bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Health in Conflict
Authors: Getgen Kestenbaum Jocelyn , Meier Benjamin Mason
Published: June 2024

This chapter, “Health in Conflict,” addresses the relationship between international humanitarian law and global health policy in both safeguarding public health and protecting human rights in conflict-affected settings. While the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has long overseen humanitarian responsibilities under international law, the changing nature of conflict and increasing harms to civilians—from World War II to today—has reframed international humanitarian law obligations to support the rule of law in complex emergencies. This has been achieved through the Geneva Conventions and rising global institutions to address the protection of civilians and other noncombatants in international armed conflict (IACs) and non-international armed conflicts (NIACs). These institutions that apply international humanitarian law provide a path to address major public health challenges in conflict-affected settings, including infectious diseases; non-communicable diseases; mental health and trauma; sexual and reproductive health and violence prevention; and water, sanitation, and hygiene. In conflict-affected settings, health professionals can become either complicit in human rights abuses or subject to human rights violations themselves. Considering past perpetration of human rights abuses and international crimes—including war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide—by aid professionals, it is critical for global health law to address the threat to health care from attacks against health systems amid complex humanitarian emergencies instigated and exacerbated by armed conflict.
Climate Change
Authors: Phelan Alexandra , Daalen Kim van
Published: June 2024

