How 'Public' is Public International Law? Towards a Typology of NGOs and Civil Society Actors

Presented at the Carabinieri Officers Academy 3rd International Conference, “The Protection of Civilian Population in Warfare — The Role of Humanitarian Organizations and Civil Society”, Rome, 27‐28 October 2017. Final version published in Global Governance, vol 24 (2018), pp. 159-168.

NUS Law Working Paper No. 2018/003

14 Pages Posted: 30 Oct 2017 Last revised: 26 May 2018

See all articles by Simon Chesterman

Simon Chesterman

National University of Singapore (NUS) - Faculty of Law

Date Written: October 28, 2017

Abstract

How “public” is public international law? Despite its natural law origins, international law has long privileged the role of the state. Today, NGOs and civil society actors play an increasingly important role — offering a voice for the disenfranchised through their advocacy, and a helping hand for the disadvantaged through their operations. Calls for accountability of these actors are understandable, but often founder on their diversity. This paper therefore develops a typology of such actors, based on their activities and their drivers. That typology better reflects the reasons for and circumstances in which accountability is appropriate. In addition, it suggests a possible evolution in the international order where the status of an actor (state, intergovernmental organization, NGO, etc) is less important than its function.

Keywords: international law, international humanitarian law, non-governmental organisations, NGOs, civil society, history and theory of international law

Suggested Citation

Chesterman, Simon, How 'Public' is Public International Law? Towards a Typology of NGOs and Civil Society Actors (October 28, 2017). Presented at the Carabinieri Officers Academy 3rd International Conference, “The Protection of Civilian Population in Warfare — The Role of Humanitarian Organizations and Civil Society”, Rome, 27‐28 October 2017. Final version published in Global Governance, vol 24 (2018), pp. 159-168., NUS Law Working Paper No. 2018/003, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3061188 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3061188

Simon Chesterman (Contact Author)

National University of Singapore (NUS) - Faculty of Law ( email )

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