The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, addresses the inaugural session of the Voice of the Global South Summit, via video conferencing, in New Delhi on January 12, 2023. Photo Credit: PTI
‘Voice of the Global South’ Summit India recently organized a gathering of more than 120 developing countries which is a commendable step. This will increase the moral burden India’s G-20 Chairmanship, In today’s multi-polar world, where the boundaries between the Global North and South are blurring due to the realignment of interests, the summit refocuses attention on the Global South. In many ways, the summit evoked memories of the historic 1955 Afro-Asian Summit held in Bandung, Indonesia, of which India was a key architect. For the first time, the former colonial territories of Asia and Africa came together in Bandung, igniting a spirit of Third World solidarity and paving the way for the creation of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM). As the late Samir Amin wrote, the imperialist West despised the Bandung spirit and did everything possible to break Global South solidarity.
Although the world is not the same as it was in the 1950s and 60s (characterized by post-colonial solidarity), and NAM has lost much of its steam, the recent summit has demonstrated India’s leadership in championing the cause of the Global South. has been underlined. last seven decades.
respect international law
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his remarks at the summit, called upon countries to respect the sovereignty of nations and the rule of law, and resolve disputes and differences peacefully. From a positivist perspective, this is a welcome message, especially in contemporary times when powerful countries are willing to sacrifice their international legal obligations on the altar of political necessity. We are also witnessing a populist challenge to international law, where states are trying to shirk their international obligations under refugee law, human rights law and trade law, in order to garner support among ethno-nationalists at home Could
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However, from the perspective of the Global South, it is imperative to move beyond a positive approach to international law – a point that scholars of the Third World approach to international law have been making for decades. As Antony Enghi argues , Imperialism has shaped the development of international law with Europe playing a very important role. The theories and principles of international law have a distinctly Euro-centric character, which has, in turn, created a number of structural imbalances when viewed from the perspective of the Global South. While respect for international law is important, at the same time the Global South needs to intensify the regulatory fight to fix these structural inequalities so that international law better reflects its concerns. Making international environmental law principles, such as common but differentiated responsibilities, more meaningful and applying international trade law principles, such as special and differential treatment, are examples of this normative battle. But it also means that the Global South needs to deploy more resources to develop its intellectual capabilities, such as by nurturing an academic community, to take on the Global North’s hegemony in the marketplace of ideas and research. .
reform of international organizations
Both Mr Modi and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar made a strong case for reforming international organizations such as the United Nations (UN). Undeniably the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is also crying out for reforms. The countries that won World War II drafted the United Nations Charter and gave themselves the prized permanent membership of the UNSC with veto power. Geopolitical realities have changed since then but the UNSC is stuck in 1945 with minor participation from the Global South. Thus, the Global South needs to collectively push until the doors are opened.
Incidentally, the Global South needs to reinvigorate other international organizations created to serve its interests. An important organization in this regard is the Asian African Legal Consultative Organization (AALCO), which was created soon after the Bandung Conference. AALCO, headquartered in Delhi, aims to act as an advisory body for its member states in international law. Countries like India should check the performance of AALCO and strengthen it with more resources for better results. Similarly, other regional institutions such as BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) and SAARC should push to deepen South-South cooperation.
nio 2.0
An important glue holding post-colonial states together in the 1960s and 70s was the quest to create a New International Economic Order (NIEO) with a focus on sustainable sovereignty over natural resources. Through the NIEO movement, the Global South established itself as an equal stakeholder in the international economic system. It confronted the unequal economic system of the colonial era with the aim of protecting the interests of foreign investors of the metropolitan powers in developing countries. While the NIEO movement played a role in shaping international law, the triumph of neoliberalism after the oil shocks of the 1970s pushed it into the background.
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Now is the time for the Global South to launch the NIEO 2.0 movement, which must reduce growing protectionism and growing unilateralism in the West, especially in the United States, which deeply undermine the Global South’s ability to benefit from international trade. doing. Plans are already underway on this front at the United Nations with over 100 developing countries, including India, sponsoring a new NIEO resolution last year. The Global South needs to build and sustain the momentum on this initiative.
people-centred approach
One of the unfortunate aspects of the international order has been its fixation with a state-centric approach. However, as Balakrishnan Rajagopal argued, social movements have played an important role in influencing international law-making. An example of this is the 2001 Doha Declaration of the World Trade Organization on intellectual property rights and trade-related aspects of public health, which was adopted after an outcry by patient groups and health activists to make drugs affordable in the wake of the AIDS crisis in Africa. was adopted. Countries of the Global South, thus, need to empower their citizens and allow people’s movements to fight the structural inequalities of the international legal system, be it for climate change or sustainable development.
It remains to be hoped that the recent summit was not a one-off and that the Global South will continue to work in unison and revive the long forgotten spirit of Bandung.
Prabhash Ranjan is Professor and Vice Dean of Jindal Global Law School, OP Jindal Global University. Thoughts are personal.