Diplomatic Protection in Contemporary International Law

Abstract

This dissertation examines international law on the protection of citizens abroad. Recent developments in international law and jurisprudence beg the question whether the twin doctrines of diplomatic protection and human rights protection can be relied upon to protect citizens abroad, particularly in view of increasing globalization. The study shows that urgent effort is required to transform strategies for the protection of citizens abroad from the discretionary diplomatic protection approach to a more robust obligatory approach that is capable of guaranteeing protection of citizens abroad from potential abuse of host States. Consequently, it approaches diplomatic protection from a dual perspective which takes into consideration the traditional State responsibility perspective in addition to a much-needed human right perspective. Indeed, the latter will continuously be at the heart of the discussion in an attempt to demonstrate how the infiltration of human rights considerations into almost every aspect of diplomatic protection has prevented the demise of an ancient doctrine of international law and confirmed its continued usefulness.