COURSE MANUAL

Public International Law

Spring 2024
Academic Year 2023 -2024
B.A., LL. B/B.B.A, LL.B – 2021

From: Joe Sacco, The Hague in Journalism

Course Instructors:
Aashish Yadav, Abhimanyu Singh, Abhishek Rana, Akmal Handi Ansari, Akshata A.
Ahire, Anuj Chand, Biswanath Gupta, Neha Singh, Piergiuseppe Pusceddu, Pratik
Purswani, Sanitya Kalika, Srinjoy Sarkar 1

1
Course Coordinator
 Jindal Global Law School, Spring 2023

O. P. JINDAL GLOBAL UNIVERSITY

PART - I

General Information

General Information on Public International Law, offered by Jindal Global Law School
(JGLS) for Spring 2024 in the Academic Year 2023-2024

The following information contains the official record of the details of the course.

This document is illustrative and contains general guidelines and readings for the course.
The instructor retains the right to modify the course (without tampering its basic
framework and objectives) for its effective implementation and reception.

Course Title: Public International Law

Course Code: L-CT-0024

Course Duration: One Semester (15 weeks)

Number of credits: 4

Level: Five Year Degree Programme

Medium of Instruction: English

Pre-requisites: Nil

Equivalent courses: Nil

A note of acknowledgements

This course manual has been finalized by the course instructors who are grateful to the
previous instructors of the course at JGLS on whose work this manual has been
incrementally built over semesters. The course instructors would also like to thank
Aditya Roy, Amlan Mishra, Farhan Ahmad, Raghavi Vishwanath, Shubhangi
Agarwalla, Swati Singh Parmar, and some good people of Twitter-verse for their
comments, inputs, and suggestions. Besides that, the course instructors would also like
to thank the people behind course manuals of other law schools in India and beyond that
they could refer.

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PART II

a. Course Description
In times of today, it’s tough to, especially for law students, to have not heard of public
international law and have some views on it. Often, not without reason.

Considering this, some of the biggest resistance one faces with public international law
teaching in India is the skepticism that comes with it - around its operability (and, thus
effectiveness of implementation), relatability or even its existence. 2 To that end, we hope
that this course gives one an avenue to understand, and appreciate if public international
law “exists”, and much like (or unlike) domestic law, how it has implications on everyday
experiences3 particularly in spaces that we inhabit (accounting both for our positions of
privilege and the lack of it)4 - sometimes in ways hard to imagine or relate to.5 Take for
instance, COVID: be it the causes, the crisis, the vaccination policy – international law
interacts with each of this. Even many things that we see as “internal” issues (or are made
to see so) in today’s world!6

This, of course, is not to romanticize the relevance of international law. While not losing
sight of the point above, the course does not want to ignore how international law has a
questionable history, how the law plays out (in terms of its making, in terms of its
effectiveness, or how its practice, like any discipline of law, responds to power), or how
universal it is, or even how aware are its practitioners of its own shortcomings.

2
See Rohini Sen, “International Law in Indian Law Schools - What remains invisible?” (December 2020)
available at: http://rsrr.in/2020/12/24/international-law-in-indian-law-schools/#_ftnref23 (Rohini Sen)
3
A Conversation with Luis Eslava: International Law and Everyday Life (Part I, II, and III) available at:
https://internationallawandtheglobalsouth.com/a-conversation-with-luis-eslava-international-law-and-
everyday-life-part-i-of-iii/; Also see, ASIL, International Law: 100 ways it shapes our lives (2018) available
at: https://www.asil.org/sites/default/files/100Ways/100Ways.pdf.
4
See graphic art by Mohsen al Attar, and Mia Koning titled “Education for Emancipation”, 3 Trade L. &
Dev. 257 (2011); Srinivas Burra, Teaching Critical International Law: Reflections from the Periphery,March
2021 available at: https://twailr.com/teaching-critical-international-law-reflections-from-the-
periphery/#easy-footnote-2-3588
5
See Rohini Sen: “Students in India understand international law to either be a ‘boutique subject’ or one
that leads to ‘being employed at the United Nations’ and hence, outside the immediate domain of
relevance. Any benefit of the subject for the outcome-oriented law student lies in academic opportunities
and scholarship. And, the scope of participation in the motions of International Organizations, are usually
perceived as far removed from their ecosystem. This ‘deficit’ of international law teaching-learning is not
just located in a ‘lack of relatability’ for students. It is deeply rooted in how international law is
constructed, taught and understood in these places.” Antony Anghie, “Critical Pedagogy Symposium:
Criticial Thinking and Teaching as Common Sense- Random Reflections”, (Augiust 2020) OpinioJuris,
available at http://opiniojuris.org/2020/08/31/critical-pedagogy-symposium-critical-thinking-and-
teaching-as-common-sense-random-reflections/; See, Gerry Simpson, On the Magic Mountain: Teaching
Public International Law, EJIL 10 (1999), 70–92 available at: http://www.ejil.org/pdfs/10/1/579.pdf.
6
See Rohini Sen, Ibid on the insides, and the outsides of international law.

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 Jindal Global Law School, Spring 2023

Sum of it all - as people who have landed to learn law (by choice or otherwise), some
working knowledge of international law that this course aims at will surely help us be
familiar with a vocabulary that has become very pervasive, 7 and help one be better
equipped to look and respond to things around. Also, considering the number of myths
around international law, we really hope this course will give us a good time to both learn
and “unlearn” things about it.

