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Autonomous weapon systems and international humanitarian law
Halajová, Ludmila ; Lipovský, Milan (referee)
Autonomous weapon systems and international humanitarian law Abstract There is practically no branch of international law that has been left unaffected by significant advances in modern technology in recent years. In the context of armed conflict, these advances could have far-reaching consequences for the application of not only established rules of international humanitarian law, but also of the rules of international criminal law or the rules governing international responsibility. Many States are currently devoting their attention as well as resources to the development of highly sophisticated weapon systems with autonomous functions, the control of which is being increasingly transferred from human operators to computer systems. These Autonomous Weapon Systems (AWS) have the potential to affect profoundly the nature of future armed conflicts. Although these systems are no longer a novelty at the international scene, they continue to cause tensions and provoke divisive reactions amongst the international community. This dissertation aspires to provide a comprehensive insight into the development and use of AWS in the context of armed conflict. The dissertation has six parts. The first part clarifies the basic terminology relating to AWS and explains how autonomy in the context of a weapon system...
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Obligations erga omnes as a basis of legal standing in international law
Mais, Jan ; Lipovský, Milan (advisor) ; Bílková, Veronika (referee)
Obligations Erga Omnes as a Basis of Legal Standing in International Law ABSTRACT Obligations erga omnes represent the norms protecting the most fundamental interests in international law. Despite their longstanding presence, some aspects of these obligations remain unclear. The thesis aims to determine whether it is possible to enforce these norms by invoking responsibility for their breach before international courts and tribunals, specifically before the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The primary objective is to determine whether obligations erga omnes and their treaty counterparts, obligations erga omnes partes, effectively establish legal standing in ICJ proceedings. To achieve this aim, the thesis comprehensively examines the emergence of obligations erga omnes, their relationship with jus cogens, and their role in safeguarding community interests in order to situate the studied notion in the framework of law of international responsibility. By analysing the ICJ's case law, Judge opinions, the work of the International Law Commission, and prominent scholarly contributions, the study investigates how States' interest in protecting obligations erga omnes (partes) translates into the ability to invoke responsibility for their breaches through judicial proceedings. The analysis reveals that...
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Rights of transgender persons according to the ECHR with focus on sex reassignment
Šebková, Karolina ; Lipovský, Milan (advisor) ; Honusková, Věra (referee)
Rights of transgender persons according to the ECHR with focus on sex reassignment Abstract Although trans* people, regardless of the specifics of their life experience, are full-fledged members of society, society puts numerous obstacles in their way. Some of them are so serious that they are considered to be a violation of basic human rights. This paper therefore deals with the rights of trans* people from the perspective of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). How this international instrument perceives such rights is ascertained through practice of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). The research goal of the work is to find out and analyze how the rights of trans* people are protected by international human rights law through the ECHR, i.e. how these rights are protected by the European Court of Human Rights. Furthermore, as part of the legal analysis, provide a basic overview of trans* people as a group and focus on the concept of "sex reassignment" and its problematic side. To this end, the author poses a research question: How does the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms protect the rights of trans* people and how does the European Court of Human Rights approach their protection? The thesis mainly focuses on the issue of legal recognition...
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The Status of Nuclear Weapons under International Law
Maier Tolic, Gabriela Maria ; Lipovský, Milan (advisor) ; Karlas, Jan (referee)
Bibliographic Note MAIER TOLIC, Gabriela Maria. The Status of Nuclear Weapons under International Law. Prague, 2023. 99 pages. Political Studies. Department of International Relations. Supervisor JUDr. Milan Lipovský, Ph.D. Abstract Both the complex system of international law and the disputed interpretation thereof in the realm of nuclear weapons create challenges when making a clear assessment of when and whether the possession, threat and use of nuclear weapons are legal. This research aims to provide clarity on these issues by completing an analysis on the current state of international law and by outlining which conditions need to be fulfilled by states for the legal possession, threat and use of nuclear weapons. The presented study finds that the system of international law is set out in such a manner which aims to eliminate nuclear weapons completely. The obligation for disarmament in the treaty on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons conditions the possession of nuclear weapons and places two requirements on nuclear weapon states: to pursue negotiations on disarmement in good faith and to bring them to a conclusion. This research finds that there is a strong argument that this twofold obligation is of customary nature and is therefore also binding upon states which are not party to the treaty....
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The Influence of EU Common Investment Policy on the System of International Investment Law
Svoboda, Ondřej ; Lipovský, Milan (referee)
1 The Influence of EU Common Investment Policy on the System of International Investment Law Abstract Extending exclusive European Union (EU) competence to foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Lisbon Treaty has had profound implications. The EU began to develop its own investment policy, including negotiating either international investment agreements or comprehensive trade and investment agreements with third parties. Taking into account the magnitude of the EU economy and the fact that EU Member States have concluded almost 1 400 bilateral investment treaties (BITs) out of roughly 3 300 in force worldwide, the potential of European influence over the system of international investment, based principally on BITs, is enormous. The aim of this dissertation is to assess how and in which way the new EU competence changes the system. The EU investment policy has developed a specific approach towards investment protection and investment dispute mechanism which does not envision content declared at its beginning. According to initial documents such as the European Commission's Communication Towards a comprehensive European international investment policy, the Union should have followed the available best practices of the Member States. Nevertheless, during the first bilateral negotiations with Canada and...
