Zia Ul Hassan Khan Traditional sovereignty besieged 12020329

Topic: The traditional concept of national sovereignty is being eroded with the passage of time. Analyze the causes of this erosion and assess if, by the end of this century, the concept of national sovereignty will be submerged under overwhelming forces. The Siege of Sovereignty Introduction: Sovereignty is the idea of authority embodied in those bordered territorial organizations we refer to as states or nations and expressed in their various relations and activities, both domestic and foreign.1 It is an age old idea and has until now passed the test of time. However, there has emerged over time a vast literature that seriously questions the viability of sovereignty in the times to come. It often comes under the title the end of sovereignty. The reason behind such an assertion is that there are a number of factors that acutely injure the idea of sovereignty and have often lead to situations where the Hobbessian and Lockean concept of sovereignty have been compromised. These overpowering factors include globalization and open market system; emergence of new polities like European Union; the presence of failed states; humanitarian intervention; growing mass of multinational corporations; budding episodes of international terrorism; and environmental issues like global warming, greenhouse etc. The aim of this paper is to assess whether the pressure that has been built up by these factors against the idea of sovereignty is strong enough to make it a part of history. Throughout the paper, the word sovereignty refers to national sovereignty unless otherwise stated. Before delving into the impacts that these factors might have on state sovereignty, a brief history of the idea is essential. The idea found its roots in the medieval Europe because of a struggle of certain religious and political players who tried to flee from the absolutism of the papal authorities. This, however, resulted in the emergence of the idea of the divine right of kings that unified the theological and the political into but one - the king. Later in the transformation period, with the emergence of Protestantism and Lutheranism, the church and the state got separate both in theory and in practice and a secular ideal of the state flourished. The treaties at Westphalia promulgated a new political arrangement in Europe and gave rise to

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Westphalian sovereignty based on the idea of a sovereign state governed by a sovereign. The evolution of the idea did not stop here. In the years that followed the locus, uses, justifications, and varieties of sovereignty changed (Jackson, 56).We saw the emergence of imperial, dynastic, totalitarian, parliamentary, democratic, and territorial sovereignty. This history of sovereignty is an evidence of the fact that the idea has gone through a long and strenuous process of evolution. What has been achieved in the due process is the strong penchant of the idea to adapt to any adverse situation. The task in our hand is to find out whether in this process of adapting to uninvited state of affairs the idea has retained its vice-like grip or has it become an amalgam of compromises. We will now discuss every factor in turn. Sovereignty, International Agencies and Humanitarian Intervention: Every sovereign state faces a paradox that it can result both human flourishing and human suffering. A member of the UN and having alleged to various conventions, treaties, and to the UN charter, every state has the responsibility to ensure the respect for basic human rights. It is incumbent upon the sovereign state to safeguard not only the rights of its own people but also the rights of people of other states. The protection of human rights is seen in the policies and activities of the governments. However, the sovereign can fail or lapse in its duty to its citizens. When it resorts to policies that are harsh upon its citizens then it, itself becomes a source of threat not only to its own citizens but also to people of other states. What is then the role of the international community? Historical evidence shows that at such instances the international community has intervened into the sovereigns jurisdiction in the name of humanity. The justification for such an intervention is derived from the ambiguities present in the UN charter. The charter, while, on one hand under Article 2(7) says that, nothing in the present Charter shall authorize the United Nations to intervene in matters which are essentially within the jurisdiction of any state. However, on the other hand under article 42 and Chapter VII, the charter authorizes the UN Security Council to take an armed action via air, sea, and land against a state if it is established under Article 39 of the charter that there exists a threat to peace (Douglas, 29).