To that end, this course is a modest start. The course introduces the basic understanding
of public international law, focusing on nature, sources, and subjects of international law,
and touches upon concepts of state sovereignty, state recognition, jurisdiction, state
responsibility and state succession. While doing this, it attempts to introduce and critique
some of the principles that supposedly form the bedrock of modern international law:
such as equal rights and self- determination of peoples; sovereign equality of states; non-
use of force; peaceful settlement of disputes; non-intervention; good faith etc. Towards
the later part of the course, the course also aims to cover dispute settlement mechanisms
which includes diplomatic means of dispute settlement as well as judicial means. It also
attempts to introduce other international tribunals and courts.

Though interspersed through the modules, in the concluding week the course aims to
actively reflect on the critical study of international law that actively breaks from reading
international law that has conditioned imperialism, patriarchy, capitalism, and other
forms of hegemony into it.8

b. Course Aims

By the end of the course students should be able to:

● Understand and apply the sources of public international law.

● Understand the nature of the international legal system, actors in the international
legal system and the concept of international legal personality.
● Understand and apply methods, theories and doctrines of traditional/mainstream
interpretations of PIL and be aware of the critiques advanced by Third World
Approaches to International Law (TWAIL), feminist critiques and other CLS lenses.

7
Luis Eslava, Public International Law – Syllabus available at:
https://www.academia.edu/8220302/Public_International_Law_Syllabus.
8
A wider focus could have indeed been better but as Antony Anghie (Critical Pedagogy Symposium: Critical
Thinking and Teaching as Common Sense—Random Reflections available at:
http://opiniojuris.org/2020/08/31/critical-pedagogy-symposium-critical-thinking-and-teaching-as-
common-sense-random-reflections/), and Ata R Hindi (A Palestinian Perspective on Teaching
International Law, available at: https://twailr.com/a-palestinian-perspective-on-teaching-international-
law/) point out – there has to be some balance between cannon and critique. This is just a start, and some
chipping away has been made possible. As Christine Schwobel-Patel says, “Decolonising is a process and
we will never have a 'finished' product” (See,
https://twitter.com/CSchwobelPatel/status/1317053712733536256). Hopefully, we will make more
changes as we move along.

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● Understand how PIL operates in practice. That is, how it is applied in litigation and
in legal opinions provided to States, international organisations and non-
governmental organisations (NGOs)
● Have a working knowledge of the relationship between PIL and the domestic legal
systems, in particular, the Indian legal system
● Understand the manner in which disputes between States can be resolved peacefully
within the framework of PIL
● Have knowledge of the jurisdiction and selected jurisprudence of the International
Court of Justice and other relevant international courts and tribunals
● Apply PIL to current affairs – particularly ones closer home, and develop critical
awareness on how such affairs impact international law 9;

c. Intended Learning Outcomes

Intended Learning Weight Teaching and Assessment

Outcomes Learning Tasks/ Activities
Activities
Analytically and critically 50% Reading of End-of-course
describe and explain relevant course examination (50%
important legal concepts, materials and of marks)
doctrines associated with
cases in addition
different streams of public
international law especially to involving Internal 50% will be
the topics to be covered in the themselves in decided for each
syllabus. research section by the faculty
concerned
Students will
acquire knowledge Students’ ability to
on public describe, explain
international law and apply the
general principles of
in general.
international Law to
Particularly gain the given factual
familiarity with situation will be
doctrines/ tested by assessment
concepts tasks/activities.
associated with
different streams
of public
international law

9
See, International Law and Current Affairs Syllabus by Christine Schwöbel-Patel available at:
https://www.academia.edu/30732582/INTERNATIONAL_LAW_IN_CURRENT_AFFAIRS_syllabus_2
018

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covered in the
syllabus through:

1. Lectures

Students will be
given guidance on
their reading and
research for their
lectures and
tutorials.

2. Discussions
and Assignments

Students will, by
responding to
questions and
performing
exercises, develop
their analytical
and critical
capabilities to
discuss important
issues on Public
International Law.
Analyse and critically Variable Lectures Same as above.
evaluate fundamental issues weight (at Students will be
and concerns in the field of faculty introduced to
public international law discretion issues and
, for each concerns and
The competing entitlements section aspects of Public
available in international law- taught) International Law

● the emergence of new

concepts and their Assignments and
implications in Preparation for
relation to change in theses:
the content of law Assignments will
● the new be weaved in ways
jurisprudential where students
thinking on the social scrutinise, analyse
and evaluate

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roots of International issues and

Law concerns in the
field of Public
International Law.
Apply different aspects of Variable Lectures Same as above
international law to weight (at Students will be
contemporary problems by: faculty shown how legal
discretion problems can be
● researching issues in , for each approached from
international law; section various rules of
● analysing and taught) international law
innovating to resolve by citing
problems concerning appropriate case
issues in international laws and conduct
law; and of States.
● communicating their
solutions orally and in Assignments and
writing clearly, Preparation for
coherently, and theses:
accurately. Assignments will
be weaved in ways
to attain the
outcome.

d. Grading of Student Achievement 10,11

To pass this course, students must obtain a minimum of 40% in the

cumulative aspects of coursework, for example, moot, and final
examination. End of semester exam will carry 50 marks out of which
students have to obtain a minimum of 15 marks to fulfil the requirement of
passing the course.
The details of the grades as well as the criteria for awarding such grades are provided
below.

