INTERNATIONAL LAW
The science of modern International Law owes its birth to Hugo Grotius (a Dutch jurist) whose
work, De Jure Belli ac Pacis (The Law of War and Peace) appeared in 1625. Therefore, Hugo
Grotius is known as Father of International Law. Law of Nations of 18 th Century was named as
International Law by Bentham. International law has been further classified as follows:
(i) Public International Law
It is body of rules which govern the conduct and relations of states with each other. The law of
nations of the 18b century was named as International law by Bentham in 1780. It consists of rules
which regulate relations between states inter se. Oppenheim defined International law as the body of
customary and conventional rules which are considered legally binding by civilized states in
intercourse with each other, e.g. Law of sea. The portion of International Law (Law of nations)
which regulates the practices of capture of ships and cargo in war-time as applied by courts is called
Prize Law. Such courts were established after the end of Indo-Pak war of 1971 to settle disposal of
goods seized from ships or cargos which were captured during the war-time.
(ii) Private International Law
Private international law is that part of law of the State, which deals with cases having a foreign
element. Private international law relates to the rights of-private citizens of different countries.
Marriages and adoption of individuals belonging to different nations fall within its domain. For
example if a contract is made between an Indian and a Pakistani and it is performed in Ceylon, the
rules and principles on which rights and liabilities of the parties would be determined would be
called 'Private International Law'. It Applies to individuals and not to states. It is enforced by
municipal courts which administer Municipal law and not International Law.
SOURCES AS OF INTERNATIONAL LAW
A. Sources Recognised by Statue of International Court of Justice
The Statute of International Court of Justice recognized:
1) International conventions, whether general or particular, establishing rules expressly recognized by
the contesting States.
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International treaty is an agreement concluded between States in written form and governed by
International law. These are of two kinds - General also known as 'Law making Treaties' which lay
down rules of general or universal application such as United Nations Charter. Particular treaties
(Treaty Contracts) are between two or only a few states, dealing with a special matter concerning
these States exclusively. Making of treaty in Indian is an executive act. A treating is negotiated and
requires approval of Cabinet for signature. Many treaty come into force on but some require
ratification. Ratification means that treaties need to be confirmed, before their binding obligations
are O assumed, by signatory States in accordance with their constitutional procedures. and
ratification of multilateral (general) treaties is known as Accession. A member State of a treaty may
make O reservations in the treaty. Reservations means that at the time of signing, ratifying,
approving or acceding to a treaty, a member State may exclude or modify certain provisions of
treaty. There is customary rule of international law that every treaty in force is binding upon the
parties to it and must be performed by them in good faith, known as ‘Pacta sunt servanda’. But very
essential general rules of public law or rights cannot be violated by treaties between States. So 'jus
cogens' is body of those general rules of law whose non-observance may affect the very essence of
legal system. Though treaties must be respected, but sometimes aner accepting the treaty,
circumstances may arise which frustrate or destroy the very object of the agreement. Doctrine of
'Rebus sic stantibus' insists that a treaty is binding so long as there is no vital change in the
circumstances.
2) International custom, as evidence of a general practice accepted as law.
According to Kopelman, there would be two factors in formation of international custom. Firstly
there must be sufficiently uniform practice consisting of repetition of similar acts by States.
Secondly a psychological element usually called ‘opinio juris sive necessitaties’ i.e. the feeling on
the part of the
States that they are legally obliged to be bound by customary practice.
3) The general principles of law recognized by civilized notions
These are principles so generally applied in well-developed systems of law. Some of these are:
Res judicata: A final judgement given on merits by a competent court, related to rights of the parties
is conclusive. Any subsequent action raised by a party on the same claims /rights between the same
parties is absolutely barred. Rule is that a matter once judicially decided is finally decided.
Estoppel: A party is stopped from raising any right / claim / relief who by its previous act,
recognition, representation, declaration, conduct or silence maintained an attitude manifestly
contrary to the right it is claiming.
Equity: It is based on principles of reasonableness and fairness.
4) Judicial decisions and teachings of the most highly qualified publicists of the various nations, as
subsidiary means for the determination of rules of law.