Zia Ul Hassan Khan Traditional sovereignty besieged 12020329

The interventions have been of a diverse nature corresponding to the enormity of the situation. While sometimes the interventions are secured through the UN authorization, there are instances when the intervening states did not seek any prior authorization from the UN Security Council. There is a strong precedent in Iraq (1991) and Kosovo (1999) concerning the unauthorized intervention. The Iraqi government had attacked the neighboring country of Kuwait and had been involved in abuses against the Shias and the Kurds. In response to the atrocities of the Iraqi government, initially, Iraq was denied some of the perquisites that are enjoyed by every sovereign country in its dealings with the international community. However, when the situation in Iraq did not get better, economic sanctions were imposed on Iraq. In this regard, the Security Council Resolution 661 (1990) prohibited the imports from and sales of any product or commodities to Iraq by any of the states (Douglas, 53). This was a clear breach of a states sovereignty as Iraq was being forced in matters that were strictly under its domestic jurisdiction. Later in 2003, United States along with other allied forces launched an armed attack on Iraq as it was accused to have in its possession weapons of mass destruction which, however, were never found. Our concern here is not that whether the state of Iraq possessed those weapons or not but the fact that the sovereignty of a state was compromised in the greater interest of humanity. Similarly, in Kosovo there were severe violations of human rights as the Serbs resorted to the tactics of ethnic cleansing in response to the demands of Albanian Kosovar population for independence. There are numerous other episodes of such armed humanitarian intervention. These include the intervention in East Timor (1999), Rwanda (1994), Haiti (1994), Somalia (1992), recent coalition military intervention in Libya (2011) and many others. In addition to such armed actions, there have been instances where the international community has used the power of economic sanctions on the lapsing states. These include the sanctions on North Korea and Iran in lieu of their Nuclear Programs that did not comply with the directions of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). However, there has been a harsh criticism of such interventionist policies. Human rights, says Jackson, can be violated by sovereign states or by international organizations in the course of employing armed force for humanitarian purposes. The economic sanctions on Iraq

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added to the plight of the Iraqi people and within few years, the international community realized the dreadful results of the sanctions. This obliged the UN to pass Resolution 986 for the equitable distribution of humanitarian relief to all segments of the Iraqi population throughout the country (Douglas, 54). Moreover, the gulf war 1990-1991 had enormous results in addition to the violation of Iraqi sovereignty. The allied forces dropped about 90,000 tons of heavy explosives on the besieged Iraqi population. Thousands of civilians died in this humanitarian war. Furthermore, between the 2003 invasion of Iraq by United States and 2005, about 25000 civilians had been killed and more than double that number wounded. Everything aside, the harsh reality is that sovereignty has been victimized during all of the aforementioned events. Over time, the borders of the nation states have become more and more porous to interventions from non-state actors including international agencies and other states. Apart from these, non-governmental organizations have also become a tool of intervening into the sovereigns jurisdiction. This can be seen in the abundance of NGOs all over the globe. These episodes of interventions have also brought into question of the dichotomy of authority and power. While every state has the authority to uphold its sovereignty, very few have the power to do so. Small and medium states have been prime target of interventions. Although the end of cold war had dismantled the right of sovereigns to expand, these interventions have induced small and medium states to summon the idea of power building. However, the chances for such power augmentations are meager at least in the near future. Sovereignty, Globalization, Open Market System and Multinationals: There is one trend that has relentlessly progressed since the beginning of the last century, that of globalization. Under the umbrella of globalization, there is a persistent growth in the interconnectedness and dependence between nation states. The boundaries of the sovereign states have become polarized to flow of goods, services, information, trade, terrorism, greenhouse gases, drugs, and ideas. This clearly and acutely harms the notion of sovereignty that only the sovereign state determines what flows into its borders and what not. The interplay between sovereignty and globalization is very complex and involves economic, political, and social perspectives.

Zia Ul Hassan Khan Traditional sovereignty besieged 12020329

There is a concern that an open market system might have adverse effect on national sovereignty. Particularly there are concerns that growing mass of trade, foreign direct investment, financial transactions, and multinationals may erode the capability of a government to exercise their national sovereignty. There is a consistent growth in world trade of basic food commodities and other manufactures. The creation of perfect, efficient, and competitive markets have given rise to the age of comparative advantage and dynamic trade. Active participation in the international trade has its benefits and costs. From the beneficial point of view, there is an international division of labor and an opportunity for the domestic producers to reach to a greater market for their products. However, on the other hand there is a risk that some of the less competitive domestic industries might lose out to the international market. Despite these risks, there is strong commitment of various countries to globalize their economies. This can be precisely calculated by the ratio of a countrys trade (exports plus imports) to its GDP or GNP. These calculations clearly show that globalization has doubled on average since 1950 (World Bank). Apart from Sub-Saharan Africa, every region experienced a greater growth in exports as compared to GNP. The increase in trade means greater number of treaty obligations to WTO. The ensuing responsibility on the trading state to follow the directions of WTO compels it, at times, to follow certain policies (removal of non-tariff barriers, environmental protection, consumer health etc) in its domestic realm that it otherwise would not have followed. Thus increasing international trade, a result of globalization, clearly limits the jurisdiction of the sovereign state in aspects of economic regulation. Foreign direct investment in this regard has gained enormous weight in the field of trade. According to UN Conference on Trade and Development, $5.2 trillion per year of sales were recorded by foreign subsidiaries in 1993. The rate of international financial transaction also has experienced an astounding growth. Foreign exchange markets record a daily turnover of almost $1,000 billion and international stock market transactions stand at $1,500 billion. This is a clear evidence of the complaint of governments that the financial markets pose a great challenge to their ability to execute their own monetary policies (Brittan, 4-6).

