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The first session was entitled “What is the New Normal and When Will it Get Here [there]? While some thought the new normal would be that the US would play less of an international role, others thought that the new normal would be the persistence of the old normal. Wolfgang Ischinger, the Chairman, Munich Security Conference reflected on the fact that "sometimes we are involved so long in a war that we don't even remember why we were there.
TRUE SECURITY IS COMMON SECURITY
Perhaps the new normal could be reviving and expanding Olaf Palme’s concept of Common security with the following objectives;
• to achieve a state of peace, and disarmament; through reallocation of military expenses
• to create a global structure that respects the rule of law and the International Court of Justice;
• to enable socially equitable and environmentally sound employment, and ensure the right to development and social justice;
• to promote and fully guarantee respect for human rights including labour rights, civil and political rights, social and cultural rights- right to food, right to housing, right to safe drinking water and sewage, right to education and right to universally accessible not for profit health care system,
• to ensure the preservation and protection of the environment, the respect for the inherent worth of nature beyond human purpose, the reduction of the ecological footprint e move away from the current model of unsustainability and overconsumption
The blueprint for common security has been developed over the years at the United Nations and is present in obligations incurred through covenants and conventions, and commitments made through conference action plans, and expectations through resolutions and Declarations. The new normal could be that states would sign and ratify existing conventions and treaties and enact the necessary legislation to ensure compliance. In addition, throughout the years, international peremptory norms have been established but the political will to abide by them has to be present
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THE “FORCE OF COMPLIANCE”
In the panel there was a call for prevention and a calculation of risks.
For too long states bypassed Chapter VI – the peaceful resolution of disputes- and moved to Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations.
Chapter VI, entitled "peaceful solutions of disputes", of the Charter of the United Nations, conforms to and upholds the fundamental purposes of the Charter of the United Nations, advances the de-legitimization of war, and promotes respect for the rule of international law through the International Court of Justice.
Under Chapter VI of the Charter of the United Nations, a number of provisions have been established to bring about the peaceful settlement of disputes:
(i) The first provision is to counter conflict of interest in decision-making related to peaceful solutions of disputes.
Decisions under Chapter VI are constrained by Article 27, which reads that a party to a dispute shall abstain from voting. This provision, which is present in Chapter VI but is absent in Chapter VII, is consistently violated by the UN Security Council.
(ii) The second provision to bring about peaceful settlement of disputes is recourse, under Article 36, to the rule of international law, through the International Court of Justice:
Article 36 reads: "legal disputes should, as a general rule, be referred by the parties to the International Court of Justice in accordance with the provisions of the Statute of the Court".
Chapter XIV complements Chapter VI in outlining the role of the International Court of Justice:
Chapter XIV, Article 92, states that the International Court of Justice shall be the principal judicial organ of the United Nations...and, under Article 93, and all members of the UN are ipso facto parties to the statute of the International Court of Justice, and under Article 94, each member of the United Nations undertakes to comply with the decision of the International Court of Justice in a case to which it is a party and under Article 96 there is the provision for the UN General Assembly, UN Security Council and other organs of the UN to request the International Court of Justice to give an advisory opinion on any legal question.
announced that in its desire to work more closely with the United Nations and the UN Charter, has decided to embrace the force of compliance rather than the force of arms. remarked that throughout the United Nations history, there have been important international conventions, treaties and covenants related to “common
LIGHT FOOTPRINT
Some of the panelists referred to the importance in the new normal to have a light footprint and stressed the importance of development and diplomacy. This new normal in a multipolar world could embark on implementing a set of proscriptions: such as the following;
a. Delegitimize war- Given the social, environmental, health, human rights, and economic consequences of war, under no conditions or circumstance is war legal or just.
b. End the practice of invoking Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations rather than invoking Chapter VI - the peaceful resolutions of disputes - and be prepared to be judged by the International Court of Justice.
c. End the misconstruing of Article 51 (self-defence) of the Charter of the United Nations to justify premeditated non-provoked military aggression, or to use various such pretexts for invading other sovereign states.
