Lenoir discusses piracy cases in the supreme court in 25 journ. Full text of the american journal of international law. Schwarzenberger reading derecho internacional publico. It is obvious that the evidence in this case sets out a frustrated attempt to commit piracy. We use cookies to offer you a better experience, personalize content, tailor advertising, provide social media features, and better understand the use of our services. The charge was not under the domestic offence of piracy of hong kong, but was the international law of piracy, and determined accordingly. The word vice in the name of the court denoted that the court represented the lord admiral of the united kingdom. The vice admiralty court was a prerogative court established in the early 18th century in the colony of new south wales, which was to become a state of australia. It is important for readers to understand that tim is completely misrepresenting the 1934 british case, in re piracy jure gentium. In the matter of a reference under the judicial committee. In so ruling, the privy council consulted a multitude of domestic and foreign authorities, including our supreme courts decision in smith.
The malaysian practicethe malaysian practice see text book p. First, the privy council simply held that piracy included attempted robbery in addition to actual robbery, so the lords did not even need to address whether politicallymotivated violence could qualify as piracy. This interpretation, if applied equally to perpetrators and facilitators alike, would limit the scope of piracy jure gentium to attacks on unregistered ships and create a strange result. Why authors shouldnt worry about book piracy the creative penn. The state counsel submitted that there was no need for a nexus as the offence that was created by the repealed section 69 of the penal code was piracy jure gentium as opposed to piracy by statute and that all states had jurisdiction to try the offence. The application of nexus to universal jurisdiction. This will, however, assist prosecutors little as the case was not a full criminal trial, but an appeal from the courts of hong kong to the privy council on a point of law. A frustrated attempt to commit a piratical robbery is equally piracy jure gentium. According to this gloss, one who steals at sea is a pirate. The offence of piracy can be established even if the alleged acts of violence did not succeed and there had been no damage to the vessel that was attacked or any injury to anyone in the vessel.
Hugo grotius and alberico gentili, a famous international lawyer, condemned piracy jure gentium. This article will examine the history of piracy jure gentium and the law as it currently stands, showing that piracy does not lie within the realm of universal jurisdiction or international. The said court acknowledged that the governments position was supported by unclos and the high seas convention. Piracy jure gentium was defined in article 15 of the high seas convention, 1958 and reaffirmed in article 101 of the 1982 convention on the law of the sea as illegal acts of violence, detention or depredation committed for private ends by the crew or passengers of a private ship or private aircraft and directed against another ship or aircraft or persons or property therein on the high seas or terra nullius. Webb, international judicial integration and fragmentation. The phrase piracy jure gentium is a latin phrase which means piracy by the law of nations or piracy as known in international law. The best basis to address problems of a universal nature is through cooperation or the universality principle. I say nothing about the reception into english law of rules of international law which may affect rights and duties in civil law. Get free access to the complete judgment in in the matter of a reference under the judicial committee act, 1833, in the matter of piracy jure gentium v jcpc on casemine. Piracy is one of those problems that require a universal approach. Jun 06, 2018 another article providing an explanation of how universal law has come to apply to piracy is that of sergie oudman, in the article piracy jure gentium and international law, where he writes. A frustrated attempt to commit piratical robbery was equally piracy jure gentium. But piracy created by municipal domestic, state statute can only be tried by that state within whose territorial jurisdiction, and on board of whose vessels, the offence created was committed.
Crime of aggression before the house of lords journal of. Attorney general of hong kong v kwokasing 1873 lr 5 pc 179 jurisdiction. In the case of re piracy jure gentium 1934 ac 586 it was said. In cameron v hm advocate, 1971 slt 333, the high court of justiciary said that that schedule supplemented the existing law and did not seek to restrict the scope of the offence of piracy jure gentium. With regard to crimes as defined by international law, that law has no means of trying or punishing them.
