Bibliotheken Online

Self-determination and secession in international law

ed. by Christian Walter ; Antje von Ungern-Walter ; Kavus Abushov

Buch

englisch

Walter, Christian (Ed.) DNB
Ungern-Walter, Antje von (Ed.) DNB
Abushov, Kavus (Ed.) DNB

Oxford Univ. Press

Oxford [u.a.]

2014

XIV, 318 p.

978-0-19-870237-5

Includes bibliographical references and index.

eastern europe
kosovo
case study
international law
west sahara

Contents

Introduction: Self-determination and secession in international law : perspectives and trends with particular focus on the commonwealth of independent states / Christian Walter and Antje von Ungern-Sternberg -- The Kosovo Advisory Opinion: What it says and what it does not say / Christian Walter -- International law and self-determination: peoples, indigenous peoples, and minorities / Joshua Castellino -- The role of recognition and non-recognition with regard to secession / Stefan Oeter -- Secession and the use of force / Antonello Tancredi -- The principle of uti possidetis juris: How relevant is it for issues of secession? / Anne Peters -- Secession in the CIS: Causes, consequences, and emerging principles / Thomas Burri -- Transnistria / Bill Bowring -- South Ossetia / Christopher Waters -- Abkhazia / Farhad Mirzayev -- Nagorno-Karabakh / Heiko Krüger -- Kosovo / James Summers -- Western Sahara / Sven Simon -- Eritrea / Gregory Fox -- Postcript: Self-determination, secession and the Crimean Crisis 2014 / Christian Walter.

Summary

Recent events in places like Kosovo and Georgia have put the spotlight on the international law of self-determination and secession. However, the definition of these concepts and the conditions for their application are unclear. This book sheds light on the meaning of self-determination and secession, with reference to four key post-Soviet regions.
Peoples and minorities in many parts of the world assert a right to self-determination, autonomy, and even secession from a state, which naturally conflicts with that state's sovereignty and territorial integrity. The right of a people to self-determination and secession has existed as a concept within international law since the American Declaration of Independence in 1776, but the exact definition of these concepts, and the conditions required for their application, remain unclear. The Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice concerning the Declaration of Independency of Kosovo (2010), which held that the Kosovo declaration of independence was not in violation of international law, has only led to further questions. This book takes four conflicts in the post-Soviet Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) as a starting point for examining the current state of the law of self-determination and secession. Four entities, Transnistria (Moldova), South Ossetia, Abkhazia (both Georgia), and Nagorno-Karabakh (Azerbaijan), claim to be entitled not only to self-determination but also to secession from their mother state. For this entitlement they rely on historic affiliations, and on charges of discrimination and massive human rights violations committed by their mother state. This book sets out its analysis of these critical issue in three parts, providing a detailed understanding of the principles of international law on which they rely: The first part sets out the contours and meaning of self-determination and secession, including an overall assessment of secession within the Commonwealth of Independent States. The second section provides case studies investigating the events in Transnistria, South Ossetia, Abkhazia, and Nagorno-Karabach in greater detail. The third and final section extends the scope of the examination, providing a comparative analysis of similar conflicts involving questions of self-determination and secession in Kosovo, Western Sahara, and Eritrea.
Review: Provides an impressive collection of analytical chapters and case studies... The beauty of the book is the comprehensive analysis of various frozen conflicts including normative assessments and case studies all viewed in the light of the Kosovo Advisory Opinion of the ICJ. Sinthiou Estelle Buszewski, German Yearbook of International Law Self-Determination and Secession in International Law is a valuable scholarly contribution to this developing area of law...it is a timely and thorough addition to already existing literature on self-determination and secession. Professor Milena Sterio, Melbourne Journal of International Law

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