Vitoria, Grotius, Pufendorf, Wolff and Vattel: Accomplices of European Colonialism and Exploitation or True Cosmopolitans?

The origins of the idea of humanitarian intervention

“…71 Thus what for Innocent was the rescuing of Christians from 'infidels', for Vitoria it was rescuing innocent victims from 'barbarians'. In view of Vitoria's rationale -above all his 'insidious justification' of the Spanish conquest, 72 presenting it as for the good of the 'Indians', 73 and 'intervention in the name of humanity' 74 as one of the main arguments justifying the overseas Spanish conquest 75 -it would seem far-fetched to regard him as a genuine progenitor of the idea, on any sort of par with Gentili, Grotius and a few others. Vitoria was well aware and distressed by the news of the horrible deeds of the conquistadors, 76 the sheer 'destruction of the Indians' (major discussions were taking place on this very subject in Spain, not least in the University of Salamanca) 77 and was deeply shocked by the 1533 'butchery' of the Incas by Pizarro that freezes the blood in Alexis Heraclides and Ada Dialla -9781526125125 Downloaded from manchesterhive.com at 07/04/2020 11:48:33AM via free access one's veins (as he put it).…”

“…Vitoria was well aware and distressed by the news of the horrible deeds of the conquistadors, 76 the sheer 'destruction of the Indians' (major discussions were taking place on this very subject in Spain, not least in the University of Salamanca) 77 and was deeply shocked by the 1533 'butchery' of the Incas by Pizarro that freezes the blood in Alexis Heraclides and Ada Dialla -9781526125125 Downloaded from manchesterhive.com at 07/04/2020 11:48:33AM via free access one's veins (as he put it). 78 Such acts could hardly be compared, as stressed by Las Casas, to occasional ritualized human sacrifices based on the Aztec religion and accepted by the people in question. 79 In fact Vitoria acknowledged that the slaughter of innocent Indians 'undermined the claim that they were engaged in a humanitarian endeavour' 80 but did not appear to modify his views on intervention on humanitarian grounds.…”

The territorial rights of legitimate states: a pluralist interpretation

“…It ascertains as norms some of the very excuses and justifications that past colonizers used in order to legitimize their territorial expansions, appropriate natural resources, and subjugate peoplesspecifically, the failure by Europeans to recognize forms of legal and political organizations that they encountered in America as equal to European states in their rights and status (Arneil 1992;Kleingeld 2007;Cavallar 2008). Colonial legacies: Under RI, historical territorial claims by states and peoples that were ruled by colonial and imperial powers are, as a rule, null and void.…”

“…Is proliferation 42 As Kleingeld (2007) and Cavallar (2008) illustrate, the legacies of early international lawyers and philosophers are complex and cannot be reduced to nothing but an apology for colonialism and imperialism. The pluralist interpretation (henceforth PI) potentially increases the number of territorial rights holders and claims.…”

Histories of International law: Dealing with Eurocentrism

“…But we have little reason to attack them either as apologists of empire or for celebrating them as humanitarian heroes. 65 The lesson they provide is that of ambiguity. The mere fact of presence in foreign lands under whatever vocabulary -evangelisation, trusteeship, trade, civilization, development -is insufficient as a basis for judgment in a situation where positions are constantly developing and it is unclear where the interests of the protagonists -including indigenous communities -lies.…”