Droit international public.

Droit international public

• Modalités du cours et de l’examen
• Place du cours dans le programme d’étude et comment il s’articule avec d’autres enseignements de droit international

Les modalités : 60h à notre programme. Il se donne en principe 2X 2h de cours magistral par semaine. Le cours est articulé, la grande partie nous sera transmise par un Massive open online course. Aller sur la plateforme edX.org. C’est un consortium crée il y a plus de 5 ans. On suit le cours sur le MOOC chez nous. On se voit le plus souvent le vendredi et non le jeudi. La modalité du cours est le MOOC chez nous et deux heures de cours au lieu de 4 heures de présentiel. On transmet le cours magistral via le MOOC de façon plus active. Enseignement en présentiel à côté du MOOC et Moodle.

3 tests en ligne plus un examen hors session le 22 décembre.

Pas écouté la suite du blabla sur le cours.

Public international Law introduction

There are various names for international law. In roman times romans had roman laws. They had ius gentium for their relationships with the rest of the word (savage tribes) and ius civile for the relationships between the roman people. Whatever the name we may use;

• public international law is about legal relations of subjects of international law.  
• International relations are made of politics but international relations made of politics are also made of law. Rather law is the product of international politics. It’s impossible to understand international politics if we don’t have understood what international law is. It’s the law of the international community. The law that governs states. Not only states also international organizations (UN, NATO); it concerns human rights, peace… It’s all among us.

It’s about PUBLIC international law. Public international law describes the public nature of the subject. It’s not about the relations between companies or two persons. Maybe the relations between a company and a state. But public international law always entails a public element: a governmental authority. Public means, not only the subject but also the subject matter at stake is public: it’s about violence, the prohibition of genocide, human rights, borders. These are public interests.

It is INTERNATIONAL as opposed to domestic law, for example Belgian law; it’s international in the sense it is the law of a certain community, a community of states. It is about law and here we can ask ourselves what is law? What is it made of? A rule of law is made of words and nothing else. It is obvious, so obvious we don’t see it. The only thing we have in our hands for our discipline is words. A legal obligation is written in words. What is a word? Tree? Table? We understand what it means but that doesn’t create one tree or table. We describe one, point to it. Words symbolize reality. They’re not reality.

We use them to express our feelings but most of all to express law. Law is made of words. The pending questions is how do we make a difference between the words of the law and the other ones? How can we say this sentence is a sentence of law? It’s the issue of sources. They help us to distinguish between what is law and what is not. Words of the law are not descriptive of reality, they are prescriptive. They don’t say what is but what ought to be. The law speaks for us and says what we have to do. Our actions have to comply with the rules of law. And there is always a human action transforming the rule of law into reality. Law speaks to our mind, we have to understand it and comply to it. There is no magic. Law doesn’t become reality by itself. We are human; it’s not because we say something that it’s becomes reality. We have to do something. The issue in international law is the same: which words count as words and what do we have to do to make these words become reality? The words of the law are not descriptive but prescriptive. When it comes to sources it’s always about identifying the authority. Who is invited to make law and how is it made? 

Week 2 :

First about the documents posted on Moodle. How the countries use the langage of international law.

Letter from the Permanent Representative of Belgium to the UN addressed to the President of the UNSC about ISIL:

It’s dated 7th June 2016; This is a letter about which Belgium explains to the rest of the world why it decides to use force against the ‘Islamic state in Iraq and the Levant’ and in Syria. Belgium has taken part in aerial bombardments in Iraq and Syria against ISIL. There is a legal argument presented for that purpose. It’s referring to article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations. ISIL has occupied territories of Syria that are not controlled by the state anymore. And the letter refers to what the SC has said; ‘ISIL constitutes a global and unpreceded threat’. Since they constitute a threat and hinder the exercise of power by the Syrian government on a part of the territory of the country it should be allowed to attack them under article 51 as a measure of self-defence. Iraq has been attacked from Syria by Daesh. Iraq is the victim of armed attacks performed by Daesh. It means that a state, here not attacked by a state but by a non-state organization, can use force to ensure self-defence. We come to the rescue of Iraq, helping them with self-defence, through mutual defence. Belgium takes part in the bombardments etc. because of the right of collective self-defence. The resolution saying ISIL is an unpreceded threat called on member states to eradicate ISIL. (very strong word) There was not a clear-cut authorization by the security council to use force against ISIL, or to use fore in Syria. We’ve never received from the government of Assad his consent.

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