B. MODERN SOURCE OF INTERNATIONAL LAW
1) Security Council Resolutions
2) ILC Draft: Intemational Law Commission was established in1948 by the United Nations
for codification and progessive development of the law. There are 34 members (eminent
persons in the field of International Law) of ILC who are elected by General Assembly after being
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nominated by the Member States. The ILC draft articles serve as subsidiary sources of international
law.
LAW OF SEA
The principal of mare labrums is freedom of seas was first placed on a legal basic by a Dutch jurist
Hugo
Grotius, in 1604. Mart Clausum - by Seldom, the claim of English Kings of Great Britain to
Sovereignty of British Seas. Territorial water, Continental Shelf, Exclusive Economic Zone and
other Maritime Zones Act, 1976 provides for a 12 mile Zone of territorial sea.
Territorial Sea
In 1737, Byrkershock declared that territorial domains of a state extended as for as projectiles could
be fired from cannon on the shore. & its range was 3 nautical miles. Article 3 of United Nations
Convention of Law of sea, 1982 provides that every State has right to establish the breadth of its
territorial sea of to limits not exceeding 12 nautical miles, measures from baseline determined in
accordance with this convention.
Contiguous Zone
The contiguous Zone may not extend beyond 24 nautical miles from the baseline from which the
breadth of the territorial sea is measured.
Continental Shelf
Lard territory beneath sea / submerged land mars 200-350 nautical miles.
Exclusive economic Zone (Patrimonial Sea)
EEZ extend up to 200 nauticalmiles from the baseline from which the breadth of territorial
sea is measured. In the Exclusive Economic Zone the coastal state has sovereign right for the
purpose of exploring & exploiting, conserving and managing the natural rescores whether living or
non-living. Land locked or other State has freedom to navigation and over flight and of lying of
submarine Cables and pipelines and other freedoms.
High sea
All parts of sea not included in exclusive economic Zone, in territorial Sea or in internal waters of a
State or in the archipelagic waters of an archipelagic State. Both Coastal & land locked States have
freedom over High Seas.
Sea piracy: - It is any illegal act on high sea. Any State can have jurisdiction over pirates.
Hot Pursuit: - Pursuit of a foreiB1 ship up to has committed crime on territorial waters of a State
up to High Seas Pursuit cease as soon as ship enters territorial Sea of another State. She can be
pursued only by military aircraft or warships or other military ships.
Arivid Prado of Malta in 1967:- Suggested that there is a need for creation of an effective
international regime for the Seabed and the Ocean floor beyond national jurisdictions and
acceptance of that area as common heritage of mankind and to be used and exploited for the benefit
of mankind. It resulted in establishment of International Seabed Authority based at Kingston,
Jamaica. It held its first inaugural meeting in its host country, Jamaica, on 16 November 1994, the
day the Convention came into force.
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UNITED NATIONS
The name "United Nations", coined by United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt was first used
in the Declaration by United Nations of I January 1942, during the Second World War, when
representatives of 26 nations pledged their Governments to continue fighting together against the
Axis Powers. In 1945, representatives of 50 countries met in San Francisco at the United Nations
Conference on International Organization to draw up the United Nations Charter. Those delegates
deliberated on the basis of proposals worked out by the representatives of China, the Soviet Union,
the United Kingdom and the United States
at Dumbarton Oaks, United States in August-October 1944. The Charter was signed on 26 June
1945 by the representatives of the 50 countries. Poland, which was not represented at the
Conference, signed it later and became one of the origina\ 51 Member States. The United Nations
officially came into existence on 24 October 1945, when the Charter had been ratified by China,
France, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, the United States and by a majority of other
siB1atories. United Nations Day is celebrated on 24 October each year.
The official languages of UN are: - Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish.
The Republic of Sudan formally seceded from Sudan on July 2011 and was admitted by UN
General Assembly as new Member State on July 2010. The General Assembly accorded non-
member observer State States to state of Palestine on 29 Nov 2012. The United Nations conference
on sustainable Development (Rio+20) was held in Rio de Janerio, Brazil from to 28 dl June, 12 in
order to agree on policies aimed at promoting economic development and environmental protection
Rio+20 was adopted in this conference as a document named THE FUTURE WE WANT.
