Knowledge Bank

The paper considers whether concepts of citizenship can be translated from the national to the international plane, and argues that the moral positions of individuals, governments, and States are different. It considers the role of law in relation to citizenship, arguing that the law imposes some duties upon citizens, allows some freedom for moral choice and moral initiative, and provides a conceptual framework that supports some but not all patterns of moral responsibility. It then explains the extent to which international law imposes duties upon individuals, governments and States. Finally, it considers the extent to which the current structure of international law is capable of supporting a development of the idea of moral responsibility on the international plane.