10
Under extraordinary circumstances, the JGU Academic Council or the JGU Deans’ Council can suspend
Clause D or make it optional. If Clause D is suspended, the policy which will be framed by the School based
on the decision of the said bodies will supersede Clause D. However, whether a situation is extraordinary
or not will be decided by the said bodies only.
11
Due to the COVID 19 pandemic, the Office of Academic Affairs may suggest changes/amendments or
suspend certain policies relating to the number of assessments and other examination related policies.

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Letter Grade Percentage

Grade Definitions
Grade Value Of marks

Outstanding work with strong

evidence of knowledge of the
subject matter, excellent
O 8 80% and above Outstanding organizational capacity, ability
to synthesize and critically
analyse and originality in
thinking and presentation.
Sound knowledge of the subject
matter, thorough understanding
A+ 7.5 75 to 79.75% Excellent
of issues; ability to synthesize
critically and analyse
Good understanding of the
subject matter, ability to identify
A 7 70 to 74.75% Good issues and provide balanced
solutions to problems and good
critical and analytical skills.
Adequate knowledge of the
subject matter to go to the next
A- 6 65 to 69.75% Adequate
level of study and reasonable
critical and analytical skills.
Limited knowledge of the subject
matter, irrelevant use of
B+ 5 60 to 64.75% Marginal
materials and poor critical and
analytical skills.
Poor comprehension of the
subject matter; poor critical and
B 4 55 to 59.75% Poor
analytical skills and marginal use
of the relevant materials.
“Pass” in a pass-fail course. “P”
indicative of at least the basic
B- 3 50 to 54.75% Pass
understanding of the subject
matter.
Pass 1: Pass with Basic
P1 2 45 to 49% Pass 1 understanding of the subject
matter.
Pass 2: Pass with Rudimentary
P2 1 40 to 44% Pass 2 understanding of the subject
matter.
Fail: Poor comprehension of the
F 0 Below 40% Fail
subject matter; poor critical and

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analytical skills and marginal use

of the relevant materials. Will
require repeating the course.

NEW COURSE LETTER GRADES AND THEIR INTERPRETATION

Letter Percentage Grade
Interpretation
Grade of Marks Points
Pass 1: Pass with Basic understanding of the
P1 45 - 49 2
subject matter.
Pass2: Pass with Rudimentary
P2 40 - 44 1
understanding of the subject matter.
Fail: Poor comprehension of the subject matter;
poor critical and analytical skills and
F Below 40 0
marginal use of the relevant materials. Will
require repeating the course.
‘P’ represents the option of choosing between
Pass/Fail grading system over the CGPA grading
system in the COVID 19 semester in Spring
P Pass
2020. The option is provided when students
attain a minimum of 40 percentage marks under
the current grading structure in a given subject.
Extenuating circumstances preventing the
student from completing coursework
assessment, or taking the examination; or where
the Assessment Panel at its discretion assigns
I Incomplete
this grade. If an "I" grade is assigned, the
Assessment Panel will suggest a schedule for the
completion of work, or a supplementary
examination.

PART - III

a. Keyword Syllabus

International Law, Public International Law, International Legal Theory, Critical Approaches to
International Law

b. Course/Class Policies

Academic Integrity and Plagiarism

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Learning and knowledge production of any kind is a collaborative process. Collaboration

demands an ethical responsibility to acknowledge who we have learnt from, what we have
learnt, and how reading and learning from others have helped us shape our own ideas.
Even our own ideas demand an acknowledgement of the sources and processes through
which those ideas have emerged. Thus, all ideas must be supported by citations. All ideas
borrowed from articles, books, journals, magazines, case laws, statutes, photographs,
films, paintings, etc., in print or online, must be credited with the original source. If the
source or inspiration of your idea is a friend, a casual chat, something that you overheard,
or heard being discussed at a conference or in class, even they must be duly credited. If
you paraphrase or directly quote from a web source in the examination, presentation or
essays, the source must be acknowledged. The university has a framework to deal with
cases of plagiarism. All forms of plagiarism will be taken seriously by the University and
prescribed sanctions will be imposed on those who commit plagiarism.

Disability Support and Accommodation Requirements

JGU endeavors to make all its courses accessible to students. All students with any known
disability needing academic accommodation are required to register with the Disability
Support Committee [email protected]. The Committee has so far identified the following
conditions that could possibly hinder student’s overall well-being. These include: physical
and mobility related difficulties; visual impairment; hearing impairment; medical
conditions; specific learning difficulties e.g. dyslexia; mental health.

The Disability Support Committee maintains strict confidentiality on the matters under
its purview. Students should preferably register with the Committee during the month of
June/January as disability accommodation requires early planning. DSC will coordinate
all disability related services such as appointment of academic mentors, arranging
infrastructural facilities, and course related requirements such as special lectures,
tutorials and examinations.

All faculty members are requested to refer students with any of the above-mentioned
conditions to the Disability Support Committee for getting them disability-related
accommodation. Faculty members are also requested to be sensitive to the needs of such
students and cooperate with Disability Support Committee and the School, extending
students the necessary support by maintaining utmost confidentiality of the matter

Safe Space Pledge

This course may discuss a range of issues and events that might result in distress for some
students. Discussions in the course might also provoke strong emotional responses. To
make sure that all students collectively benefit from the course, and do not feel disturbed
due to either the content of the course or the conduct of the discussions. Therefore, it is
incumbent upon all within the classroom to pledge to maintain respect towards our peers.

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This does not mean that you need to feel restrained about what you feel and what you
want to say. Conversely, this is about creating a safe space where everyone can speak and
learn without inhibitions and fear. This responsibility lies not only with students, but also
with the instructor.

P.S. The course instructor, as part of introducing the course manual, will discuss the scope
of the Safe Space Pledge with the class.