This chapter, “Climate Change,” addresses the greatest threat to global health this century: climate change. From extreme weather events, shifting habitable ranges of infectious diseases and their vectors, decrease in biodiversity and food security to air pollution, clean water, and mental health, climate change poses an existential challenge to realizing global health. International legal efforts to govern responses to climate change have included the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (1992) and its protocols, the Kyoto Protocol (1995) and Paris Agreement (2015). However, while these instruments and decisions have increasingly recognized the health impacts of climate change, tangible action to mitigate and adapt to climate change to protect global health remains significantly inadequate. Climate action provides significant opportunities for global health co-benefits beyond climate justice. The climate crisis requires law and policy efforts to ensure strengthened health systems, the realization of universal health coverage, amending the dynamics of political influence, and decolonizing both international law and global health. While protecting health has been seen as a motivator for climate action, the COVID-19 pandemic may require rethinking the paradigms of government accountability and action to protect health for all.
Obligation to Prevent Torture
Authors: Zach Gerrit
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 2 of the Convention against Torture, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Article 2(1) constitutes the corresponding umbrella clause in respect of torture as defined in Article 1. According to Article 2, States parties shall take effective legislative, administrative, judicial, and other measures to prevent torture in any territory under their jurisdiction, i.e. also on-board ships and aircraft, in occupied and other territories under their jurisdiction. In addition to the preventive obligations explicitly enlisted in the Convention, the umbrella clause in Article 2(1) requires States parties to take other effective measures aimed at preventing torture. Such measures relate primarily to guarantees in the context of the right to personal liberty and the right to a fair trial.
Review of Detention and Interrogation Rules
Authors: Monina Giuliana
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 11 of the Convention against Torture, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Although Article 11 constitutes one of the most important safeguards for the prevention of torture and other forms of ill-treatment by establishing the formal obligation to keep interrogation and detention rules under systematic review. Article 11 is meant to further reinforce the general obligation of States parties under Article 2(1) and Article 16 to take effective measures to prevent torture and other forms of ill-treatment. In other words, Article 11 plays a key role in the practical implementation of the Convention obligations and by setting up a duty for States to review their rules and practices systematically aims at closing the gap between the law and practice.
Ex Officio Investigations
Authors: Birk Moritz
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 12 of the Convention against Torture, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. One of the most important objectives of the Convention against Torture is combating impunity. It obliges states to criminalize torture (Article 4), to establish (universal) jurisdiction over the crime (Articles 5 to 9), and thereby to ensure that there is no ‘safe haven’ for torturers. Moreover, victims of torture need to have the effective possibility to complain about torture without having to fear reprisals and have their case promptly and impartially investigated by competent authorities (Article 13). Article 12 reinforces the investigative duty by shifting the responsibility of initiating an investigation to the State.
Non-Admissibility of Evidence Obtained by Torture
Authors: Monina Giuliana
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 15 of the Convention against Torture, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Article 15 is an important provision supplementing the absolute prohibition of torture. The scope of Article 15 exceeds the rights of the accused in criminal proceedings and excludes any use of evidence obtained by torture in any proceedings, be they criminal, civil or of administrative nature, judicial and non-judicial. Article 15 also has a very important preventive effect as the inadmissibility of the evidence removes the incentive for law enforcement officials to use of torture, thereby contributing to the prevention of such practice. This additional preventive reason, thus, goes beyond judicial proceedings and has a deterrent effect on law enforcement personnel and their use of such heinous practice.
Rules of Procedure
Authors: Monina Giuliana
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 18 of the Convention against Torture, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Article 18 of the Convention against Torture corresponds to Articles 35 to 39 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The Committee against Torture, as the Human Rights Committee, elects its officers (a Chairperson, three Vice-chairpersons, and a Rapporteur) and adopts its own Rules of Procedure, subject only to the procedural provisions in Articles 19 to 22, and a few other rules contained in the Convention. The Rules of Procedure of the Committee are modelled on those of the Human Rights Committee which, in turn, are based on the Rules of Procedure of the Committee on the Elimination on Racial Discrimination.
Inquiry Procedure
Authors: Monina Giuliana
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 20 of the Convention against Torture, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. At the time of its adoption, the inquiry procedure was the most innovative element of the monitoring mechanisms of the Convention and had no precedent in other human rights treaties. However, the idea of an inquiry procedure was strongly opposed by the Soviet bloc, who criticized it for the broad definition of ‘reliable’ information and because it envisaged a fact-finding mission in the territory of the State party concerned. In the end, a compromise was reached, and Article 20 provides that although the inquiry procedure is not subject to an explicit declaration by States parties to accept this competence of the Committee against Torture, any State party may decide to ‘opt out’ by means of a specific reservation in accordance with Article 28.
Inter-State Communications
Authors: Monina Giuliana
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 21 of the Convention against Torture, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. The Convention against Torture provides for the establishment of a series of monitoring procedures aiming at enforcing the compliance of States parties with their respective treaty obligations. State parties are also allowed to complain about alleged violations of the treaty by another State Party through the inter-State communication procedure. However, the inter-State communication procedure represents the weakest monitoring procedures under the Convention. As of December 2017, only 63 out of a total of 162 States parties have made the optional declaration under Article 21(1) recognizing the competence of the Committee against Torture to receive and consider inter-State communications.
Individual Complaints Procedure
Authors: Monina Giuliana
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 22 of the Convention against Torture, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. While a mandatory right of individual complaints is guaranteed, for example, by Article 34 of the European Convention on Human Rights and Article 44 of the American Convention on Human Rights, UN human rights treaties only provide for optional individual complaints mechanisms to quasi-judicial bodies. Only 68 out of a total of 162 States parties to the Convention have accepted the optional individual complaints procedure, and the clear majority of these States are from Europe and Latin America, and are also subject to the respective mandatory complaints procedures under the European Convention on Human Rights and the American Convention on Human Rights. During the roughly 30 years of its existence, the Convention against Torture Committee has registered 825 complaints concerning 38 States parties.
Privileges and Immunities
Authors: Monina Giuliana