Important points:
• First regular session was held in London in January, 1946 and Trygve Lie (Norway) was elected the
first Secretary General.
• Headquarters located at New York, US.
• Flag: White UN emblem (2 bent olive branches open at the top, and in between them is the map of
the e world) on a light blue background. It was adopted on October 20, 1947.
• The offcial languages of the UN are English, French, Chinese, Russian, Arabic and Spanish, while
the working languages are English and French only.
-Preceding years - forerunners of the united nations 1865 Il 1874
States first established international organizations to cooperate on specific matters. The Intemational
Telecommunication Union was founded in 1865 as the International Telegraph Union, and the
Universal Postal Union was established in 1874. Both are now United Nations specialized agencies.
1899 Il 1902
In 1899, the International Peace Conference was held in The Hague to elaborate instruments for
settling crises peacefully, preventing wars and codifying rules of warfare. It
adopted the Convention for the Pacific O Settlement of Intemational Disputes and
established the Permanent Court of which began work 1919
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The forerunner of the United Nations was the League of Nations, an organization conccived in
similar circumstances during the first World War, and established in 1919 under the Treaty of
Versailles "to promote international cooperation and to achieve peace and security." The
International Labour Organization was also created under the Treaty of Versailles as an affiliated
agency of the League. The League of Nations ceased its activities after failing to prevent the Second
World War. The United Nations is an international organization founded in 1945. It is currently
made up of 193 Member States. The mission and work of the United Nations are guided by the
purposes and principles contained in its founding Charter. Due to the powers vested in its Charter
and its unique international character, the United Nations can take action on the issues confronting
humanity in the 21st century, such as peace and security, climate change, sustainable development,
human rights, disarmament, terrorism, humanitarian and health emergencies, gender equality,
govemance, food production, and more. The UN also provides a forum for its members to express
their views in the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, and
other bodies and committees. By enabling dialogue between its members, and by hosting
negotiations, the Organization has become a mechanism for governments to find areas of agreement
and solve problems together. The UN's Chief Administrative Officer is the Secretary-General. 2015
marked the 70th anniversary of the United Nations.
ROLE OF UNITED NATIONS
1. Maintain international peace and security
The United Nations came into being in 1945, following the devastation of the Second World War,
with one central mission: the maintenance of international peace and security, The UN does this by
working to prevent conflict; helping parties in conflict make peace; peacekeeping; and creating the
conditions to allow peace to hold and flourish. These activities often overlap and should reinforce
one another, to be effective. The UN Security Council has the primary responsibility for
international peace and security. The General Assembly and the Secretary-General play major,
important, and complementary roles, along with other UN offices and bodies.
2. Deliver humanitarian aid
One of the purposes of the United Nations, as stated in its Charter, is "to achieve international co-
operation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian
character." The ÜN first did this in the aftermath of the Second World War on the devastated
continent of Europe, which it helped to rebuild. The Organization is now relied upon by the
international community to coordinate humanitarian relief operations due to natural and man-made
disasters in areas beyond the relief capacity of national authorities alone.
3. Promote sustainable development
From the start in 1945, one of the main priorities of the United Nations was to "achieve
international cooperation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cuttural, or
humanitarian character and in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for
fundahental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion." Improving
people's well-being continues to be one of the main focuses of the UN. "Ihe global understanding of
development has changed over the years, and countries now have agreed that sustainable
development — development that promotes prosperity and economic opportunity, greater social
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well-being, and protection of the environment — offers the best path forward for improving the
lives of people everywhere.
4. Uphold international law
The UN Charter, in its Preamble, set an objective: "to establish conditions under which justice and
respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be
maintained". Ever since, the development of, and respect for international law has been a key part
of the work of the T) Organization. This work is carried out in many ways - by courts, tribunals,
multilateral treaties - and by the Security Council, which can approve peacekeeping missions,
impose sanctions, or authorize the use of force when there is a threat to international peace and
security, if it deems this necessary. These powers are given to it by the UN Charter, which is
considered an international treaty. As such, it is an instrument of international law, and UN Member
States are bound by it. The UN Charter codifies the major principles of international relations, from
sovereiYl equality of States to the prohibition of the use of force in intemational relations.
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