War Crimes and Just War

Erscheinungsjahr 2010
ISBN: 978-0-521-87114-3
Verlag: Cambridge University Press

Buch, Englisch, 358 Seiten, HC gerader Rücken kaschiert, Format (B × H): 157 mm x 235 mm, Gewicht: 734 g

Larry May argues that the best way to understand war crimes is as crimes against humanness rather than as violations of justice. He shows that in a deeply pluralistic world, we need to understand the rules of war as the collective responsibility of states that send their citizens into harm's way, as the embodiment of humanity, and as the chief way for soldiers to retain a sense of honour on the battlefield. Throughout, May demonstrates that the principle of humanness is the cornerstone of international humanitarian law, and is itself the basis of the traditional principles of discrimination, necessity, and proportionality. He draws extensively on the older Just War tradition to assess recent cases from the International Tribunal for Yugoslavia as well as examples of atrocities from the archives of the International Committee of the Red Cross.

Autoren/Hrsg.

May, Larry

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Philosophie Angewandte Ethik & Soziale Verantwortung
• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Politische Gewalt Völkermord, Ethnische Säuberung, Kriegsverbrechen
• Geisteswissenschaften Philosophie Ethik, Moralphilosophie
• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Militärwesen

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Introduction: 1. Justifying war but restricting tactics; Part A. Philosophical Groundings: 2. Collective responsibility and honor during war; 3. Jus gentium and minimal natural law; 4. Humane treatment as the cornerstone of the rules of war; Part B. Problems in Identifying War Crimes: 5. Killing naked soldiers: combatants and noncombatants; 6. Shooting poisoned arrows: banned and accepted weapons; 7. Torturing prisoners of war: protected and normal soldiers; Part C. Normative Principles: 8. The principle of discrimination or distinction; 9. The principle of necessity; 10. The principle of proportionality; Part D. Prosecuting War Crimes: 11. Prosecuting soldiers for war crimes; 12. Prosecuting military leaders for war crimes; 13. Commanded and commanding defenses; Epilogue and Conclusions: 14. Should terrorists be treated humanely?

Über Autor(innen)

May, Larry
Larry May is Professor of Philosophy at Washington University in St Louis. He is the author of several books, including The Socially Responsive Self, Masculinity and Morality, and Crimes against Humanity, the first book in a trilogy of volumes on the normative foundations of international criminal law. War Crimes and Just War, the second volume in the trilogy, received the Frank Chapman Sharp Prize from the American Philosophical Association.