d. Abandon the guise of the pre-emptive/preventive attack policy that has resulted in aggressive attacks on sovereign states - a violation of the Article 2 of United Nations and international law as being the 'supreme' international crime of a war of aggression.
e. End the use of "human security" which has been extended to "humanitarian intervention", and used along with the "responsibility to protect" or with “right to intervene” with a view to justifying military interventions in other states.
f. End the practice of targeting or assisting in the assassination of leaders of other sovereign states, and of engaging in "regime change".
g. End the reluctance of nuclear arms states to comply with the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty by failing to implement Article VI of the Treaty, (Article VI: commits all parties to pursue negotiations in good faith on measures to end the nuclear arms race and to achieve disarmament.). End the opposition to the call for a nuclear arms free middle East
h. End the production of all weapons of mass destruction such as nuclear, chemical, and biological, as agreed to in Unite Nations Conference on Humans and the Environment (UNCHE) in 1972, and in specific conventions. And discontinue the gutting of the Treaty on Cluster bombs
i. Suffocate the production of uranium, end importing and exporting of uranium, prohibit the use of weapons such as those with depleted uranium and those that are prohibited under Geneva protocols and end the continued profit-making from the sale of arms and trade in small arms.
j. Disband NATO for its disregard of the international rule of law, including the objective of the Charter of the United Nations- to prevent the scourge of war, and to abide by convention such as the Convention against torture
k. End the practice of assisting “rendering”- sending “persons of interests” to countries which are known to condone torture.
l. Prohibit propaganda for war as per the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), including establishing military bases, engaging in war games, producing and selling of armaments, and holding arms trade exhibitions
m. End the production, circulation and berthing of nuclear powered or nuclear arms-capable vessels throughout the world.
n. Close and convert, to peaceful purposes, all foreign military bases in sovereign states around the world.
o. End the occupation and support for occupation in other states
p. Repeal Anti-Terrorism Act because it violates civil and political rights, and results in racial profiling.
q. End "War Games" or "Military Exercises" such as Exercise Trident Fury or Northwest Training Range complex.
r. End misplaced spending priorities on militarism, and reallocate funds to true security -“common security”
Common security was a concept initiated by Olaf Palme, a former president of Sweden, and has been extended to embody the following objectives:
• to achieve a state of peace, and disarmament; through reallocation of military expenses
• to create a global structure that respects the rule of law and the International Court of Justice;
• to enable socially equitable and environmentally sound employment, and ensure the right to development and social justice;
• to promote and fully guarantee respect for human rights including labour rights, civil and political rights, social and cultural rights- right to food, right to housing, right to safe drinking water and sewage, right to education and right to universally accessible not for profit health care system ,
• to ensure the preservation and protection of the environment, the respect for the inherent worth of nature beyond human purpose, the reduction of the ecological footprint e move away from the current model of unsustainable and overconsumptive development
S. To end the destabilization of states by foreign embassies, government front NGOS and corporations
T … etc.
The new normal could be common security, force of compliance and a light footprint.
TWEETS DURING THE CONFERENCE
9:25 AM - 17 Nov 12 ·
Joan Russow @joanRussow
The New normal - redefining what constitutes true security http://pejnews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=8657:-the-new-normal-panel-2012-global-security-conference-in-halifax-on-friday-november-16&catid=104:i-peace-news&Itemid=204 … @halifaxtheforum #halifax2012
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9:15 AM - 17 Nov 12 ·
16m oan Russow @joanRussow
#halifax2012. Why do the "good guys" have provocative war games, & develop weapons that violate the Geneva protocol on prohibited weapons
9:10 AM - 17 Nov 12
20m Joan Russow @joanRussow
Why do the"good guys" not support a nuclear arms free Middle East.& also urge Israel as a nuclear weapon's state to ratify NPT #halifax2012.
9:06 AM - 17 Nov 12
25m Joan Russow @joanRussow
Mackay extolls the protecting of "values we hold dear" since 2006, Cnds may wonder which values he is referring to ? #cdnpoli #halifax2012.
