| This thesis explores the concept of humanitarian intervention--the use of force for the purpose of protecting the inhabitants of another state from their own government, when that government is treating some portion of its people in an unacceptable manner. More specifically, it asks whether humanitarian intervention should be made legal, and, given the constraints imposed by the realities of politics between sovereign states, whether a right to intervene could realistically be codified in international law.;The first chapter examines some of the key arguments against intervention, in order to assess the desirability of a right to intervene, and to gain an understanding of the factors which might prevent states from supporting such a right. The next three chapters examine international law and state practice from 1945 to 1995, in an effort to ascertain the existing degree of international consensus regarding the enforcement of human rights. The second chapter examines relevant aspects of international treaty law under the United Nations system. The third chapter considers the international community's response to five cases involving massive rights-violations during the Cold War. The fourth chapter looks at four instances of multilateral rights-enforcement which have occurred since the end of the Cold War.;Despite the theoretical potential that exists for the creation of a right to intervene that is sensitive to concerns of abuse, cultural imperialism, and the importance of maintaining international order, it is argued that the principle of state sovereignty still constitutes a formidable obstacle to the international protection of human rights. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)... |
