The Peace Negotiations: A Personal Narrative — John Shaqi
The Peace Negotiations: A Personal NarrativeLansing, Robert
History
The Peace Negotiations: A Personal Narrative
Lansing, Robert
League of Nations; Paris Peace Conference (1919-1920); Wilson, Woodrow, 1856-1924
My own views as to the relative value of the settlement of an
international controversy, which is by its nature justiciable, by a body
of diplomats and of the settlement by a body of trained jurists were
fully set forth in an address which I delivered before the American Bar
Association at its annual meeting at Boston on September 5,1919.
An extract from that address will show the radical difference between
the President's views and mine.
"While abstract justice cannot [under present conditions] be depended
upon as a firm basis on which to constitute an international concord
for the preservation of peace and good relations between nations,
legal justice offers a common ground where the nations can meet to
settle their controversies. No nation can refuse in the face of the
opinion of the world to declare its unwillingness to recognize the
legal rights of other nations or to submit to the judgment of an
impartial tribunal a dispute involving the determination of such
rights. The moment, however, that we go beyond the clearly defined
field of legal justice we enter the field of diplomacy where national
interests and ambitions are to-day the controlling factors of
national action. Concession and compromise are the chief agents of
diplomatic settlement instead of the impartial application of legal
justice which is essential to a judicial settlement. Furthermore, the
two modes of settlement differ in that a judicial settlement rests
upon the precept that all nations, whether great or small, are equal,
but in the sphere of diplomacy the inequality of nations is not only
recognized, but unquestionably influences the adjustment of
international differences. Any change in the relative power of
nations, a change which is continually taking place, makes more or
less temporary diplomatic settlements, but in no way affects a
judicial settlement.
"However, then, international society may be organized for the future
and whatever machinery may be set up to minimize the possibilities of
war, I believe that the agency which may be counted upon to function
with certainty is that which develops and applies legal justice."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account