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 23 of the Convention against Torture, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. On 13 February 1946, the General Assembly adopted a resolution on in which it approved the General Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations. This UN treaty applies to both UN officials and experts on mission. Since the UN human rights treaty monitoring bodies are in the strict legal sense not organs of the UN, the UN Legal Counsel recommended during the drafting of the Covenants the adoption of a specific provision aimed at extending the privileges and immunities of UN experts on mission to the members of the Human Rights Committee. Consequently, a respective provision was adopted in Article 43 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which served as the model for Article 23 of the Convention against Torture.
Signature and Ratification
Authors: Monina Giuliana
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 25 of the Convention against Torture, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. The Convention was adopted and opened for signature, ratification, and accession by General Assembly Resolution 39/46 on 10 December 1984, the UN Human Rights Day, without a vote. Article 25 stipulates how to become a party to the Convention by signature and ratification. Specifically, it states that the Convention is open for signature by all States; and that the Convention is subject to ratification. Instruments of ratification shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
Accession and Succession
Authors: Monina Giuliana
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 26 of the Convention against Torture, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. The Convention was adopted and opened for signature, ratification, and accession by General Assembly Resolution 39/46 on 10 December 1984, the United Nations' Human Rights Day, without a vote. Article 26 supplements Article 25 on signature and ratification and stipulates how to become party to the Convention by means of accession. Though succession is not explicitly mentioned, in practice, several States have used this means to become Party to the Convention. As of December 2017, in total, 78 States have deposited their instrument of accession with the Secretary-General of the United Nations, while 78 States joined by means of ratification. Seven States declared themselves to be bound by the Convention by means of succession.
Entry into Force
Authors: Monina Giuliana
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 27 of the Convention against Torture, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. The Convention against Torture entered into force on 26 June 1987. As of December 2017, a total of 162 States were parties to the Convention against Torture. Article 27 provides that the Secretary-General acts as depositary. According to Article 77(1)(f) of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, this function also includes the task of informing ‘the States entitled to become parties to the treaty when the number of signatures or of instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession required for the entry into force of the treaty has been received or deposited’.
Opting Out of the Inquiry Procedure
Authors: Monina Giuliana
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 28 of the Convention against Torture, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Compared to the monitoring procedures established in earlier UN human rights treaties, the inquiry procedure under Article 20 of the Convention against Torture was a major innovation. During the drafting of Article 20, delegations from Socialist States demanded that this new mechanism be optional rather than mandatory. This was eventually accepted by Western and other States in order to ensure that the Convention was adopted by consensus. Despite criticisms of this opting-out clause, in practice, this has a much less limiting effect on the acceptance of a procedure than the requirement of an optional declaration. In fact, as of December 2017 only 14 States parties out of 162 have opted out to the inquiry procedure.
Establishment of a UN Subcommittee on Prevention
Authors: Buchinger Kerstin
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. The Subcommittee on Prevention (SPT) is a subsidiary organ of the Committee against Torture, which was established as the main monitoring body of the Convention in accordance with Article 17 of the Convention against Torture. The SPT is, however, largely independent from the Convention against Torture Committee. The SPT is empowered to carry out preventive missions to the territory of States parties without prior consent, which was considered by many States during the drafting process as undermining the UN principles of State sovereignty and territorial integrity. Hence, a number of precautionary provisions were inserted into the text of the Optional Protocol.
Size and Composition of the Subcommittee on Prevention
Authors: Buchinger Kerstin
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 5 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. The Subcommittee on Prevention (SPT) is a UN treaty-monitoring body, initially consisting of ten independent experts. Taking into account the considerable workload with an increasing number of States parties to be visited by the SPT, the drafters stipulated that the number of its members shall be increased to 25 after the fiftieth ratification or accession. Similar to other UN treaty bodies, the composition of the SPT shall reflect a gender balance, equitable geographic distribution, and the representation of different forms of civilization and legal systems. In addition, the members shall be independent and impartial experts with professional experience in fields relevant to the administration of justice and the treatment of detainees.
Filling of Vacancies
Authors: Buchinger Kerstin
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 8 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Article 8 states that, ‘If a member of the Subcommittee on Prevention dies or resigns, or for any cause can no longer perform his or her duties, the State Party that nominated the member shall nominate another eligible person possessing the qualifications and meeting the requirements set out in Article 5, taking into account the need for a proper balance among the various fields of competence, to serve until the next meeting of the States Parties, subject to the approval of the majority of the States Parties. The approval shall be considered given unless half or more of the States Parties respond negatively within six weeks after having been informed by the Secretary-General of the United Nations of the proposed appointment’.
Term of Office
Authors: Buchinger Kerstin
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 9 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Article 9 of the Optional Protocol is a standard provision in UN human rights treaties providing for a four-year term of office and the principle of partial renewal with ‘staggering’ elections every two years. However, for the first time in a human rights treaty, Article 9 restricts the re-election of members to once only. This restriction of the possibility for a continuing membership of some members of the Subcommittee on Prevention for more than two terms served as a model for later treaties, such as the International Convention for the Protection of all Persons from Enforced Disappearance and Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Rules of Procedures
Authors: Buchinger Kerstin
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 10 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Article 10 of the Optional Protocol is modelled on Article 18 of the Convention against Torture, which itself is based on Articles 35 to 39 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. It requires the Subcommittee on Prevention (SPT), as the Convention against Torture Committee, to elect its officers, i.e. one chairperson, three vice-chairpersons, and one rapporteur, for a term of two years, and to establish its own rules of procedure which shall provide that, at the beginning, six (now 14) members shall constitute a quorum and that decisions shall be made by a majority vote of the members present. Although the SPT, as with the Convention against Torture Committee, is free to decide the number of its annual sessions, both bodies must hold one at the same time, and all meetings shall be confidential.
Obligations of States Parties to Cooperate with the Subcommittee
Authors: Buchinger Kerstin
