Individuals and Institutions Under International Law

Session Submission Type: In-Person Full Paper Panel

Session Description

International law has increasingly recognized individuals not only as rights-holders, but also as duty-holders. Individuals may be subject to prosecution under international criminal law for committing certain crimes like genocide or crimes against humanity, while actors involved in political violence may be obligated to follow laws of armed conflict. This panel features papers that consider the role of individual accountability under international law on actors’ behavior. Papers on this panel examine why individuals, be they political leaders or rebel fighters, appeal to international law, as well as the role of the International Criminal Court in facilitating peace and promoting human rights. Altogether, they represent the intellectual pluralism of the discipline: these papers come from both comparative politics and international relations, feature quantitative and qualitative methods, and draw insights from both constructivist and rationalist theoretical frameworks.

Sub Unit

• Division 17: International Collaboration

Cosponsor

• Division 21: Conflict Processes

Individual Presentations

• Threats and Commitments: International Criminal Tribunals and Peace Negotiations - Genevieve Bates, University of British Columbia

• The Hidden Impacts of the ICC: An Assessment Using Google Data - Geoff Dancy, Tulane University

• Shadowland Strategy: How Non-State Armed Actors Fight for their Rights - Hyeran Jo, Texas A&M University

• The Politics of Punishment: Why Non-Democracies Join the ICC - Leslie Johns, University of California, Los Angeles; Francesca Parente, Christopher Newport University

Discussants

• Geoffrey P.R. Wallace University of Washington

• Julia C. Morse University of California, Santa Barbara