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LAWS5087 – Law of Armed Conflict

2022 – Session 1, Online-scheduled-weekday

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Convenor
Shireen Daft
shireen.daft@mq.edu.au
Contact via iLearn
6FW 426
By Appointment
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
130cp including LAWS2000 or LAWS259 or LAW459 or LAWS1010 or LEX101
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

War presents one of the most serious and enduring challenges to the practice of international law. This unit explores the field of international humanitarian law, the body of law that has developed to limit and regulate armed conflict. International humanitarian law seeks to balance military objectives and priorities against considerations of human suffering and priorities against considerations of human suffering and the humanitarian impact of conflict. This course will explore the role of international law in providing a framework to address contemporary challenges during armed conflict, including the protection of civilians, the status and treatment of combatants, and the protection of the environment and cultural heritage. It will also explore the rules relating to the means and methods of warfare, including the challenges faced by rapid technological development.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Articulate and apply the general characteristics and principles of international humanitarian law, and the global governance structures that address armed conflict
  • ULO2: Evaluate past and present international developments in the area of humanitarian law, and analyse, interpret, and critique such developments from an international law perspective
  • ULO3: Research, analyse, synthesise, and interpret legal principles from international legal sources relevant to international humanitarian law
  • ULO4: Investigate and analyse how the actors, institutions, and processes of international humanitarian law interact and operate in global governance
  • ULO5: Demonstrate capacity for autonomous research by developing a project that critically analyses a contemporary issue or development in international law's approach to armed conflict

General Assessment Information

Late Assessment Penalty

Students should be aware of and apply the University policy on academic honesty.

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, (a) a penalty for lateness will apply – 10 marks out of 100 credit will be deducted per day for assignments submitted after the due date – and (b) no assignment will be accepted seven days (incl. weekends) after the original submission deadline. No late submissions will be accepted for timed assessments - e.g. quizzes, online tests.

Submission

All written assessments in the unit are to be submitted electronically by way of Turnitin on the iLearn page. Plagiarism detection software is used in this unit to check all written assessments.

Students should carefully check that they submit the correct file for an assessment as no re-submissions will be accepted after the due date and time, including instances where students upload an incorrect file in error.

Format

All assessment tasks in this unit must be typed in Word format and be double spaced to facilitate marking in Turnitin.

Word Limits

Word limits are strictly applied. Work above the word limit will not be marked.  Footnotes are to be used only for referencing. Referencing must conform to the requirements set out in the Australian Guide to Legal Citation.

Moderation

Detailed marking rubrics will be made available on iLearn. In addition, tutors will be provided with detailed marking guides to ensure consistency. All fail papers will be double marked. The Unit Convenor and Tutors will meet to review final grades for the unit.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Research Paper Proposal 10% No 14th March 11.59pm
Participation 20% No Ongoing
Discussion Forums 20% No Ongoing
Research Paper 50% No 13th June, 11.59pm

Research Paper Proposal

Assessment Type 1: Plan
Indicative Time on Task 2: 10 hours
Due: 14th March 11.59pm
Weighting: 10%

Students required to develop and submit a research question and proposal for an independent research paper.
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Research, analyse, synthesise, and interpret legal principles from international legal sources relevant to international humanitarian law
  • Demonstrate capacity for autonomous research by developing a project that critically analyses a contemporary issue or development in international law's approach to armed conflict

Participation

Assessment Type 1: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Ongoing
Weighting: 20%

Students will be required to contribute to the participation projects including a semester-long role play involving military decision making where they will be assessed on their ability to apply the rules of war, and assessed on contribution to class discussion about these rules.
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Articulate and apply the general characteristics and principles of international humanitarian law, and the global governance structures that address armed conflict
  • Investigate and analyse how the actors, institutions, and processes of international humanitarian law interact and operate in global governance

Discussion Forums

Assessment Type 1: Non-academic writing
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Ongoing
Weighting: 20%

Students will post blog-style contributions to discussion forums.
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Articulate and apply the general characteristics and principles of international humanitarian law, and the global governance structures that address armed conflict
  • Evaluate past and present international developments in the area of humanitarian law, and analyse, interpret, and critique such developments from an international law perspective
  • Investigate and analyse how the actors, institutions, and processes of international humanitarian law interact and operate in global governance

Research Paper

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 35 hours
Due: 13th June, 11.59pm
Weighting: 50%

Students are required to submit a research paper that critically analyses international humanitarian law
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Articulate and apply the general characteristics and principles of international humanitarian law, and the global governance structures that address armed conflict
  • Evaluate past and present international developments in the area of humanitarian law, and analyse, interpret, and critique such developments from an international law perspective
  • Research, analyse, synthesise, and interpret legal principles from international legal sources relevant to international humanitarian law
  • Investigate and analyse how the actors, institutions, and processes of international humanitarian law interact and operate in global governance
  • Demonstrate capacity for autonomous research by developing a project that critically analyses a contemporary issue or development in international law's approach to armed conflict

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

There will be a weekly 2 hour F2F lecture for this unit, which will be recorded, and available to all students. It will be followed by a 1 hour tutorial on the topic for internal students, and online classes offered for those enrolled in that option, or where required for those that have not been able to enrol online and cannot attend campus safely. Both lectures and tutorials will commence from week 1, though week 1 classes will be an introduction to the expectations of the unit. 

Required Readings

There is no set textbook for this unit. Required readings will be available on Leganto and iLearn. Engagement with these readings will be necessary for effective contributions to the assessments, particularly the online discussion forums.

Recommended Readings

While all readings for the unit will be made available on Leganto, including recommended readings, the following books provide excellent overview of the subject as a whole:

  1. Dieter Fleck, The Handbook of International Humanitarian Law (OUP, 3rd ed, 2013)
  2. Yoram Dinstein, The Conduct of Hostilities under the Law of International Armed Conflict (Cambridge University Press, 3rd ed, 2016)
  3. Yoram Dinstein, Non-International Armed Conflicts in International Law (Cambridge University Press, 2014)
  4. Andrew Clapham and Paola Gaeta (eds), The Oxford Handbook of International Law in Armed Conflict (OUP, 2015)
  5. Rain Livoja and Tim McCormack (eds), Routledge Handbook of the Law of Armed Conflict (Routledge, 2016) 

Other recommended readings per topic will be provided on iLearn.

All Unit requirements and a weekly teaching schedule are outlined in iLearn.

All assessments are to be submitted electronically via Turnitin.

Unit Schedule

Session 1

LAWS5087

Week 1

 

Introduction to International Humanitarian Law: History, Theory, and Scope

Week 2

 

International v Non-International Armed Conflict

Week 3

 

Lawful Combatants 

Week 4

 

Civilians and Civilian Objects in Armed Conflict

Week 5

 

Protected Persons

Week 6

 

Methods of Armed Conflict

Week 7

 

Means of Warfare

Week 8

 

The Role of the Red Cross/Red Crescent Movement 

Week 9

 

Protection of the Environment

 

Week 10

 

Protection of Cultural Heritage

 
Week 11  Implementation and Enforcement

Week 12

Prosecuting War Crimes: The Role of International Criminal Law 

Week 13

 

The Future of IHL 

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via AskMQ, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Unit information based on version 2022.02 of the Handbook