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 12 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Article 2(4) of the Optional Protocol stipulates that the Subcommittee on Prevention (SPT) and the States parties ‘shall cooperate in the implementation of the present Protocol’. This principle of cooperation constitutes one of the main pillars of the Protocol and creates rights and corresponding duties for both the SPT and States parties. While the duties of the SPT are spelled out primarily in Articles 2, 11, 13, and 16 of the Optional Protocol, the corresponding obligations of States parties can be found in Articles 4, 12, 14 and 15. These mutual rights and obligations are interdependent and should be interpreted correspondingly.
Obligation of States Parties to Facilitate Visits by the Subcommittee to Places of Detention
Authors: Buchinger Kerstin
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 14 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Article 14 of the Optional Protocol is closely related to Article 12, and further defines the obligation of States parties to cooperate with the Subcommittee on Prevention (SPT) in facilitating its preventive visits to places of detention. During the discussions in the Working Group, this Article proved to be just as controversial as Article 12. Certain States objected to the right of the SPT to conduct unannounced visits to places of detention and private interviews with detainees. On the other hand, no explicit reference to unannounced visits to places of detention is included in Articles 12 or 14 of the Optional Protocol, and Article 14(2) contains the right of States parties to object to a visit of a particular place of detention on certain urgent and compelling grounds.
Prohibition of Sanctions against any Source of Information of the Subcommittee
Authors: Buchinger Kerstin
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 15 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Article 15 of the Optional Protocol constitutes the first explicit provision in a human rights treaty which aims at protecting detainees and other persons or organizations against any factual sanction or judicial proceedings for having communicated to the visiting body any information, whether true or false. Similar provisions of victim and/or witness protection can be found, e.g. in Article 34 of the European Convention on Human Rights and in Article 68 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
Prohibition of Sanctions against any Source of Information of the NPM
Authors: Krisper Stephanie
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 21 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Article 21(1) mirrors Article 15 of the Optional Protocol relating to the Subcommittee (SPT). It contains an important principle for the protection of detainees, family members, witnesses, lawyers, NGOs, and other relevant persons or organizations against any reprisals or victimization on the ground of having provided any information, true or false, to the national preventive mechanism. Such sources of information shall be immune against any civil or criminal liability. Article 21(2) contains rudimentary provisions about the confidentiality of information provided to the national preventive mechanism. In the absence of a general duty of confidentiality on the part of national preventive mechanisms, these provisions raise several questions of interpretation.
Annual Reports of the National Preventive Mechanisms
Authors: Krisper Stephanie
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 23 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Article 23 requires ‘The States parties to the present Protocol undertake to publish and disseminate the annual reports of the national preventive mechanisms’. As with the Committee against Torture and the Subcommittee on Prevention (SPT), national preventive mechanisms shall also prepare an annual report on their activities. While the annual reports of the Committee against Torture are submitted to the States parties of the Convention, and the annual reports of the SPT to the Committee against Torture, the final addressee of the national preventive mechanisms' annual report is not limited to a specific body or group of persons.
Special Fund
Authors: Buchinger Kerstin
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 26 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Article 26 states that ‘A Special Fund shall be set up in accordance with the relevant procedures of the General Assembly, to be administered in accordance with the financial regulations and rules of the United Nations, to help finance the implementation of the recommendations made by the Subcommittee on Prevention after a visit to a State Party, as well as education programmes of the national preventive mechanisms. This Special Fund may be financed through voluntary contributions made by governments, intergovernmental and non-governmental organisations, and other private or public entities’.
Entry into Force
Authors: Krisper Stephanie
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 28 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Article 28 describes the procedure of the entry into force of the Protocol in line with Article 27 of the Convention against Torture. Entry into force means that the provisions laid down in the Protocol becomes legally binding on all States parties that have ratified or acceded to it. In line with Article 28(1) of the Optional Protocol, the Protocol entered into force under international law on 22 June 2006. As of 12 December 2018, the Optional Protocol had 88 States parties.
Prohibition of Reservations
Authors: Krisper Stephanie
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 30 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Article 30 states that no reservations shall be made to the present Protocol. The drafters of the Optional Protocol agreed on this provision after long and heated discussions. This is in line with Article 19(a) of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, which stipulates that States may formulate reservations ‘unless the reservation is prohibited by the treaty’. In a final attempt to reach a consensus on this controversial issue, in January 2002 the Chairperson-Rapporteur introduced the possibility of a temporary ‘opting-out declaration’ preventing visits to places of detention by either the Subcommittee or an national preventive mechanism for a period of up to three years.
Denunciation
Authors: Buchinger Kerstin
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 33 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Pursuant to Article 33, a State party may denounce the Optional Protocol at any time by written notification to the Secretary-General, being the sole requirement for withdrawal. The possibility and procedure of denunciation is quite common with regard to international treaties, at least as to their optional elements. However, a State party may not tackle its obligations under the present Protocol until the expiration of one year calculated from the date of receipt of the notification by the Secretary-General. Furthermore, and in order to hinder States parties from denouncing the Protocol for the purpose of suppressing any grievances, the act of denunciation does not function retroactively.
Privileges and Immunities
Authors: Krisper Stephanie
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 35 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. Article 35 stipulates that the members of the Subcommittee on Prevention (SPT) as well as of the national preventive mechanisms shall be granted the necessary privileges and immunities in order to exercise their monitoring functions independently. With regard to the members of the SPT, special reference is made to the General Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations of 13 February 1946. No special reference is made to international standards regarding national preventive mechanisms. However, according to Article 35 of the Optional Protocol, its members shall be granted privileges and immunities that are necessary for the independent exercise of their functions.
Authentic Texts
Authors: Krisper Stephanie
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses Article 37 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, covering the chronology of draft texts, analysis of Working Group discussions, and issues of interpretation. According to Article 37, the Optional Protocol is translated into all official UN languages and it explicitly refers to the fact that all translations are equally authentic. Specifically, the article states that:‘The present Protocol, of which the Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanis, texts are equally authentic, shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall transmit certified copies of the present Protocol to all States’.
What Is Energy Transition?
Authors: Sourgens Frédéric G , Sempertegui Leonardo
Published: June 2024