Policies around attendance, teaching plan and methodology, internal assessments,

office hours, use of gadgets etc. will be set by the faculty teaching the relevant section.

PART - IV

WEEKLY COURSE OUTLINE WITH READINGS

Week Topic and Description Reading Materials

1 Introduction to Basic reading:
International Law
● Jan Klabbers, International Law, Cambridge (2013),
• Initial questions Chapter 1 - “The Setting of International Law”
• What does public ● Charter of the United Nations, 1945, Articles 1, 2
international law cover? ● Declaration on Principles of International Law
(the inside and the concerning Friendly Relations and Co- operation
outside) among States in accordance with the Charter of the
• Why “public”? Why United Nations, 1970, United Nations General
“international”? Assembly Resolution 2625 (XXV) of 24 October 1970.
• Is it law? What are the
main characteristics of Recommended readings and sources:
the normative structure?
• Why should we care ● Rohini Sen, International Law in Indian Law Schools
about international law? - What remains invisible? (December 2020) available
• What all does it touch? & at: http://rsrr.in/2020/12/24/international-law-in-
Who all does it touch? indian-law-schools/#_ftnref23
• Who makes the law? ● Anthony Anghie, History, and International Law
How does it work? (December 2016),
• Questions about the nature https://legal.un.org/avl/ls/Anghie_IL.html
& development of ● Monica Hakimi, Why Should We Care About
International Law International Law?, 118 Mich. L. Rev. 1283 (2020)
• Basic introduction and available at:
critique to common https://repository.law.umich.edu/mlr/vol118/iss6/1
principles: equal rights and 7
self- determination of ● HLA Hart, The Concept of Law, Chapter- X, pp. 208-
peoples; sovereign equality 31 (Also see, Mehrdad Payandeh, The Concept of
of states; non-use of force; International Law in the Jurisprudence of H.L.A.
peaceful settlement of
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disputes; non-intervention; Hart, European Journal of International Law, Volume

good faith; co-operation. 21, Issue 4, November 2010, Pages 967–995,
https://doi.org/10.1093/ejil/chq065)

2 Sources of International Basic readings:

Law - I
● Brief overview: Christopher Greenwood, ‘Sources of
● Overview of various sources International Law: An Introduction’ (2008)
of international law unpublished LSE notes, pages 1-5
● Treaties ● Alain Pellet, ‘Article 38’ in The Statute of the
○ Definition International Court of Justice: A Commentary (eds.
○ Conclusion A. Zimmermann, C. Tomuschat and K. Oellers-
○ Treaty-making Frahm), Oxford, 2006, p. 735 - 792
○ Signature ● Anthony D’Amato’s lecture on ‘Sources of
○ Ratification international law’ https://legal.un.org/avl/ls/D-
○ Accession Amato_IL.html
○ Reservations
○ Grounds for challenging Treaty provisions and cases:
○ Pacta sunt servanda
○ Termination ● Statute of the International Court of Justice, Article
38(1)
● Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties 1969,
available at:
http://legal.un.org/avl/ha/vclt/vclt.html
● Treaty Handbook, United Nations (Reprinted 2006)
available at:
https://treaties.un.org/doc/source/publications/T
HB/English.pdf
● Reservations to the Convention on the Prevention
and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, ICJ
Advisory Opinion, 1951 (pages 4-19)
● Gabčíkovo-Nagymaros Project (Hungary/Slovakia),
ICJ Judgment of 25 September 1997 (On
termination, paras 89-115)

3 Sources of International Basic readings:

Law- II
● Brief overview: Christopher Greenwood, ‘Sources of
● Customary international International Law: An Introduction’ (2008)
law unpublished LSE notes, pages 1-5
○ Two elements - state ● Gleider Hernandez, International Law (2nd ed),
practice and opinio juris Chapter 2 - Sources of International law (p. 31-44)
○ How to identify the ● Alain Pellet, ‘Article 38’ in The Statute of the
elements? International Court of Justice: A Commentary (eds.
○ Persistent objector A. Zimmermann, C. Tomuschat and K. Oellers-
○ Regional/local custom Frahm), Oxford, 2006, p. 735-792

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Cases and Opinions:

● The Case of the S.S. “Lotus” (France v Turkey), PCIJ,

1927 (page 28)
● Military and Paramilitary Activities in and against
Nicaragua (Nicaragua v. United States of America),
Merits, Judgment, 1986 pp. 97-102,108-109 (paras.
183-190, 193, 207).
● North Sea Continental Shelf Cases
(Netherlands/Germany) (Denmark/Germany),
1969, pp. 41-47 (paras. 70-80, 81, 85). [Also see,
Proclamation 2667, of September 28, 1945: Policy of
the United States with Respect to the Natural
Resources of the Subsoil and the Seabed of the
Continental Shelf:
https://www.gc.noaa.gov/documents/gcil_proc_2
667.pdf]
● Legality of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons,
Advisory Opinion ICJ 1996 (paras 65 to 73; along
with Dissenting Opinion of Judge Weeramantry)
● Right of Passage over Indian Territory (Portugal v.
India), Judgment of 12 April 1960 (pages 39-40,
along with Dissenting Opinion of Judge M.C.
Chagla, pages 119-120)
● Asylum Case (Colombia v. Peru), 1950 (pages 276-
278)

Recommended readings and sources:

● ILC Draft conclusions on identification of customary

international law with commentaries, 2018:
https://legal.un.org/docs/?path=../ilc/texts/instru
ments/english/commentaries/1_13_2018.pdf&lang
=EF
● First Report (April 2019) & Second Report (June
2020) ILC Reports on General Principles of
International Law:
https://legal.un.org/ilc/guide/1_15.shtml
● Michael P Scharf, Customary International Law in
Times of Fundamental Change: Recognizing Grotian
Moments, Chapter 3: Theoretical Underpinnings
(eds 2013)
● Anthony D'Amato, Trashing Customary
International Law, The American Journal of

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 Jindal Global Law School, Spring 2023

International Law, Vol. 81, No. 1 (January, 1987), pp.