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The impact that the growing mass of multinationals has on sovereignty is also of great import. Since 1990s, there is an increase in the rate of privatization around the globe. Governments have been offloading the state assets and along with it, a proportion of their economic and political power to the private sector. Moreover, we also saw various mergers and acquisitions of reputed corporations in the global market in last two decades e.g. Volvo and Ford, Glaxo and Smithkline, Vodafone and Mannesmann, America Online and Time Warner etc. A table in the appendix shows the closing gap between the revenues of states and different corporations. Environmental Norms and Sovereignty: Since the 1972 Conference on the Human Environment, held in Stockholm, the environmental activism is on the surge. This activism has also been augmented by various scientific and political developments of the proceeding years. The scientific research in this field has aided to a better understanding of various environmental processes. Moreover, the movement for environmental protections has also achieved a global acceptance and support. An important contribution in this regard is the shift from a limits to growth approach to a global-climate change paradigm (Conca, 153). The world community that in past was divided on the issue seems to have gained unison. The cause of environmental protection might look worthwhile but it has enormous implications for national sovereignty. In the Stockholm conference, considerable stress was placed on the problems of overconsumption of natural resources. The traditional concept of sovereignty bestows the state with absolute rights of access to its environment and natural resources. Any restriction on the capacity of the state to exploit its natural resource base is an attack on its sovereignty. Moreover, one of the prime arguments against the restraints on resource use is that such restrictions have rarely been equally dispensed. States have not benefit from identical measures of sovereignty over their ecosystem. This was evident during the era of colonialism when immense plundering of the resources of the colonized states was committed by the imperial powers. Deforestation is another area where the environmentalists have come to challenge the capacity of the state to exercise its national sovereignty. Most of the deforestation has occurred

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in the tropical zone. This has been caused by settlements, usage of wood as a fuel, land clearing for agricultural or grazing purposes. Such attempts of deforestation have global implications. It leads to species extinction, climate change, and emission (although less than combustion of fossil fuels) of carbon into the atmosphere. Thus, there is a huge pressure by the ecologists and environmentalists on the tropical states to reduce, if not stop, their rate of forest clearing. This is yet another account of challenging the sovereignty of a state (Conca, 154). With regard to the struggle of environmentalists, the Kyoto Protocol is a landmark. Almost 191 states have ratified the protocol. Out of these, 31 countries have agreed to the reduction of four greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, sulfur hexafluoride) and also hydroflourocarbons and perflourocarbons. This is a clear indication of a sacrifice of sovereignty on part of the member states. The success of the protocol has induced the ecologists to work on another arrangement in which more countries could be incorporated (UNFCCC). Terrorism and Sovereignty: Although the word terrorism holds its roots in the French Revolution (Jacobian Terror), it has acquired a new and an international dimension after the twin attacks on WTC. Since September 11, 2001, a score of terroristic events have taken place and in a matter of few years, they have brought a greater part of the planet under the looming threat of terrorism. Other prominent instances of such attacks were the London bombings of 7 July 2005 and the Mumbai attacks of 26 November 2008. In response to this growing danger, the international community has taken a unified step to eliminate every terrorist group. The United States, with the aid of the allied forces, attacked Iraq and Afghanistan as they were thought to be the safe heavens for terrorists. The Bush administration was unequivocal and determined in its war against terrorism. The use of the phrase you are either with us or against us by former President of the United States was a clear indication that any polarization (or non-alliance) on terrorism was not going to be accepted. Therefore, many states, although reluctantly, had to join the allied front lead by the United States.