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Crime of Aggression under the Rome Statute of International Criminal Court
Voženílková, Tereza ; Lipovský, Milan (advisor) ; Flídrová, Eliška (referee)
1 Crime of Aggression under the Rome Statute of International Criminal Court, abstract Recent events in the world show that cyber-attacks can constitute one of the greatest threats to international peace and security. Cyber operations occurring in cyberspace present unique challenges to the international community beyond the scope of existing international law. While there is a consensus that international law should apply to cyberspace, perspectives on the qualification of cyber-attacks as the most serious crimes falling under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court remain divided. This paper discusses the definition of the crime of aggression under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court with a special focus on cyber-attacks. The aim of this paper is to answer the question whether cyber-attacks can be considered a crime of aggression under the Rome Statute. The first chapter discusses the historical development and the rather complicated process of adopting the definition of the crime of aggression over the years. The second chapter describes the various elements of the crime of aggression and the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court and the Security Council over this crime. The definition of cyber- attacks and their difference from conventional attacks is discussed...
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Indigenous Peoples' Land Rights in Latin America
Černota, Nela ; Lipovský, Milan (referee)
Indigenous Peoples' Land Rights in Latin America Indigenous peoples' cultures are known for their collective, spiritual, intergenerational relationship to their ancestral lands. Indigenous peoples not only depend on their territories with their subsistence but also with the preservation of their distinct cultures. Lands are, however, a significant factor in the vast human rights violations to which they subject. They are often faced with the dispossession of their traditional lands and the disruption of the ecological integrity of their territories. This also affects their traditional way of life and leads to the loss of their cultures. From the 1980s, indigenous peoples have started reclaiming their rights, which has also been reflected in their position under international law. In 1989, the International Labour Organisation Convention No. 169, the Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention was adopted. This Convention anchored significantly higher standards of protection of indigenous peoples' rights to their lands. Above all, it abandoned the patriarchal approach of the International Labour Organisation's Convention No. 107, the Indigenous and Tribal Populations Convention. Convention No. 169, moreover, addresses indigenous peoples as 'peoples' rather than 'populations', as was the case in its...
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Patterns of democracy and human rights - An analysis of the relationship between changes in democracy and human rights at the European Court of Human Rights
D'Andrea, Giada ; Lipovský, Milan (advisor) ; Plechanovová, Běla (referee)
Since the very beginning, the European Court of Human Rights has suffered from a systemic issue: case overload. And despite the continuous reforms of the Convention system, a final solution seems still quite far from being achieved. Despite the focus of researchers and practitioners on this topic, few have investigated the relationship between the internal mechanisms of the states and their consequences on the backlog of the Court. This thesis offers insights over the relationship between the democratic status of a country and the proceedings before the European Court of Human Rights. It analyses the development of the Court from 1959 until 2021, finding that the reforms put in place by the Court along the years seem to have sorted only a minor effect in reducing the backlog of applications. Second, the panel study between 2000 and 2021 revealed that the democratic status of a country has a significant and negative relationship with the number of applications per capita filed to the Court. Lastly, the qualitative study shows the lack of a clear pattern among the democratic score of a country and the type of violations committed. However, through this last method a new pattern appears. There seems to be a negative relationship between the democratic score of a country and the share of violations...
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Definition of Genocide in Modern Times
Alikalfic, Iskra ; Lipovský, Milan (advisor) ; Blažková, Adéla (referee)
Genocide is a crime unlike others and with the help of the 1948 Genocide Convention and its definition, it has received acknowledgement as its own crime in international law. The thesis takes us through Article II of the Genocide Convention analyzing the different elements that make up the definition. The aim of the thesis was to analyze the sustainability and applicability of the definition with the usage of various cases, further examining if the definition is suitable for modern times international law and politics. Accordingly, various relevant international relations concepts were discussed such as, globalization and its backlash and well as power politics. The topic is extremely relevant and crucial in our world today because there are various cases which are not acknowledged under the Genocide Convention due to the restrictions of the genocide definition. Among those are cases concerning groups that are subject to large hate and discrimination, and are not protected under the definition but satisfy all other elements of the crime. Through the discussion of the definition's elements, various cases from the ICTY, ICTR, and the ICJ were pulled in order to showcase the concluding arguments. Amongst those cases was The Prosecutor v. Akayesu, The Prosecutor v. Mladić as well as the Application of...
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Positive obligations of state arising from Art. 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights focusing on persons with physical or mental handicap
Pastorek, Štěpán ; Faix, Martin (advisor) ; Lipovský, Milan (referee)
Positive obligations of state arising from Art. 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights focusing on persons with disabilities Absolute prohibition of torture and ill-treatment is clearly set in article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights. When assessing particular obligations, which are arising out of it, we need to look deep into the European Court of Human Rights jurisprudence. The aim of this thesis is to analyse positive obligations of state arising from article 3 focusing on persons with disabilities. This is achieved also with the aid of various human right bodies such as UN Human Rights Committee, UN Committee on Torture or UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Due to the fact that this area is not really covered yet, certain parts of this thesis are focused on defining important terms and putting them together. The approach is analytic with elements of comparison between the view of European Court of Human Rights and other relevant international human rights bodies. The thesis is composed of three main chapters. Chapter One is introductory and defines the main terms such as ill-treatment, torture, scope of the article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights in connection with rights of persons with disabilities and the concept of positive obligations...
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