The Promise and the Peril of the Responsibility to Protect
Abstract
Over the last century, the international community has not adequately responded to humanitarian crises around the globe to protect populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity. Serious differences in how sovereign governments and the international community viewed multiple recent humanitarian crises resulted in inefficient action, or no action at all to stop atrocities. In 2005, the United Nations codified the concept of Responsibility to Protect (R2P) in its World Summit Outcome, stating that sovereign governments have a responsibility to protect their populations from atrocities, and if that government is unable or unwilling to do so, the international community had a responsibility to act to stop the atrocity through diplomatic, humanitarian or other peaceful means, or by force in extreme cases. The concept of Responsibility to Protect has gained rapid international approval, to include its addition in the 2010 United States National Security Strategy, but serious questions remain regarding the legitimate application of force when force is deemed necessary. This paper considers the 2011 Libyan rebellion as a case study of the use of force under the auspices of The Responsibility to Protect.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 21, 2012
- Accession Number
- ADA561489
Entities
People
- David J. Francis
Organizations
- United States Army War College