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There was strong pressure on some of the states, like Pakistan to partake in the war on terror. Three factors clearly harmed the national sovereignty of the country. First, the government of Pakistan that had earlier recognized the Taliban government in Afghanistan stood now in antagonism to them. This was clearly an infringement upon the capacity of the state to formulate its foreign policy. Second, Pakistan was also forced to launch an armed operation against the militants in its own territory. This was another indication of the fact that the national sovereignty was injured. Third, the US forces continue to launch drone attacks into the sovereign territory of Pakistan. It has often been put that a tolerable solution might lie in the empowerment of the state to deal with the threat of terrorism. However, this argument is disapproved on two grounds. First, the state might act covertly in favor of the terrorists cloaked as jihadists, patriots, or crusaders. Second, it might be ineffective to act against the terrorists as it might face internal opposition from the nation. This has been observed in many cases. The reason is that the terrorists resort to counter-attacks (suicide bombing) in which they attack the public. This creates anguish in the public against the government failing to protect its own people. Third, the state might not have the capacity to act decisively against the terrorists. Moreover, basic freedoms achieved after a long and relentless struggle are in a great danger of extinction. The international agencies have failed to uphold the provision of basic rights to individuals and states. While small and medium states are prone to the invasions of big powers on the grounds of human rights violations, the individual of many states is now denied of equal basic human and civil rights. Moreover, in the aftermath of 9/11,United States and the allied forces have, on a number of occasions, violated the Geneva Conventions in investigating the former Taliban leaders and soldiers (Daud, 4). Other Factors: There are hosts of other factors that challenge the traditional concept of sovereignty. The emergence of new polities and regionalism are the fundamental one. The creation of European Union, and the expansion that it has experienced ever since, poses an immense threat to the idea

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of state sovereignty. The impact of the European is twofold. First, it has continually interfered into the sovereign jurisdiction of the member states. This interference has used both hard and soft measures. In the case of hard measures, the EU has been actively regulating the product marketing and macroeconomic policies. Secondly, the EU has also resorted, at times, to some soft measures in the light of growing criticism of the unions policies. These include the use of rhetoric and recommendation. The recent debt crisis provides a great precedent of such interventions by the European Union. Countries like Greece and Italy that have experienced severe debt crisis are under a substantial pressure from the EU to accelerate their economic reforms through adjusting their monetary and fiscal policies. On one hand, this crisis has increased the vulnerability of the member states to the interference of EU. On the other hand, it also provides an opportunity for the member countries to re-think the integration policy and decide whether they want to continue this process or find a way out of it. While there is a considerable surge in the latter and serious rethinking is underway, the present and potential challenges that it poses to sovereignty cannot be denied. Moreover, due to persistent growth of the globalised forces the idea of integration is gaining huge import. Therefore, the end of the integration debate is closely related to who wins the race: national forces or the global forces. Conclusion: No human institution lasts forever. In light of the factors analyzed in the paper it seems to me that the traditional concept of sovereignty, if not completely overwhelmed under these forces, will definitely go through a profound change that has not been experienced ever before. The only thing that stops the complete erosion of the idea is its adaptability. Moreover, sovereignty is relative in nature. As Geoffrey Howe remarkably said, sovereignty is not like virginity, now you have it, now you dont.

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WORKS CITED Rubery, Jill, Gerhard Bosch, and Steffen Lehndorff. "The Influence of the EU on the Evolution of National Employment Models." International Labor Organization. International Institute for Labour Studies, 2008. Web. 08 Nov. 2011. <http://www.ilo.org/public/english/bureau/inst/publications/discussion/dp18608.pdf>. Jackson, Robert. "Sovereigns of Europe and the World." Sovereignty. Polity, 2007. 55-56. Print Douglas, Jason. "Sovereignty, Human Rights and Humanitarian War'" International Relations. Oct. 2009. Web. 07 Nov. 2011. <http://internationalrelations.ie/home/wpcontent/uploads/2011/02/Jason-Douglas-Thesis1.pdf>. "Globalization and International Trade." World Bank. World Bank. Web. 07 Nov. 2011. <http://www.worldbank.org/depweb/beyond/global/chapter12.html>. Brittan, Sir Leon. Globalization. Cambridge UP, 1998. Print. Conca, Ken. Ecology, Sovereignty and Environmental Disourse. John Hopkins UP, 1995. Print. Daud, Justice. "Terrorism and National Sovereignty." Web. 07 Nov. 2011. <http://www.pucl.org/Topics/Human-rights/2002/daud-speech.htm>. "Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change." United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. United Nations. Web. 10 Nov. 2011. <http://unfccc.int/essential_background/kyoto_protocol/items/1678.php>.

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