Messages posted by: syedqamarafzal

Seen from the ongoing geopolitical trajectory of the US waged war on terror, particularly its unwarranted invasion of Iraq, the question about the legal moorings that have given a lease to the US indoctrinated policy of the preemptive intervention, has become a glaring question mark about the justification of this doctrine of pre-emption.There is no second opinion in this universally accepted thesis that the doctrine of pre-emptive intervention,duly endorsed by the P5 members of the UNSC, seems to be an everlasting threat to the territorial-cum- national sovereignity of the poor nations, hence the need to reexamine this controversially sanctioned instrument of intervention against the developing nations.

While one sees the constitution of the UN charter, one finds the truth that is irrefutable to be perceived that many clauses of the charter have been framed to safeguard the political interests of the post world war-II allies. This insight may be virtually verified by the fact the indoctrination of the use of the veto power in the UNSC, remains the only legal prerogative of the P5 members of the Security Council. The powers assigned by the charter to the permanent members of the UNSC, do glaringly reflect the division between the North and the South.This domination of the UNSC over the general affairs of the UN, remains the riddle of enigma to be resolved by the international community's members.The powers given to the UNSC under chapter seven, yet remains the major threat to the security of the developing nations.

Being supported by the conviction that the future of the currently introduced or debated Lisbon or the Reform treaty has to be directly or indirectly affected by the forces of Euroscepticism, I have my grave reservations to become optimist about the future of the Reform treaty. It goes without saying that the Eurosceptists hailing from the United Kingdom, the republic of Ireland and belonging to other parts of the Northern Europe, would or may not favour this treaty because of their own reservations about the forces of emerging transnationalism in the EU's policies.

Although the Europol_being the new European Agency whose jurisdiction comes under the European Court of Justice- a supranational court likely that of the ICJ (whose administrative jurisdiction comes under the UN),there appears that this magnified role ascribed to the Europol since August,2007_has given a new meaning to the European crime control.

The on going debate/campaign regarding the expansion in the UNSC seems to probing the most heated question:the expansion without making an amendment in the UN charter, particularly the use of veto power by the permanent members of the UN would be a pragmatic move or an idealist development.To many political thinkers, the expansion in the United Nations Security Council( albeit a justifiable or an inevitable move) can not be an objective initiative without having a meaningful change in the UN charter.It looks highly imperative that before any means and methods are to be catered regarding the expansion theory some major reforms have to be introduced into the UN's charter.The propostion that the expansion has to be carried out by the geographical criteria or by other means, all loses its logical validity if the UN's General Assembly's magnitude is not properly maintained or respected by the UNSC's members.Many who are against the expansion theory do lodge the arguement that the P5 group should not give political gratification to the would be or the aspirtants UNSC members like India or Germany by aliegning them to enjoy the power politics in the UNSC club. And to many neutral strategists,the expansion debate should be analysed on the basis of its being a process of political anachronism or as a means to confer the political continuity.

I would positively endorse my concerns regarding the thoughts and perceptions shared by the author but feel deeply and regrettably plighted to say that the domain of international law has been subjectively taken by the international community. There is an absolute need that the international law has to be objectively taken thereby giving due reverence and prompt consideration by the international community. As far as the question regarding the displacement of persons owing to climatic change is concerned, there appears a logical and sound justification that some meaningful work has to done by the member states in this behalf.

There are seemingly indications coming from Washington that the Bush administration is making its mind to allow the Nato's commanders to make strikes inside the Pakistani territory of North and South Waziristan. This move of the US administration to hold the mere justification that the strikes have to be made or targeted at the Al Qaeda, can not carry weight since making an offensive strike in the name of self- defense, thereby transgressing the canons of international law regarding the territorial integrity and sovereignty of a country- seems to be an open violent aggression against a state who has itself rendered certain valuable services for the US war on terror by inviting great dangers from Afghanistan.In stead of having the realization about the role that Pakistan has played in this war on terror, the US administration policy to take a direct military initiative of making strikes inside Pakistan by avoiding the say and the mind set of the people of Pakistan, can not be a prudent, strategic, worthy or a positively sanctioned move.There fore, the policy makers in the Washington have grave responsibilities to deliver before that they begin to choose a path that would be more complex and bumpy as regards to the the US option to take a direct military intervention into the Pakistani based territory of Fata.

To the best of my understanding, the case in point does reflect the political expediencies and the vulnerabilities that the presently indoctrinated international law exercises regarding the true, neutral and egalitarian approach in the international judicial matters. Mr njwalbridge's approach touches the very threshold of morality in the international law while Mr Vincent's perception defines the methodological correctitude of the ICC.