101-105
● B. S. Chimni, ‘Customary International Law: A Third
World Perspective’, American Journal of
International Law, Volume 112, Issue 1, February
2004, Pages 1–46
● David Kennedy, ‘The Sources of International Law’
American University International Law Review
2(1) (1987): 1-96 available at:
https://digitalcommons.wcl.american.edu/auilr/vo
l2/iss1/1/

4 Sources of International Basic readings:

Law - III
● General Principles of Law ● Brief overview: Christopher Greenwood, ‘Sources of
● Judicial Decisions International Law: An Introduction’ (2008)
● Resolutions of International unpublished LSE notes, pages 1-5
Organizations ● Gleider Hernandez, International Law (2nd ed)
● Jus cogens & erga omnes o Chapter 2 - Sources of International law (p. 46-
● Hierarchy of Sources 57)
o Chapter 3 - Hierarchy of norms in international
law (58-77)

Cases:

● Barcelona Traction, Light and Power Company Case,

1970 ICJ (case summary and paras 3 & 33-35) [on
erga omnes]
● Application of the Convention on the Prevention and
Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (The Gambia
v Myanmar), Order of January 2020 (paras 39- 42;
also see Separate Opinion of Judge Xue paras 4-6)
[on erga omnes partes]
● Application of the Convention on the Prevention and
Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza
Strip (South Africa v. Israel), Order of 26 January
2024 (paras 33-34; also see Declaration of Judge
Xue para 4) [on erga omnes partes]

Recommended readings and sources:

● Hugo Thirlway, Specialities: Jus Cogens,

Obligations Erga Omnes, Soft Law, in The Sources of
International Law (2nd ed 2019)
5 International Legal Basic Readings:
Personality - I

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● James Crawford, ‘State’, Max Planck Encyclopedias

● Subjects of International of International Law [MPIL]
Law
● States as Traditional Treaties and Resolutions:
International Legal Persons
● Statehood ● Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of
● State Sovereignty States, 1933
● State Recognition ● UN General Assembly Resolution 67/19 on the
Question of Palestine (29 November 2012)
● UN Security Council, Official Records (Third Year;
No. 128; 2 December 1948) - discussion on Israel’s
membership to the UN, pages 8-14 (Jessup’s
submission)

Suggested case study:

● The Pint sized Nation of the English Coast:

https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive
/2019/08/sealand-outlaw-ocean-tiniest-
nation/596074/

Recommended readings and sources:

● Security Council debate on membership of Israel to

the UN:
https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/637527/files/S
_PV-383-EN.pdf (item 3)
● Arbitration Commission of the Conference on
Yugoslavia - Opinion 1, 2, 4 10: http://www.pf.uni-
lj.si/media/skrk_mnenja.badinterjeve.arbitrazne.k
omisije.1_.10.pdf
● Matthew Craven, and Rose Parfitt, Statehood, Self-
Determination and Recognition available at:
https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/132197302.pdf

6 International Legal Basic Readings:

Personality - II
● James Crawford, Brownlie's Principles of Public
● International Organizations International Law (9th Edition), Chapter 7 –
○ Definition International Organisations.
○ Rights and duties of IO ● Rosanna van Alebeek, ‘Diplomatic Immunity’ Max
under international law Planck Encyclopedias of International Law (MPIL)
● Diplomatic immunity (link)

Treaties and Cases:

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● Reparation for Injuries Suffered in the Service of the

United Nations, ICJ Advisory Opinion, April 1949
● UN Charter, Articles 104 and 105
● General Convention on the Privileges and
Immunities of the United Nations, Article 1
● Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations,
Articles 22, 23, 27, 29, 31, 34

Suggested Case Study:

● UN Concedes Role in Haiti Cholera Crisis, The Daily
Beast, August 17, 2016
http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2016/08/17
/u-n-admits-to-role-in-haiti-cholera-
outbreak.html?via=desktop&source=copyurl
● Yale Law School’s Transnational Development
Clinic’s report on “Peacekeeping without
Accountability: The United Nations’ responsibility
for the Haitian cholera epidemic”, Executive
Summary, pages 1-5
● Dapo Akande on the Devyani Khobragade incident,
Part 1 (link) and Part 3 (link), EJIL:Talk
● Fabia Veçoso, ‘International Law, Diplomatic
Immunity and Julian Assange’ Pursuit: University
of Melbourne, available at
https://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/internatio
nal-law-diplomatic-asylum-and-julian-assange

Recommended readings and sources:

● Article CVIII, of the Final Act of the Congress of

Vienna, 1815
● Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine,
Leaflet:
https://ccnr.eu/files/communication/flyerCCNR20
16_en.pdf
● Dapo Akande, ‘Ecuador Seeks to Confer Diplomatic
Status on Julian Assange: Does this Oblige the UK to
Allow Him to Leave the Embassy & Is the Matter
Headed to the ICJ?’ EJIL: Talk available
athttps://www.ejiltalk.org/does-ecuadors-
appointment-of-julian-assange-oblige-the-uk-to-
allow-him-to-leave-the-embassy-and-is-the-
matter-headed-to-the-icj/
● United States of America v. Devyani Khobragade
(Indictment), United States District Court, Southern

