Never in the history of humankind have so many regular people been able to just pop out and get a decent cup of coffee.
Our coffee habit is governed by international trade laws, anti-slavery laws, pesticide regulations, environmental treaties, world health regulations, tariffs, human rights laws, environmental and climate laws, and more, which create the social and environmental stability, partnerships and supply chains required to plant, grow, market and ship a safe and high-quality product. This requires stable, funded international institutions and agreements which can be relied on. Our access to great coffee is, I would argue, entirely possible due to the smooth, safe and predictable environment provided by international law. But this isn’t the only benefit of sound international institutions.
1. Food, medicine and consumer goods safety and supply
Apart from coffee, nearly everything we buy is created in more than one country, and with well mediated agreements, everything we need is safe, affordable and readily available in stores. Many countries do not produce even half of their own food, medicines or clothes, instead relying on supply chains that cross several borders. When international institutions and agreements break down, we see problems with supply and escalating prices for the products we need.
2. Travel, border protections, and migration
Every time we book a holiday abroad, we are subject to passport and visa rules, protected by our embassies, navigated over agreed air and sea routes, entered and exited at official border control points, and treated fairly, due to the standards set down in international law, which allow us to enter foreign countries and return home safely. This ensures that if we or our loved ones disappear while travelling, are enslaved or get into trouble, there is documentation. A paper trail, accountability and cross-border police processes.
There are also international laws around the travel and movement of displaced communities, recognising that people often need new homes. Some of the major disasters and conflicts in our history have created the need for safe ways for people to move around and request asylum. World War II made many people homeless, either due to their communities being physically destroyed or from being forced to leave home. International laws have created a safety net so that if you or I, or our children, are ever forced to leave our home due to an invasion or disaster, we could move to safety in another country. If the laws changed in our country in a way that made us unsafe, international law allows us to go to a safer place and ask for help. Ensuring that these laws remain strong for everyone could save our own lives.
3. Personal data privacy
In 1940, Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands, where there was a wonderful population register for the administration of housing, education, and the general running of the nation. This population register was seized by the Nazi invaders and used to exterminate specific groups of people with far greater efficiency than in other invaded countries, where the data wasn’t as well organised. Meanwhile, in Germany itself, a sophisticated population census provided the data needed for the murder of millions, as well as the conscription of skilled ‘Aryan’ people into specialised military units. The very first domestic personal data privacy law was later passed in Germany, where the horrors of Nazi misuse of data lived in the memories of the people who remained. Other European countries, and eventually the world, followed suit. The way data is treated, especially when it crosses borders, is subject to international agreements, and the right to privacy is now built into the small print of every app we use.
4. Humane treatment during a war
In the years between 1990 and 2020, there was a decline in war and deaths due to war, largely due to the peace keeping work of the UN. Recently, there has been an increase in violent conflicts and wars along with the dismantling of peacekeeping institutions. The laws and frameworks still prevail, and every person alive has legal rights, even the smallest baby in a war zone. During conflicts within or between nations, there are strict rules about how civilians can be treated, no matter who they are. When we read headlines about children and hospitals being targeted and killed during conflicts, we are rightly horrified, and the international pressure on states to follow the rules of the Geneva Convention usually prevents the worst atrocities. Every time the rules are broken, any nation, no matter how small, can raise this at the appropriate international court.
5. Whether you can be enslaved, tortured or killed
Slavery was once enforced and upheld by international law. Now, the very frameworks and institutions which perpetuated slavery enable international policing organisations to capture and prosecute human trafficking perpetrators and rescue those in slavery. Torture was once considered a legitimate method of extracting a confession which could be accepted in court, but is now absolutely prohibited. The death penalty was accepted without question, with public hangings a gruesome source of entertainment for everyone, but there is a growing global movement against the death penalty and international standards to be followed. These examples illustrate how international law is always evolving.
Of course, international crimes are still committed by powerful individuals, states, and corporations. No legal system anywhere has ever completely put an end to crime. It is also true that power enables the misuse of systems and processes, and this can delay or bury justice. But there are many, many examples of international law working, even on behalf of the smallest nations and communities, and we will look at some of those examples in future articles. Making sure that we keep the world fair and safe for other people will ensure that when we need help, it’s there for us too. We will also look at upcoming international laws which hope to address power inequalities. International law is not perfect, and it moves slowly, but it allows us a process for accountability. It provides agreed, shared standards, and the framework to challenge, question and demand a global response to community problems.
Comments