The news regarding the phenomenal arrest of the former Serbian leader, Rodovan Karadzic must have not only been taken as a good omen across the European continent, but the arrest must have provided satisfaction to the international community since this man, Rodovan has been an evil -minded hero to fulfill the dream of the Greater Serbia by killing thousands of innocent Muslim children , women and men in the state of Serbia during the horrifying ethnic rule of his barbaric control and regime in the year 1995.This war criminal of humanity,who has to be virtually trailed before the Hague war crime tribunal of the International Crimnal Court,must face an exemplary justice by the ICC.

A debate regarding the future of the reform treaty and its possible charging influence over the very epic doctrine of the acquis communautaire, is being boiled up in the European civil society.The acquis communautaire- the political legal, social and economic frame work of an enlarged European Union/ community_ must be given the fair chance to be debated in the European academic community.It goes without saying that Europe can not afford to delay its serious deliberations regarding the future of the European constitution which has been resourcefully articulated in the reform treaty.

The August 5 decision of the US government to give the death penalty via lethal injection to Jose Medellin( Mexican) seems no worthy precedence since The Hague panel of the ICJ court had stayed the death execution of Jose Medellin till the final judgement of the ICJ regarding the Avena case( a pending dispute between the Mexican and the US government). Unfortunately, this not for the first time that an ICJ's ruling has been given an indifferent response by the US and the Israeli governments but at this juncture, when the EU is making a world wide campaign against the death penalty in the developing world, this move of the US's government would cast a bad influence or a negatively sustained notion of the civilized world over the rest of the world communities.
On the otherhand , the US adopted behavior also reflects a poor impression regarding the sanctity and dignity of the international law over the domestic or local law.

As for the common knowledge and legal understanding, the true implementation/ application of the international humanitarian law does mean to restrict the armed conflict between the states, groups and certain individuals so that there should not be any violation regarding the human rights norms envisaged or protected under the UN charter, particularly with reference to the universal declaration of human rights by the UN General Assembly in Dec, 1948. Yet this law of war is being deviously ignored or put aside by the very inception of the US war on terror.The international community registers its deepest discontent regarding the question of semblance of international law that is not getting its due reverence ( both in form and spirit) by those powers who just believe in their own strategic doctrine of utility and redefine the law by making new turns and twists into it.

The question regarding the most emerging issue of forced disappearances has become burning not only in the Pakistani media but also in the western media.The phenomena of missing persons has drawn the attention of the human rights organistaions, the legal fraternity and the civil society world- wide. It is an irony that at this stage wherein the international community is trying its level best to give the human rights as the basis of all kinds of governmental touchstone/ complement/exactitude,the rise in the cases of disappearances(forced or involuntary) erects the very question about the dignity of man's fundamental rights. From the very voices of the UN's Charter of human rights, the European convention on the human rights to the very application of the UN's Gereral assembly resolution regarding the focred disappearances,the mising persons' syndrome mostly occured in the Post 9/11 era, herein Pakistan, is matter of grave concern and in this connection, the case of Dr Afia siddiqui seems self-explanatory.

Since its phenomenal establishment in the year 2006,the United Nations Human Rights Council has been unable to take any propmt action against the human rights violation in the world.It seems very much logical to say that the newly formed UN body which was resulted in replacing the UN Commission on Human Rights, yet holds the similar fate as that of the fomer UN body(the Commmission).The escalation in the human rights has been on rise particularly in Palestine and Kashmir. On the otherhand, high degree of the violation is being practiced by the US administration in the areas of the ongoing US war on terror.The American Civil liberties Union(ACLU) has registered strong protest regarding the US's policy of human rights violation.It is against this backdrop that the UNHRC should take serious notes accompanied by propmt actions against these transgressions of human rights.

It goes without saying that the world at large registers positive impression/feeling regarding the triumphant victory of Senator Barack Obama as the next Democrat US president.The agenda of change "yes we can"provokes new currents of hopes in the international community that Mr Obama would become a symbol of peace, prosperity and multilateralism in the world.Mr Obama (who seems to be gravely hemmed in by the emerging challenges) has to demonstrate a great degree of aplomb and political sagacity while discharging his duties as the next US President.The dictates of unilateralism has to replaced by the norms of internationalism-the driving imperative that the US foreign policy has to be reshaped and revitalised.The ongoing war on terror in Iraq and Afghanistan, particularly in Fata- Pakistan needs to have rethinking by keeping in view the diversified factors and sensitivities attached to it.The world economic recession/turmoil has to be dealt by counterpoising the negativities that has been fostered by neoliberalism.To rebulid faith and confidence in the Muslim world about America, Mr Obama has to take new initiatives regarding the conflict resolutions of Palestine and Kashmir and has to revisit the US-adopted philosophy of waging war against terror.