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District of New York

<https://www.justice.gov/sites/default/files/usao-
sdny/legacy/2015/03/25/Khobragade%2C%20Dev
yani%20Indictment.pdf>
● Anne Peters, Novel practice of the Security Council:
Wildlife poaching and trafficking as a threat to the
peace, February 2014 available at:
http://www.ejiltalk.org/novel-practice-of-the-
security-council-wildlife-poaching- and-trafficking-
as-a-threat-to-the-peace/
● Fleur Johns, Theorizing the Corporation in
International Law, in A. Orford, A. and F.
Hoffmann, The Oxford Handbook of the Theory of
International Law (OUP, 2016)

7-8 Self-determination Basic Readings:

● Internal self-determination ● Victor Kattan, Self-determination as ideology: The

● External self-determination Cold War, the end of empire, and the making of UN
● Remedial secession General Assembly Resolution 1514 (14 December
1960) available at:
http://victorkattan.com/work/self-determination-
as-ideology/
● International Human Rights Law: Cases, Materials,
Commentary by Olivier De Schutter, Chapter 7, part
5 (3rd eds)

Cases, Opinions, Treaty provisions, and Resolutions:

● UN Charter Article 1, Chapters XI-XIII

● Common Article 1 to ICCPR and ICESCR, and
Human Rights Council, General Comment 12
● UNGA Res 1514, 1541, 1803 and 2625
● Vienna Declaration and Action for Programme, 1993
available at:
https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pa
ges/vienna.aspx
● United Nations Declaration on the Rights of
Indigenous Peoples, 2007 available at:
https://www.un.org/development/desa/indigenous
peoples/declaration-on-the-rights-of-indigenous-
peoples.html
● Legal Consequences for States of the Continued
Presence of South Africa in Namibia (South-West
Africa) Notwithstanding Security Council

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Resolution 276 (1970), Advisory Opinion of 21 June

1971, (para 52)
● Accordance with International Law of the Unilateral
Declaration of Independence in Respect of Kosovo,
ICJ Advisory Opinion of 22 July 2010 (case
summary along with Separate Opinion Judge Yusuf,
para 16)
● Legal Consequences of the Construction of a Wall in
the Occupied Palestinian Territory, 2004 (paras, 88,
119 to 122, and 159)
● Legal Consequences of the Separation of the Chagos
Archipelago from Mauritius in 1965, Advisory
Opinion of 25 February 2019 (paras 132-182)
● Supreme Court of Canada – Reference re Secession
of Quebec
● St UNGA request from 19 January 2023 (public
hearing on 19 February 2024)

Suggested Case Studies:

● The Legal Status of Palestine

o Victor Kattan, A critical assessment of the
Government of Israel’s memorandum to the ICC
(January 2020) – Part I (available at:
https://www.ejiltalk.org/a-critical-assessment-of-
the-government-of-israels-memorandum-to-the-
icc-part-i/)and Part II
(https://www.ejiltalk.org/a-critical-assessment-
of-the-government-of-israels-memorandum-to-
the-icc-part-ii)
o Victor Kattan, Muddying the Waters: A Reply to
Kay and Kern on the Statehood of Palestine and the
ICC – Part I, Part II and Muddying the Waters Still
Further: A Response to Steven Kay and Joshua
Kern, August 2020 available at:
http://opiniojuris.org/author/victor-kattan/
● Bougainville Explained: How the world’s newest
country might bloom out of protests against a copper
mine:
https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/boug
ainville-explained-how-the-worlds-newest-country-
might-bloom-out-of-protests-against-a-copper-
mine-6132284/

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Recommended readings and sources:

● Shrimoyee Nandini Ghosh, Acknowledging the

‘question of self-determination’ that OHCHR
Kashmir report raises will be path-breaking, June
2018 available at:
https://www.theleaflet.in/acknowledging-the-
question-of-kashmiri-self-determination-ohchr-
report-path-breaking/
● Matthew Craven, and Rose Parfitt, Statehood, Self-
Determination and Recognition available at:
https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/132197302.pdf
● Life is Waiting: Referendum and Resistance in
Western Sahara | Documentary available at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QzRzm4uFx
U
● Vasuki Nesiah, Placing International Law: White
Spaces on a Map (Leiden Journal of International
Law2003) available at:
https://www.academia.edu/6937435/Placing_Inte
rnational_Law_White_Spaces_on_a_Map
● Bangladesh: See, Ved P. Nanda, Self-Determination
in International Law: The Tragic Tale of Two Cities-
-Islamabad (West Pakistan) and Dacca (East
Pakistan), The American Journal of International
Law Vol. 66, No. 2 (Apr., 1972), pp. 321-336.
● Tibet: Surya P Subedi, 'The Right of Self-
determination and the Tibetan People' in Dino.
Kritsiosis (ed), Self-determination: Cases of Crisis

9 Settlement of Basic Readings:

International Disputes -
International Court of ● Basis of the Court’s jurisdiction: https://www.icj-
Justice cij.org/basis-of-jurisdiction
● Jurisdiction of the ICJ
○ Contentious jurisdiction Cases, Opinions, Treaty provisions, and other material:
○ Advisory jurisdiction
● UN Charter: Articles 2(3), 33, 36-38, 92, 94, 96
● Statute of the International Court of Justice: Articles
34, 36
● UN General Assembly Resolution 49/75K:
https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/193267?ln=en
or https://www.icj-cij.org/public/files/case-
related/95/7646.pdf
● Norwegian Loans Case: official summary
● Nicaragua vs USA: focus on the Jurisdiction phase

