As the UN Security Council takes a more united and pro-active stance on internal conflicts around the world, legal experts believe this will make the international community more aware of its obligations to prevent violence.

Since February, the UNSC has adopted 3 landmark resolutions aimed at stopping fighting in Libya and Ivory Coast. Two of these were unanimous – a development which observers consider ‘remarkable’ as such broad consensus is unusual. They say that the support of the US adds significance and reinforces the purpose of the resolutions.

Legal yardstick
There is broad agreement that the texts of Resolutions 1970, 1973 and 1975 show a progression that will form a legal and moral yardstick for international monitoring of internal conflicts. Resolution 1970, adopted unanimously in February, referred the situation in Libya to the International Criminal Court. Resolution 1973, adopted last month, imposed a no-fly zone over Libya and authorised countries to take all necessary means to protect civilians.

The unanimous Resolution 1975 on Ivory Coast, adopted on Wednesday, goes even further. This resolution makes explicit reference to the responsibility to protect, stressing the Council’s full support for the UN mission in Ivory Coast, UNOCI, to use all necessary means to protect civilians, “including to prevent the use of heavy weapons”. It also recognizes the jurisdiction of the ICC to try perpetrators of serious crimes in Ivory Coast.

Arming rebels
Gerard Strijards, Professor of International Law at Groningen University, sees an improvement in the clarity of language in each subsequent resolution. “The language in Resolution 1970 is vague and generic. It’s more about a total situation, not persons”, he said.

The language in Resolution 1973 is less vague, but implies broad scope - leading the US, Britain and France to now ask whether this provides for countries to send weapons to Libyan rebels, despite the arms embargo. But it’s not up to the UN to make moral recommendations on arming rebels, according to Strijards.

Future resolutions
Resolution 1975 contains a more precise text, “with correct reference to the protection of civilians and an acceleration of the scope of the ICC”, he said. So, will the texts of future UNSC resolutions on conflicts become more refined, clear and precise, leaving countries in no doubt about how much support they can give to rebels and the role of the ICC?

“It’s impossible to predict. That depends on the political situation, the context of the conflict and the balance of political power at the moment the resolution is being drafted”, said Strijards. In view of the heated debate over whether Resolution 1973 does provide scope for arming rebels, it Is expected that the legal language of UNSC resolutions will evolve and develop in the future to indicate clear moral guidelines for countries.