This chapter introduces the notion of energy transition. It acknowledges climate change as one of today’s leading policy problems, citing how anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions cause the phenomenon. To respond to climate change, a change in the operation of human energy systems of electricity, heat, and transportation is needed. Any change as momentous as the energy transition will have repercussions for world society. Energy transition today challenges the traditional energy paradigm while trying to achieve the goal of mitigating climate change impacts and protecting the notion that energy transition itself is conducive to the realization of the right to development.
How Can Energy Transition Take Place
Authors: Sourgens Frédéric G , Sempertegui Leonardo
Published: June 2024

This chapter looks into the different technological tools available to drive the energy transition. The first set of tools is the kind of tools typically associated with energy transition to replace the components supporting the traditional hydrocarbons paradigm such as renewable energy. The second set of tools is expected to remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere and prevent further destruction of natural sinks. Meanwhile, the third set of tools primarily focuses on solar radiation management. The chapter considers the various challenges posed by the tools, such as the value chains related to these input approaches. It also explains that an input approach to energy transition would address transportation.
Polycentricity, Fragmentation, and the Energy Trilemma
Authors: Sourgens Frédéric G , Sempertegui Leonardo
Published: June 2024

This chapter tackles the interplay between polycentricity, fragmentation, and the energy trilemma. The fragmentation of international legal norms governing energy transition policies is the consequence of polycentric, bottom-up governance. Specialized networks increasingly determine the content of international legal norms and interpret and apply these norms within a closed regime. The chapter mentions how the fragmentation of international law could be addressed within the energy transition context as a conceptual matter. It explains that rebalancing is possible within a legal framework by deploying a correlative rights framework before outlining the theoretical underpinnings of the international legal principles of the energy transition.
Conflict and Convergence of Energy Transition Principles
Authors: Sourgens Frédéric G , Sempertegui Leonardo
Published: June 2024