8:59 AM - 17 Nov 12 ·
31m Joan Russow @joanRussow
McCain points out benefit of military exchange; School of America certainly has not been a benefit to Latin American States #halifax2012
8:50 AM - 17 Nov 12 ·
41m  joshuafoust @joshuafoust
Still dancing around the "white man'a burden" aspect to this panel #halifax2012
Retweeted by Joan Russow
8:53 AM - 17 Nov 12 ·
37m Joan Russow @joanRussow
@not_productive Given the human, social. eviron., economic etc consequences of war, under no condition shd war be just or legal #halifax2012
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8:48 AM - 17 Nov 12 ·
42m Joan Russow @joanRussow
@joshuafoust many "good guys"democracies believe that they are above the law & above intl peremptory norms #halifax2012 @halifaxtheforum
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8:43 AM - 17 Nov 12 ·
47m Joan Russow @joanRussow
#halifax2012. states cannot go to the Intl court of law against the US becuause since the case of Nicaragua, US does not respect the ICJ
8:41 AM - 17 Nov 12 ·
50m Joan Russow @joanRussow
#Halifax2012 the so called "good guys"have usually acted in strategic national interests.-and not for respect for the rule of law #cdnpoli
8:35 AM - 17 Nov 12 ·
55m Joan Russow @joanRussow
halifax2012.first came "human security" (iraq); human. intevention (kosovo) R2P (Haiti, Libya); all used to justify increased militarism
8:30 AM - 17 Nov 12 ·
#halifax2012.first came "human security" (iraq); human. intevention (kosovo) R2P (Haiti, Libya); all used to justify increased militarism
8:25 AM - 17 Nov 12 ·
1h Joan Russow @joanRussow
#halifax2012 US & Cnda went in to Afghanistan before UNSC resolution because of misinterpretation of Art. 51- self defence; ISAF was later
8:21 AM - 17 Nov 12
1h Joan Russow @joanRussow
#halifax2012 US & Cnda went in to Afghanistan before UNSC resolution because of misinterpretation of Art. 51- self defence; ISAF was later
8:18 AM - 17 Nov 12 ·
1h Joan Russow @joanRussow
@tetreaultaj @Halifaxtheforum @joshuafoust As has been said " the \US democracy is the best that money can buy" #cdnpoli
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8:09 AM - 17 Nov 12 ·
1h Joan Russow @joanRussow
a security threat in Halifax & Victoria is the berthing in cdn harbours of US nuclear powered & nuclear arms capable vessels #HALIFAX2012
7:45 AM - 17 Nov 12 ·
1h Joan Russow @joanRussow
@joshrogin the US fails to ratify so many intl instruments, to defy the Intl rule of law & to show disdain for the ICJ #Halifax2012
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7:35 AM - 17 Nov 12 ·
1h Joan Russow @joanRussow
#halifax2012 #cdnpoli The New Normal panel; 2012 Intl Security conference in Halifax http://pejnews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=8657:-the-new-normal-panel-2012-global-security-conference-in-halifax-on-friday-november-16&catid=104:i-peace-news&Itemid=204 …
7:31 AM - 17 Nov 12 ·
1h Joan Russow @joanRussow
#halifax2012 US has not only failed to ratify UNCLOS but also ICSECR CRC CEDAW ETC and does not respect the jurisdiction of ICJ
3:54 PM - 16 Nov 12 ·
17h Joan Russow @joanRussow
Drones violate fundamental principles in the Geneva Protocol on Prohibited weapons. @halifaxtheforum #halifax2012 #cdnpoli @globeandmail
3:42 PM - 16 Nov 12 · Details
17h Joan Russow @joanRussow
The New Normal panel; 2012 Global Security conference in Halifax http://pejnews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=8657:-the-new-normal-panel-2012-global-security-conference-in-halifax-on-friday-november-16&catid=104:i-peace-news&Itemid=204 … @halifaxtheforum #halifax2012 #cdnpoli
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