What to Do With Failed States—a Quest for a Solution from the Inside *

Agnieszka Szpak 

Chinese Journal of International Law, Volume 13, Issue 2, June 2014, Pages 251–258, https://doi.org/10.1093/chinesejil/jmu020

1. The phenomenon of so-called failed States poses many challenges for the international community and international law as such. Are such States still international subjects or do they lose their legal personalities? How may respect for the human rights of people living in such States be ensured? What can be done about this failed States problem? Here I will first present the notion of failed States and their characteristic features and then add a few words on the Failed States Index which is the most common instrument used when delving into the failed States issue. The last section will concentrate on the solution to State failure, with special emphasis on a bottom-up approach. In my opinion this solution is highly preferable compared to the others suggested. The reasons for that will be given below.

Full text: https://doi.org/10.1093/chinesejil/jmu020