These courts dismissed the nexus requirementor connectionbetween the seizing state and the legal apparatus used to prosecute those accused of piracy jure gentium, the original cognizable crime of universal jurisdiction. Specifically on the assimilation of international crimes, the court accepted in re piracy jure gentium 1934, a. Universal law and piracy world mediation organization. Pdf tanzanias legal framework on sea piracy an obligatory. In my view, this is not the kind of attempt envisaged under section 65 4a or the common law as propounded by the authority of re piracy jure gentium 1934. See also united kingdom, house of lords, in re piracy jure gentium 1934 ac 586 at 588 per viscount sankey, lc. Operating the pirate ship up until the point of attack would be piracy under cil as reflected in unclos 101b, but the attack itself would not be. Attorney general of hong kong v kwokasing 1873 lr 5 pc 179.
Piracy jure gentium is a crime under international law and the law of nations that is far from gone. The privy council was called upon to define the scope of piracy and concluded that actual robbery is not an essential element in the crime of piracy jure gentium, and that a frustrated attempt to commit piratical robbery is equally piracy jure gentium. From this provision, it is clear therefore that the 1967 amendment to the penal code created in kenya the offence of piracy as known and understood in international law. Actual robbery is not an essential element of the crime of piracy jure gentium. Origion, development and evolution of maritime piracy.
Individual criminal responsibility in international law. But the substantive offence of piracy jure gentium by the law of nations remained at least in theory a civil law offence. Although international law provides for means to define and conceptualize this particular crime in article 101 of the convention on the law of the sea 1982. Keyn 1876 2 exchequer division ex d, 63 203 per lord cockburn chief justice 21 see re piracy jure gentium 1934 a. There are certain acts which are considered piracy by the internal laws of a state to which the law of nations jure gentium does not attach the same significance. A source book for medieval history charles schribners. Courts and last, but not least, opinions of jurisconsults or textbook writers. And in in re piracy jure gentium 1934 ac 586 the privy council looked to international law as a living and expanding code p 592 for the definition of the crime of piracy triable in a british court. Apr 29, 2009 the dutch international lawyer and publicist, hugo grotius, in his book, mare liberum wrote that the sea is open to all nations. The offence of piracy by law of nations or piracy jure gentium is a common law crime recognised in many commonwealth jurisdictions.
A pirate is defined as one who, without legal authority from any state, attacks a ship with intention to appropriate what belongs to it. A vice admiralty court is in effect an admiralty court. Charges of piracy were brought against chinese nationals who had pursued and. Piracy under the law of nations jure gentium may be tried and punished in the courts of justice of any nation, by whomsoever and wheresoever committed. A note on re piracy jure gentium when the merchant of venice was reckoning the hazards to which antonios ships were subject he recalled that along with the perils of waters, winds, and rocks there were waterthieves and landthieves,adding, i mean pirates. International law piracy jure gentium actual robbery not an essential element. The article thus concludes that there is a high seas requirement for inciters and intentional facilitators of piracy jure gentium, but that this requirement will have few practical implications on impunity for facilitators. Since the times of grotius and others, pirates were considered hostis humanis generis. Nonetheless, i cannot resist the obvious quote from the privy council in re piracy jure gentium 1934 ac 586, which responded to the. Piracy as a word was first recorded in the english language in 1419 wolfram alpha, 2009. These provisions replace the schedule to the tokyo convention act 1967. Piracy jure gentium the phrase piracy jure gentium is a latin phrase which means piracy by the law of nations or piracy as known in international law.
This was reaffirmed in re piracy jure gentium 1934 ac 586 and. The jurisdictional challenges to the prosecution of piracy. See section 462 of the senior courts act 1981 and section 6 of the territorial waters jurisdiction act 1878. A high seas requirement for inciters and intentional. A note on re piracy jure gentium american journal of international.
Per terms of the penal code of tanzania, its effect was limited territorially, and so was the nature of the offence of piracy. Full text of the american journal of international law see other formats. May, 2014 pirata non mutat dominium rightful owner is not deprived of his title see textbook p. This, one would have thought a sufficient foundation to conclude there was presently a clear definition at international law. The court noted that according to oppenhiems international law 1905, re piracy jure gentium, and the relevant treaties piracy included any attack or act of unlawful violence. The article goes on to find that state practice shows such prosecutions to be quite rare in fact.
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