Just War Theory

Just War TheoryIB Global PoliticsUWC Costa Rica

What do you think Just War Theory is?

What do you think Just War Theory is?Heres a clue

Just War Theory Michael Walzer

Just War Theory: The Basics

Just War Theory specifies conditions for judging if it is just to go to war and conditions for how the war should be fought

Extensively developed by Christian theologians - attempts to reconcile three thingsTaking human life is seriously wrong

States have a duty to defend their citizens, and defend justice

Protecting innocent human life and defending important moral values sometimes requires willingness to use force and violence

How do we decide if a war is just?Series of criteria all of which must be met if a war is to be considered just

Criteria split into two categories:Jus ad bellum (the right to go to war)Jus in bello (the right conduct in war)

Jus ad bellumJust causeComparative justiceCompetent authorityRight intentionProbability of successLast resortProportionality

Jus ad bellum 1 Just cause The reason for going to war needs to be just and cannot therefore be solely for recapturing things taken or punishing people who have done wrong; innocent life must be in imminent danger and intervention must be to protect life

"Force may be used only to correct a grave, public evil, i.e., aggression or massive violation of the basic human rights of whole populations. (US Catholic Conference, 1993)

Jus ad bellum 2 Comparative justice While there may be rights and wrongs on all sides of a conflict, to overcome the presumption against the use of force, the injustice suffered by one party must significantly outweigh that suffered by the other

Jus ad bellum 3 Competent authorityOnly duly constituted public authorities may wage war

Dictatorships (i.e. Hitler's Regime) or a deceptive military actions (i.e. the 1968 US bombing of Cambodia) are typically considered as violations of this criterion.

The importance of this condition is key. Plainly, we cannot have a genuine process of judging a just war within a system that represses the process of genuine justice. A just war must be initiated by a political authority within a political system that allows distinctions of justice

Taken directly from http://oregonstate.edu/instruct/phl201/modules/just_war_theory/criteria_intro.html

Jus ad bellum 4 Right intentionForce may be used only in a truly just cause and solely for that purpose

Correcting a suffered wrong is considered a right intention, while material gain or maintaining economies is not

E.g. ceasefire at end of first Gulf War

Jus ad bellum 5 Probability of successArms may not be used in a futile cause or in a case where disproportionate measures are required to achieve success

Jus ad bellum 6 Last resortForce may be used only after all peaceful and viable alternatives have been seriously tried and exhausted or are clearly not practical

Jus ad bellum 7 - ProportionalityThe anticipated benefits of waging a war must be proportionate to its expected evils or harms

Jus in belloDistinctionProportionalityMilitary necessityFair treatment of prisoners of warNo means malum in se

Jus in bello 1 - DistinctionJust war conduct should be governed by the principle of distinction.

The acts of war should be directed towards enemy combatants, and not towards non-combatants caught in circumstances they did not create.

Jus in bello 2 - ProportionalityJust war conduct should be governed by the principle of proportionality

Combatants must make sure that the harm caused to civilians or civilian property is not excessive in relation to the concrete and direct military advantage anticipated by an attack on a legitimate military objective

Jus in bello 3 military necessityJust war conduct should be governed by the principle of military necessity

An attack or action must be intended to help in the defeat of the enemy

Jus in bello 4 Fair treatment of POWsEnemy combatants who surrendered or who are captured no longer pose a threat

It is therefore wrong to torture them or otherwise mistreat them

Jus in bello 5 - No means malum in seThis means wrong or evil in itself

Combatants may not use weapons or other methods of warfare that are considered evil, such as mass rape, forcing enemy combatants to fight against their own side or using weapons whose effects cannot be controlled (e.g., nuclear/biological weapons).

Just War and Humanitarian Intervention

We are in no position morally or politically to do that. So would have to be somebody else who went into Darfur

What does Walzer make this claim?

Just War and Iraq

We needed what Colin Powell called smart sanctions, because the sanction system was hurting ordinary Iraqi civilians, but there should have been a way--and I have spoken to some of the people who were running the embargo who say there were ways--to deal just with weapons and not to prevent food and medicine from reaching the people

Was the Iraq War a just war?

How does this relate to our understanding of humanitarian intervention?

Just War and Terrorism

It is the deliberate killing of people who are known not to be government employees, government agents, soldiers, police, the deliberate killing of people like you and me

Can terrorism ever be justified?