Archive / Other publications
The law on the use of force and the responsibility to protect, straitjacket or life jacket?
08/07/2005 By Niels Blokker
This comment presents an analysis of the responsibility to protect guided by the question of whether the law on the use of force is a straitjacket or a life jacket.
The author believes that the Secretary-General has followed the best possible approach by preferring to stick to the rigour of the Charter system of collective security. Indeed, it is true that this approach implies that the rules on the use of force may be considered a straitjacket, if the Security Council does not take decisions when necessary to give effect to its responsibility to protect.
But it should not be forgotten that this Charter system of collective security may also be a life jacket that should prevent the international community from sinking into the chaos of unilateral use of force.
Download the full version of this publication, available in English (95 kB)
To read or listen to the comments of our experts in the media about this and other topics, please visit our Press section.
Keywords
Peace Responsibility to protect UNRelated publications
- The Use of Force and the Responsibility to Protect
- The use of force and the responsibility to protect. A human rights organization's perspective
Bio author: Niels Blokker
In 2003, he was appointed Professor of International Institutional Law (Schermers Chair) at Leiden University. In 2000 he was appointed Senior Legal Adviser of the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As a member of the Netherlands Delegation to the Preparatory Conference for the International Criminal Court and to the Assembly of States Parties to the International Criminal Court, he participated in the negotiations on the crime of aggression.
