Human inequality puts sovereign equality to the test

The international community is facing a dilemma: how to deal with its responsibilities to protect the integrity of the state, on the one hand, and human dignity, on the other. The tensions between sovereign equality and human equality have become inherent in international law, they will continue to shape and reshape international organisation. The qualification of sovereign equality will surely continue by the pressures of human inequality; international law and organisation will have to advance however in a way that reconciles the dual foundations and their inherent tensions. The values of order and justice both have to be served globally as well as domestically, (international) law cannot escape this dual function.

This author, Janne E. Nijman, is an associate professor of public international law at the Department of European and International Law and a senior research fellow of the Amsterdam Center for International Law (ACIL).

The article was published in The Broker, an online platform aiming to enrich the analyses of the relationship between security and development – in both theory and policy practice, and from the perspective of local, national, regional and global realities. Gaining a better understanding of this relationship and offering new perspectives on it are sorely needed. To improve political and policy approaches to the complex conflicts of the 21st century, and to advance human well-being in conflict-ridden places.

The Broker Online 2013

The Broker is an independent platform and online magazine on globalisation and development, bringing together cutting-edge knowledge and expert opinions from researchers, policymakers and practitioners. The Broker acts as an intermediary between knowledge networks, ‘brokering’ global development knowledge to inform practitioners and provide new and integrated perspectives on current global policy issues.