This chapter looks into the international legal principles that govern different aspects of the energy transition. It details the inherent conflict potential between these different principles, referencing how it cannot be resolved by deductive logic since each principle is premised in fundamentally incommensurate values. The first step to addressing the conflicting values inherent in the energy transition principles is to understand the function of law in energy transition governance. Thus, ambivalence created by the inconsistency in demands of energy transition principles creates problems. Moreover, while adjudication continues to play an important role in energy transition governance, the principal role of law is in supporting effective and fair policy-making.
Stakeholder Engagement
Authors: Sourgens Frédéric G , Sempertegui Leonardo
Published: June 2024

This chapter focuses on the notion of stakeholder engagement, which refers to inducing people involved in or affected by a course of action to participate in it. The three distinct aspects of stakeholder engagement range between consultation, transfer, and autonomy. The chapter then considers the interplay between stakeholder engagement in the Energy Transition Principles. Stakeholder engagement improves the authority of energy transition decisions, which is central to the ability of states to rely on civil society to govern from the bottom up to achieve goals collectively within specific social contexts. The chapter mentions that the success or failure of energy transition policies depends on how policies are implemented.
Conceptual Development of the World Heritage Convention
Authors: Christina Cameron
Published: June 2024

This chapter elaborates on the conceptual development of the World Heritage Convention. After the Second World War, the massive property destruction, rising environmental degradation and surging urban development resulted in further consideration of the need for international cooperation to protect the common heritage of humanity. The World Heritage Convention is the first intergovernmental convention to combine culture and nature in one legal instrument with the goal of protection and international cooperation. The chapter details the complicated diplomatic manoeuvres that brought the strands' separate trajectories into a single convention for the protection of cultural and natural heritage. It also looks into the feasibility of a World Heritage Trust.
World Heritage Committee and International Assistance
Authors: Ana Filipa Vrdoljak
Published: June 2024

