Abstract

At this nascent stage of its development, jus post bellum may most effectively operate as an interpretive framework that can identify and evaluate the moral legitimacy of diverse legal and political practices and actors in transitions. This distinctive claim broader than suggesting jus post bellum governs a strict temporal end-of-conflict period in international law alone. This chapter argues that jus post bellum should be concerned with transitions. Transitions can be described as the move from armed conflict to peace, or from dictatorship to democracy, and can be seen as a response to gross violations of human rights and as an attempt to re-constitute a sovereign political community.