities and ignore their
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| | subsumed in the tradition (i.e., in
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| decisions and decrees.
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| | treaties, conventions and other
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| Yet, the village council - the source of
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| | instruments, as well in the actual
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| legitimacy - refuses to authorize the
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| | conduct of states).
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| constable to apprehend the villains and
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| | The most contentious issue is, of course,
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| dispose of them, by force of arms if need
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| | what constitutes "just cause".
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| be. The elders see no imminent or present
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| | Self-defense, in its narrowest sense
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| danger to their charges and are afraid of
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| | (reaction to direct and overwhelming
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| potential escalation whose evil outcomes
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| | armed aggression), is a justified casus
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| could far outweigh anything the felons
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| | belli. But what about the use of force to
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| can achieve.
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| | (deontologically, consequentially, or
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| Incensed by this laxity, the constable -
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| | ethically):
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| backed only by some of the inhabitants -
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| | Prevent or ameliorate a slow-motion or
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| breaks into the home of one of the more
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| | permanent humanitarian crisis;
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| egregious thugs and expels or kills him.
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| | Preempt a clear and present danger of
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| He claims to have acted preemptively and
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| | aggression ("anticipatory or preemptive
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| in self-defense, as the criminal, long in
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| | self-defense" against what Grotius called
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| defiance of the law, was planning to
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| | "immediate danger");
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| attack its representatives.
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| | Secure a safe environment for urgent and
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| Was the constable right in acting the way
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| | indispensable humanitarian relief
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| he did?
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| | operations;
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| On the one hand, he may have saved lives
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| | Restore democracy in the attacked state
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| and prevented a conflagration whose
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| | ("regime change");
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| consequences no one could predict. On the
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| | Restore public order in the attacked
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| other hand, by ignoring the edicts of the
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| | state;
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| village council and the expressed will of
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| | Prevent human rights violations or crimes
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| many of the denizens, he has placed
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| | against humanity or violations of
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| himself above the law, as its absolute
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| | international law by the attacked state;
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| interpreter and enforcer.
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| | Keep the peace ("peacekeeping
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| What is the greater danger? Turning a
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| | operations") and enforce compliance with
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| blind eye to the exploits of outlaws and
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| | international or bilateral treaties
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| outcasts, thus rendering them ever more
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| | between the aggressor and the attacked
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| daring and insolent - or acting
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| | state or the attacked state and a third
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| unilaterally to counter such pariahs,
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| | party;
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| thus undermining the communal legal
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| | Suppress armed infiltration, indirect
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| foundation and, possibly, leading to a
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| | aggression, or civil strife aided and
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| chaotic situation of "might is right"? In
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| | abetted by the attacked state;
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| other words, when ethics and expedience
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| | Honor one's obligations to frameworks and
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| conflict with legality - which should
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| | treaties of collective self-defense;
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| prevail?
| |
| | Protect one's citizens or the citizens of
|
| Enter the medieval doctrine of "Just War"
| |
| | a third party inside the attacked state;
|
| (justum bellum, or, more precisely jus ad
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| | Protect one's property or assets owned by
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| bellum), propounded by Saint Augustine of
| |
| | a third party inside the attacked state;
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| Hippo (fifth century AD), Saint Thomas
| |
| | Respond to an invitation by the
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| Aquinas (1225-1274) in his "Summa
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| | authorities of the attacked state - and
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| Theologicae", Francisco de Vitoria
| |
| | with their expressed consent - to
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| (1548-1617), Francisco Suarez
| |
| | militarily intervene within the territory
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| (1548-1617), Hugo Grotius (1583-1645) in
| |
| | of the attacked state;
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| his influential tome "Jure Belli ac
| |
| | React to offenses against the nation's
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| Pacis" ("On Rights of War and Peace",
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| | honor or its economy.
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| 1625), Samuel Pufendorf (1632-1704),
| |
| | Unless these issues are resolved and
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| Christian Wolff (1679-1754), and Emerich
| |
| | codified, the entire edifice of
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| de Vattel (1714-1767).
| |
| | international law - and, more
|
| Modern thinkers include Michael Walzer in
| |
| | specifically, the law of war - is in
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| "Just and Unjust Wars" (1977), Barrie
| |
| | danger of crumbling. The contemporary
|
| Paskins and Michael Dockrill in "The
| |
| | multilateral regime proved inadequate and
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| Ethics of War" (1979), Richard Norman in
| |
| | unable to effectively tackle genocide
|
| "Ethics, Killing, and War" (1995), Thomas
| |
| | (Rwanda, Bosnia), terror (in Africa,
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| Nagel in "War and Massacre", and
| |
| | Central Asia, and the Middle East),
|
| Elizabeth Anscombe in "War and Murder".
| |
| | weapons of mass destruction (Iraq, India,
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| According to the Catholic Church's
| |
| | Israel, Pakistan, North Korea), and
|
| rendition of this theory, set forth by
| |
| | tyranny (in dozens of members of the
|
| Bishop Wilton D. Gregory of the United
| |
| | United Nations).
|
| States Conference of Catholic Bishops in
| |
| | This feebleness inevitably led to the
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| his Letter to President Bush on Iraq,
| |
| | resurgence of "might is right"
|
| dated September 13, 2002, going to war is
| |
| | unilateralism, as practiced, for
|
| justified if these conditions are met:
| |
| | instance, by the United States in places
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| "The damage inflicted by the aggressor on
| |
| | as diverse as Grenada and Iraq. This
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| the nation or community of nations [is]
| |
| | pernicious and ominous phenomenon is
|
| lasting, grave, and certain; all other
| |
| | coupled with contempt towards and
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| means of putting an end to it must have
| |
| | suspicion of international organizations,
|
| been shown to be impractical or
| |
| | treaties, institutions, undertakings, and
|
| ineffective; there must be serious
| |
| | the prevailing consensual order.
|
| prospects of success; the use of arms
| |
| | In a unipolar world, reliant on a single
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| must not produce evils and disorders
| |
| | superpower for its security, the
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| graver than the evil to be eliminated."
| |
| | abrogation of the rules of the game could
|
| A just war is, therefore, a last resort,
| |
| | lead to chaotic and lethal anarchy with a
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| all other peaceful conflict resolution
| |
| | multitude of "rebellions" against the
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| options having been exhausted.
| |
| | emergent American Empire. International
|
| The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy
| |
| | law - the formalism of "natural law" - is
|
| sums up the doctrine thus:
| |
| | only one of many competing universalist
|
| "The principles of the justice of war are
| |
| | and missionary value systems. Militant
|
| commonly held to be:
| |
| | Islam is another. The West must adopt the
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| Having just cause (especially and,
| |
| | former to counter the latter.
|