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o Jurisdiction Phase
o Nicaragua’s optional clause declaration, 1929
o President Truman’s Optional Clause Declaration,
1948
o George Shultz Amendment, 1984

Recommended readings and sources:

● John Collier & Vaughan Lowe, The Settlement of

Disputes in International Law: Institutions &
Procedures, Oxford University Press (2000),
Chapter 7, 8

10 Use of Force & Law of Basic Readings:

Armed Conflict:
● International Law Association Final Report on Use
● Jus ad bellum of Force (2018) available at https://www.ila-
● International law governing hq.org/images/ILA/DraftReports/DraftReport_Us
prohibition of use of force eOfForce.pdf
● Exceptions to Prohibition ● Dapo Akande, Prohibition and Exception:
○ Self-defence: necessity https://legal.un.org/avl/ls/Akande_PS.html (both
and proportionality lectures)
○ Individual and collective ● Adil Ahmad Haque, The United Nations Charter at
self-defence 75: Between Force and Self-Defense — Part One and
○ Attack by non-state Part Two (June 2020) available at:
actors and right to self- https://www.justsecurity.org/70985/the-united-
defence nations-charter-at-75-between-force-and-self-
○ Pre-emptive and defense-part-one/ and
anticipatory self-defence https://www.justsecurity.org/70987/the-united-
○ Humanitarian nations-charter-at-75-between-force-and-self-
intervention defense-part-two/
○ R2P doctrine

Treaty provisions, Resolutions, relevant Cases and

incidents:

● UN Charter: Article 2, and Chapter VII

● UNGA Resolution 2625
● UNSC Resolutions 217, 253, 660, 661, 678, 1368 and
1973
● Caroline incident of 1837, Communications
available at:
https://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/br-
1842d.asp

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● Legality of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons,

Advisory Opinion ICJ 1996 (case summary, and para
41-42, 47)
● Military and Paramilitary Activities in Nicaragua
(Merits), ICJ 1986 (paras 187-201, 227-238)
● Oil Platforms (Iran v USA), ICJ 2003 (paras 50-77)
● Armed Activities on the Territory of the Congo (DRC
v. Uganda), ICJ 2005 (case summary and para 143)
● Legal Consequences of the Construction of a Wall in
the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Advisory
Opinion ICJ 2004 (paras 138-141; also see summary
of the separate opinion of Judge Koogimans,
Koroma and Higgins, and Declaration of Judge
Buergenthal)
● Report of the Independent Commission on
Intervention and State Sovereignty, The
Responsibility to Protect, 2001, Chapters 1, 2, and 4

Recommended readings and sources:

● Chatham House: Principles of International Law on

the Use of Force by States in Self Defence, 2005
available at:
https://www.chathamhouse.org/sites/default/files
/publications/research/2005-10-01-use-force-
states-self-defence-wilmshurst.pdf
● Adil Ahmad Haque, Self-Defense Against Non-State
Actors: All Over the Map - Insights from UN Security
Council Arria-Formula Meeting, March 2021,
available at:
https://www.justsecurity.org/75487/self-defense-
against-non-state-actors-all-over-the-map/
● Anne Orford, What kind of law is this? Libya and
International Law, March 2011 available at:
https://www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2011/march/what-
kind-of-law-is-this
● Claus Kress, On the Principle of Non-Use of Force in
Current International Law, September 2019
available at:
https://www.justsecurity.org/66372/on-the-
principle-of-non-use-of-force-in-current-
international-law/

11 State Responsibility Basic Readings:

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● General Principles ● James Crawford, State Responsibility, Max Planck

● Acts giving rise to State Encyclopedias of International Law (link)
Responsibility: ● Draft Articles on Responsibility of States for
○ Conduct Internationally Wrongful Acts, with commentaries
○ Attribution 2001:
○ Breach https://legal.un.org/ilc/texts/instruments/english/co
● Circumstances precluding mmentaries/9_6_2001.pdf
wrongfulness
● Obligations resulting from Cases and incidents:
wrongful conduct
● Countermeasures (Chapter ● United States Diplomatic and Consular Staff in
II, ARSIWA) Tehran (United States of America v. Iran) ICJ
o Provisional measures (15 December 1979)
o Judgment on jurisdiction (24 May 1980)
12 State Jurisdiction Basic Readings:
● Prescriptive and
Enforcement Jurisdiction ● James Crawford, 'State Jurisdiction', in James
● Principles of Jurisdiction Crawford (ed) Brownlie's Principles of Public
○ Territoriality International Law (9th ed, OUP)
○ Active Personality
○ Passive Personality Cases:
○ Protective
○ Universal ● Nottebohm (Liechtenstein v. Guatemala), ICJ
● The case of S.S. “Lotus” (France v. Turkey) PCIJ.
● Corfu Channel case (UK v Albania), ICJ 1949
● Enrica Lexie Award, PCA and Republic of Italy and
Ors. v Republic of India and Ors., Judgment of the
Supreme Court of India, dated 18 January 2013

Recommended readings and sources:

