Title: Relevance of Hart-Devlin Debate in Relation to the International Criminal Court
Abstract: The publication in 1957 of the Wolfenden Commission Report on the issue of whether prostitution and homosexuality should be decriminalized in the United Kingdom engendered the Hart-Devlin debate. Albeit the debate mainly deals with the domestic legislative landscape (the United Kingdom) in the late 1950s it is far from being obsolete. The writer argues that aspects of the Hart-Devlin debate is pertinent in the implementation and -to the extent that it can be effected-enforcement of international criminal law. As pointed out by John Austin, albeit in the 1830s, international law is (also) positive morality. Austin’s view informed as it is in the context of his time is based on the lack of effective sanctions to ensure uniform implementation and enforcement of international law. Still, aspects of international law in Austin’s time and in the early twenty-first century is suffused with ethical and moral principles. Hart’s criticism of Devlin’s views and his misconception of Devlin’s expositions can be discerned when aspects of the Hart-Devlin debate is applied to the international criminal law mainly in reference to the International Criminal Court. The writer submits that in the principles of international criminal law, law and morality are intertwined and inseparable especially in this age of globalization.
Publication Year: 2020
Publication Date: 2020-01-01
Language: en
Type: book-chapter
Indexed In: ['crossref']
Access and Citation
AI Researcher Chatbot
Get quick answers to your questions about the article from our AI researcher chatbot