A two-day workshop at the University of Geneva Law Faculty, hosted by Dr Chiara Redaelli, examining peace as a standalone legal concept.
The University of Geneva Law Faculty hosted “Peace in International Law: Myth, Reality, or Legal Obligation?”, a workshop examining peace as a legal concept on its own terms, not only through the lens of war and humanitarian law.
Sessions covered: the legal status and normative role of peace in international law; the tension between peace and justice in international criminal law; the use of sanctions as instruments of peacebuilding; and the psychological and resource dimensions of sustainable peace.
Legal recognition of peace as more than a moral ideal, as a structuring legal principle, can help address systemic blind spots in law and policy.
The Institute’s contribution drew on its research into the ontology of peace, arguing that recognising peace as a structuring legal principle (not merely a moral ideal) can address systemic blind spots in law and policy. A more precise definition could reshape treaty language, the interpretation of peace-related provisions, and the development of customary international law, moving the relevant standards from aspirational language toward enforceable ones.