Anne Marie Slaughter on State Realism versus Human Realism: The Individualization of International Law

Anne Marie Slaughter, former Director of Policy Planning at the US Dept. of State and Professor of Law at Princeton, (now at New America)  was the Keynote Speaker at the American Society of International Law (ASIL) this evening.  She suggested that international law has traditionally focused on state to state relations and activities, but that today, international law should focus equally on the actions of individuals.  She asked the audience to consider an amendment to UN Charter article 2(4) that would make both states and individual actors liable for any use of force against civilians.  A lively discussion ensued regarding how the international community can hold individuals responsible for crimes against humanity and other violations of international law.

(cgb)