● Article 5, United Nations Convention against

Torture, 1985
● Treaty of Canterbury (Channel Tunnel treaty), 1991
● Article VI, Convention on the Prevention and
Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, 1948
● Valeria Eboli & Jean Paul Pierini, The “Enrica Lexie
Case” and the Limits of the Extraterritorial
Jurisdiction of India, (2012) Online Working Paper
2012/n.39 at
<http://www.cde.unict.it/sites/default/files/39_20
12.pdf>
● The Adolf Eichmann Story:
o Attorney General v. Adolf Eichmann, District
Court of Jerusalem, Criminal Case No. 40/61,
December 1961 available at:

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https://www.asser.nl/upload/documents/Dom
CLIC/Docs/NLP/Israel/Eichmann_Judgement
_11-12-1961.pdf
o Letter from Argentina to UNSC in 1960
regarding the arrest of Adolf Eichman by Isareli
Mossad:
https://www.un.org/en/sc/repertoire/59-
63/Chapter%208/59-63_08-7-
Complaint%20by%20Argentina.pdf
● The story of John Demjanjuk:
o State of Israel v Demjanjuk, Supreme Court of
Israel, Israel, Case no. 347/88, 1993 available at:
http://www.internationalcrimesdatabase.org/C
ase/191/Demjanjuk/
o The Devil Next Door (available on Netflix)
● Princeton University Program in Law and Public
Affairs, The Princeton Principles on Universal
Jurisdiction 28 (2001) available at:
http://hrlibrary.umn.edu/instree/princeton.html.
● Lockerbie Incident and questions regarding
jurisdiction, Related - US v Libya, ICJ Preliminary
Objections

13 Interaction between Basic Readings:

International Law &
Domestic Law ● Lavanya Rajamani, International law and the
● Monist System Constitutional Schema in Oxford Handbook of the
● Dualist System Indian Constitution (Eds. Sujit Choudhry, Madhav
● Implementation of Khosla, and Pratap Bhanu Mehta, 2016)
international law into ● Aparna Chandra, India and international law:
Indian law formal dualism, functional monism, Indian Journal
of International Law (2017)
● Constitution of India, Articles 51(c), 53, 73, 273

Suggested Case Study:

● Mohammad Salimullah v. Union of India, W. P. (C)

NO. 793 OF 2017

Recommended readings and sources:

● See sources from other Asian contexts from TRILA

Database of Asian Cases and Reading Materials
available at: pages 28-41, 47-53.

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● Gutierrez, Carlos Jose, “Conflict between Domestic

and International Law,” The American University
Law Review, Vol. 30: 147
● Maganbhai Ishwarbhai Patel vs. Union of India
(1970) Supreme Court Cases 400
● B.S. Chimni, ‘India’, in The Oxford Handbook of
International Law in Asia and the Pacific (Eds.
Simon Chesterman, Hisashi Owada, Ben Saul, 2019)

14 Critiques of International Basic Readings:

Law
● Luis Eslava, TWAIL Coordinates (2019),
● Third World Approaches to https://grojil.org/2019/04/01/twail-coordinates/
International Law ● James Thuo Gathii, The Promise of International
● Feminist Critiques of Law: A Third World View (June 25, 2020), Grotius
International Law Lecture Presented at the 2020 Virtual Annual
● Introduction to other critical Meeting of the American Society of International
approaches Law, Available at SSRN available at: The Promise of
International Law: A Third World View by
...papers.ssrn.com › sol3 › papers. Or hear at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neGcxJgRogE
● Mohsen Al Attar, Out of Place? Being Anti-Colonial
in Law School, June 2021 available at:
http://opiniojuris.org/2021/06/25/out-of-place-
being-anti-colonial-in-law-school/.
● Vasuki Nesiah, ‘The Ground Beneath Her Feet:
“Third World" Feminisms’ Journal of International
Women's Studies (2003) 4(3), 30-38.

Recommended readings and sources:

● Makau Mutua, Critical Race Theory and
International Law: The View of an Insider-Outsider,
45 Vill. L. Rev. 841 (2000) available at:
https://digitalcommons.law.villanova.edu/vlr/vol4
5/iss5/2
● Rosa Brooks, “Feminism and International Law: An
Opportunity for Transformation.” Yale Journal of
Law & Feminism 14 (2002): 345-361.
● P.Weil, ‘Towards Relative Normativity in
International Law’

15 Review & Revision

A word of caution on online readings

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Online sources can be classified into reliable, unreliable and outright bogus. The Internet
is an open domain in which all and sundry can create web pages and indulge in
propaganda, falsification or misrepresentation of events. The few sources that can help
you with basic information and which are fairly unbiased are: websites of established
newspapers, magazines and journals. Students should always consult with the instructors
about the veracity and authenticity of a particular web site and its suitability for
researching topics covered in this syllabus.

Textbook

There is no prescribed textbook for the course, and one is expected to rely on the
suggested readings above.

However, students may rely on:

● Jan Klabbers, International Law, Cambridge (2013)

● Malcolm D. Evans, International Law, Oxford (2003), or

● The Max Planck Encyclopedias of International Law

https://opil.ouplaw.com/home/mpil - available through the OPJGU’s
library subscription. Use remote login in case you are off campus.

Useful Internet Links

- http://untreaty.un.org/cod/avl/intro.html
- http://untreaty.un.org/ilc/summaries/summaries.htm
- http://ials.sas.ac.uk/flare/flare.htm
- http://www.un.org/law/riaa/
- http://digitalcommons.law.yale.edu/
- http://www.mpepil.com/
- http://www.asil.org/

Useful blogs
www.https://ilg2.org
http://opiniojuris.org
https://www.ejiltalk.org
https://www.justsecurity.org
https://twailr.com

***

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