This chapter tackles Article 13 of the 1972 Convention. The core framework of the World Heritage Convention (WHC) is composed of three elements: international assistance, the World Heritage Fund (‘Fund’) and the World Heritage Committee (‘Committee’). The Article 13 provision outlines the role of the World Heritage Committee in realising the purposes of the treaty through the granting of international assistance and management of the World Heritage Fund. The chapter expounds on the notion of international assistance in the context of the World Heritage Convention. It details the powers of the Committee to receive requests and to determine requests and orders of priorities.
Final Clauses
Authors: Federico Lenzerini
Published: June 2024

This chapter tackles provisions of the final clauses of the World Heritage Convention. Although the World Heritage Convention was drawn up in five different texts that are equally authoritative, only English and French are the languages used in practice by the World Heritage Committee (the Committee). The chapter also considers the intense debate surrounding Articles 31 and 32 concerning the Soviet delegation's proposal. It notes how Articles 33 -37 were adopted by the General Conference without a vote. Meanwhile, under Article 38, the provisions of the Convention can be invoked before the organs of the United Nations, on account of its registration in the United Nations Treaty Series (UNTS).
Principles of International Economic Law, 3e
Authors: Herdegen Matthias
Published: June 2024

This book provides a comprehensive overview of the central topics in international economic law, with an emphasis on the interplay between the different economic and political interests on both the international and domestic levels. The book examines classical topics of international economic law – like WTO law, investment protection, commercial law, and monetary law – in context with emerging aspects of human rights, environmental protection, and the legitimate claims of developing countries. A perfect introductory text to the field of international economic law, the book thoroughly analyses legal developments within their wider political, economic, or social context. Topics covered range from codes of conduct for multinational enterprises, to the human rights implications of the exploiting natural resources and the legal impact of climate protection. The book demonstrates the economic foundations and economic implications of legal frameworks. It puts into profile the often-complex relationship between, on the one hand, international standards on liberalization and economic rationality, and on the other, state sovereignty and national preferences. It describes the newly developed forms of economic co-operation between states, such as the G7, the G20, or the BRICS. This fully updated third edition covers new aspects and developments, with a particular focus on corporate social responsibility, challenges for WTO law, mega-regional agreements like CPTPP, the impact of human rights law and environmental standards, and cryptocurrencies.
The Law of International Economic Relations
Authors: Herdegen Matthias
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses the contents and structure of the law of international economic relations. It explains that international economic law encompasses a complex architecture of rules governing international economic relations and transboundary economic conduct by States, international organizations, and private actors. Many rules for international transactions or the settlement of commercial disputes are laid down in international treaties, such as the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG) or the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards. The chapter then details the main areas of international economic law. It also considers the interplay between international economic law and economic rationality.
The Legal Sources of International Economic Law
Authors: Herdegen Matthias
Published: June 2024

This chapter looks into the legal sources of international economic law. It elaborates on the law and system of the European Union that reached a unique degree of legal, economic, and political integration. Meanwhile, the notion of lex mercatoria captures internationally established customary rules or terms with a specific and internationally recognized meaning. The chapter then looks into international agreements that facilitate private economic transactions by harmonizing rules. It provides an overview of international law as an order of transboundary economic relations while considering the sources of international economic law, customary international law, general law principles, and treaties on international economic transactions.
Corporate Social Responsibility
Authors: Herdegen Matthias
Published: June 2024

This chapter details the key concepts of corporate social responsibility (CSR). CSR refers to employees, local communities affected by the corporation’s operations and broader public interests. As a soft law, the standards govern non-judicial grievance mechanisms that inspire recent domestic legislation and judicial rulings. The chapter cites how CSR catalyses the emergence of new rules of international law. It then discusses the instruments and specialized agencies of the United Nations and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Guidelines for multinational enterprises before considering the normative impact of international instruments on CSR that hold certain inherent ambiguities in some soft law standards.
Basic Principles of the International Economic Order
Authors: Herdegen Matthias
Published: June 2024

