Empire's Law

Can democracy and human rights really be imposed 'by fire and sword'? Answering this and other questions, outstanding contributors including Leo Panitch and Sam Gindin, Jurgen Habermas, Ulrich Preuss, Andrew Arato and Samir Amin provide a rigourous account of the nature of American empire in the twenty-first century. 'Empire' is now a key issue in studies of international relations and globalisation. This book provides the serious theoretical grounding that is so often missing from populist accounts. The contributors examine the impact that the doctrine of pre-emptive war has had on international law and human rights, and the implications that it has for the future of global justice and the rule of law at domestic and international levels. Charting new ways forward, using a variety of legal and political arguments, the contributors provide a wide-ranging analysis that will be useful to anyone studying empire and international law. Topics include: the role of Europe; theorising empire; the role of the UN; people's tribunals, occupation and democracy in Iraq; and the contradictions of war and human rights.