Environmental law
Wahid Kowthari; Mostafa Fazaeli
Abstract
IntroductionDespite the abundance of international environmental norms, for various reasons, such as their implementation conflict with the developmental concerns of countries or the lack of consensus at the global level regarding environmental hazards, these norms have not been effective. The GEO-6 ...
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IntroductionDespite the abundance of international environmental norms, for various reasons, such as their implementation conflict with the developmental concerns of countries or the lack of consensus at the global level regarding environmental hazards, these norms have not been effective. The GEO-6 report in 2019 states that without additional policies, the trends in environmental degradation are projected to continue at a rapid rate and neither the Sustainable Development Goal targets nor other internationally agreed environmental goals are expected to be achieved, including the set goals regarding climate change, biodiversity loss, water scarcity, excess nutrient run-off, land degradation and ocean acidification, and so on. The usual procedure in legal research in such cases is to turn the audience's attention to the lack of a sufficient guarantee of these norms, the separation of domestic legal systems from the international, or the absence of necessary criminalization. Without intending to question these conventional legal researches, this essay has tried to take a different path to deal with the challenges related to the "efficacy” or “effectiveness” of such laws with a sociological approach. Generally, having in mind the link between society and law, which is expressed in some famous and proverbial sentences such as "where there is society, there is law (Ubi Societas ibi jus) ", reference to the society and providing a sociological analysis of individuals’ behavior and their reaction to the legal rules in domestic societies or the international community seems useful and even necessary. A sociological look at the factors of the underlying ineffectiveness of environmental norms brings forward theories about environmental sociology and social or economic justice, whose possible role and effects in international environmental law the current research aims to evaluate, with a descriptive-analytical approach and using library research.Research Question(s)An important question that we should seek to answer is why the mass of environmental norms are not as efficient as they should be, and governments, as the main members of the international community, have not shown much interest in employing and implementing them. The fact is that to increase the efficiency of legal norms, it is useful and even necessary to pay attention to the coordination between the rules and regulations and weigh them according to the standards of justice, rationality, social values, freedom, equality, etc. This is what we are trying to demonstrate through the concept of socialization of laws. In examining the effectiveness of laws, the formal legal binding of a rule is not taken into account alone, rather, some cases should be studied through a meta-analysis to analyze the individuals’ behavior towards these norms. the result of such analysis is the effective implementation of legal rules as much as possible. Literature ReviewThe current article deals with the efficacy of environmental norms in an interdisciplinary manner and it has not been yet researched and investigated to the extent of the authors' knowledge. MethodologyAlthough, the efficacy of legal norms is raised after the formation or the identification of them, by observing the executive effects of legal norms and their pathology after their creation or recognition, we pave the way for their possible revision and proposing a reform in the legal system. Therefore, the purpose of this article is not only to look at the establishment of the norms and to examine the effectiveness of environmental sociological theories, but it also examines the behavior of international actors, especially governments, concerning pre-established norms. In this way, the methodology of this research in some parts is “Intrasystem” although it is mostly “Intersystem”; because, beyond the international environmental law system, it considers the role of other regimes. As an Intersystem study, in the framework of the present topic, the researcher is allowed, after observing the degree of realization of the rules in social practice, to review the entire process before and after the formation of the rules until their implementation. ConclusionCurrently, despite the adoption of numerous environmental norms, for various reasons, countries, in general, have not shown much approval towards the implementation of environmental obligations. Two important factors of the inefficacy of these norms are: 1) their conflict with governments’ developmental concerns and, 2)Lack of consensus and sufficient scientific knowledge at the global level.through referring to some sociological theories, the following article seeks to find ways to strengthen environmental norms (at the stage of establishing these environmental norms) and to influence the behavior of governments towards environmental obligations (at the stage of implementing the mentioned norms).This research hypothesizes that by opening the door of international environmental law to some sociological theories and distancing it from others, it would be possible to achieve more efficient and effective environmental norms.
mostafa fazaeli; Seyed Mojtaba Shakeri
Abstract
There are occasions when several human rights are to be enforced at the same time, but the exercise of all may not be possible in certain circumstances i. e., exercising a right by violating another one, known as the "conflict of human rights". In today’s world, where human rights are a concern ...
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There are occasions when several human rights are to be enforced at the same time, but the exercise of all may not be possible in certain circumstances i. e., exercising a right by violating another one, known as the "conflict of human rights". In today’s world, where human rights are a concern of governments and international organizations, and these rights have established a fundamental place in international documents and rules, the "conflict of human rights" would be regarded as a major challenge for the executives, including governments and the judiciary. Therefore, adopting a method to prevent or eliminate this challenge is vital. Achieving a suitable solution to face this challenge requires an explanation of the concept of human rights and awareness of its divisions, including absolute and non-derogable rights. A review of these divisions illustrates the point of conflict, which will help to resolve the dispute henceforth. In this article, while analyzing various solutions that have been proposed for resolving this problem, it is indicated that in different cases, depending on their circumstances, it is necessary to adopt a suitable solution or a combination of several ones to achieve the best result.
mohamad ssetayeshpur
Abstract
Transferring right to reparation as a legal consequence of a state succession in public international law, regardless of how and the way the related succession has been occurred, has always been in dispute and controversial issue. Following the state succession, the issue of succession of states in respect ...
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Transferring right to reparation as a legal consequence of a state succession in public international law, regardless of how and the way the related succession has been occurred, has always been in dispute and controversial issue. Following the state succession, the issue of succession of states in respect of right to reparation, in the ways are allowed in public international law, seeks to scrutinize the feasibility of transferring such rights. Studying a conceptual framework of the conception in question in view of public international law, the present paper looking over opinions in favour of it and opposite views. At last, it concludes that transferring of the responsibility to the right to reparation in respect of succession of states should be disregarding of absoluteness and as a result of that, succession of states in respect of the right to reparation has been necessitated in international law which is necessary to achieveing justice and it represents a conceptual evolution in this human knowledge.
Abstract
Cultural Rights (CRs) are the most non-developed rights among human rights in the terms of normative content, the scope of implementation and legal enforceability. In this regard, the right of minorities and persons belonging to these groups to participate in their own life has been affected and neglected ...
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Cultural Rights (CRs) are the most non-developed rights among human rights in the terms of normative content, the scope of implementation and legal enforceability. In this regard, the right of minorities and persons belonging to these groups to participate in their own life has been affected and neglected more seriously. On 21 December 2009, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCRs) adopted General Comment No. 21 on the right of everyone to take part in cultural life that could be accounted as a reference point in the protection of culture and cultural rights of minorities. In this Comment, the CESCRs gives solid substance to the norm through clearly defining its content and scope, the beneficiaries and the nature of the right, and the range of obligations it imposes on State Parties for its implementation; as such it could serve as a potential pillar for the protection, preservation, and promotion of minorities' culture, and consequently, CRs. The present study aims to investigate the achievements of General Comment No. 21 of CESCRs for the protection of culture and cultural rights of minorities.