This chapter covers the basic principles of the international economic order. It enumerates and defines the principles of autonomy, trade liberalization, fair treatment, and non-discrimination. Moreover, favourable conditions for developing countries include preferential treatment, preferential tariffs, and technology transfer. The chapter then introduces the concept of sustainable development, which is one of the most salient examples of a soft law standard which has not yet achieved the status of a strict principle of international law with significant consequences for international economic relations. It also mentions that the modern international order is interrelated with human rights under customary law and treaties.
Good Governance
Authors: Herdegen Matthias
Published: June 2024

This chapter looks into the international structure of States and global economic integration. It primarily focuses on the notion of good governance as a salient issue of the modern economic order. The interaction between the rule of law, democracy, and the economic order largely depends on the prevailing political, social, and economic conditions in a State. The chapter then outlines the historical development of standards revolving around good governance. It elaborates on the relevance of the constitutional and economic order, wherein a State's capacity to integrate into the global economy and its openness to global competition considerably depends on its national constitutional order.
Dispute Settlement
Authors: Herdegen Matthias
Published: June 2024

This chapter examines the mechanisms of international dispute settlement. It explains how the text of international agreements often gives room for different interpretations, but interpretations must have several factors to consider, such as the application of treaties or the applicability of international law. Additionally, jurisdiction and the legitimacy of judgments, awards, and other decisions on disputes depend on consent. International commercial arbitration is very often the first choice as a dispute settlement mechanism for private parties to transboundary economic transactions. The chapter then cites that national courts are expected to decide any legal dispute unless there is any agreement on dispute settlement.
The Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS)
Authors: Herdegen Matthias
Published: June 2024

This chapter discusses the Agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS Agreement). It explains how the SPS Agreement established standards for trade restrictions that aimed to protect the life and health of humans, animals, and plants. The SPS Agreement has its own scope of application which is independent from the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994, but it does have measures that operate in conformity with the GATT. In principle, WTO members must be guided by available international standards, guidelines, or recommendations. Additionally, the SPS Agreement became the crucial frame of reference for divergent regulatory philosophies in regard to risks associated with new technologies.
The Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade
Authors: Herdegen Matthias
Published: June 2024

This chapter covers the application of Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT Agreement). TBT Agreement primarily focuses on technical regulations and other technical standards related to product characteristics or production processes. Technical rules are subject to the national treatment principle and the most-favoured-nation principle. Moreover, recognized international standards must be considered as guidelines and as standards of review for national regulations, even if they were established after a technical regulation. The chapter explains that technical regulations may not restrict international trade beyond the extent necessary to protect a legitimate interest.
The Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS)
Authors: Herdegen Matthias
Published: June 2024

This chapter looks into the scope and application of the Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). It cites that the Agreement provides for national treatment and most-favoured-nation treatment. During the negotiations of the Uruguay Round, industrialized countries, led by the United States, pushed hard for TRIPS, which is a specific treaty regime on the protection of intellectual property rights. Some of the important provisions of the TRIPS Agreement include the mandatory scope of patents for inventions and the protection of intellectual property rights in a broader international context. Additionally, the protection of intellectual property rights under the TRIPS Agreement stands in context with several other international agreements.
Subsidies and Anti-dumping Measures
Authors: Herdegen Matthias
Published: June 2024

This chapter examines the notion of subsidies and anti-dumping measures. The Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCM Agreement) establishes a regime for subsidies which is much tighter than pre-existing rules. However, the most contentious issue within the field is the subsidies in the agricultural sector responsible for a massive distortion of international competition. The chapter also details the provision of the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies and Agreement on Agriculture (AoA). While the GATT does not categorically prohibit subsidies, it does not categorically ban dumping measures as long as it is within the context of marketing exported goods at a price lower than their usual value.