The Human Right of Self-Defence
The Human Right of Self-Defense
David B. Kopel,1 Paul Gallant2 & Joanne D. Eisen3 I. INTRODUCTION “Any law, international or municipal, which prohibits recourse to force, is necessarily limited by the right of self-defense.”4 Is there a human right to defend oneself against a violent attacker? Is there an individual right to arms under international law? Conversely, are governments guilty of human rights violations if they do not enact strict gun control laws? The United Nations and some non-governmental organizations have declared that there is no human right to self-defense or to the possession of defensive arms.5 The UN and allied NGOs further declare that
1. Research Director, Independence Institute, Golden, Colorado; Associate Policy Analyst, Cato Institute, Washington, D.C., http://www.davekopel.org. Author of The Samurai, the Mountie, and the Cowboy: Should America Adopt the Gun Controls of Other Democracies? (1992). Coauthor of Gun Control and Gun Rights (2002). French, Spanish, and Portuguese translations of national constitutions and of English decisions written in Law French are by Kopel. 2. Senior Fellow, Independence Institute, Golden Colorado. http://www.independenceinstitute.org. 3. Senior Fellow, Independence Institute, Golden, Colorado. Coauthor (with Kopel and Gallant) of numerous articles on international gun policy in publications such as the Notre Dame Law Review, Journal of Law, Economics & Policy, Texas Review of Law and Politics, Engage, UMKC Law Review, and Brown Journal of World Affairs. We would like to thank Peter Allen for editing assistance; Tyler Martinez, John Pate for research assistance; Dr. Rob S. Rice (ccat.sas.upenn.edu/rrice/rrice.html) and Prof. Michael Hendy (www.curculio.org) for help with Latin and Italian (Hendry) translations and other assistance with pre-modern sources; and Dr. Jeanine Baker for statistical assistance. The authors are solely responsible for any errors. 4. In re Hirota and Others, 15 ANN. DIG. & REP. OF
David B. Kopel,1 Paul Gallant2 & Joanne D. Eisen3 I. INTRODUCTION “Any law, international or municipal, which prohibits recourse to force, is necessarily limited by the right of self-defense.”4 Is there a human right to defend oneself against a violent attacker? Is there an individual right to arms under international law? Conversely, are governments guilty of human rights violations if they do not enact strict gun control laws? The United Nations and some non-governmental organizations have declared that there is no human right to self-defense or to the possession of defensive arms.5 The UN and allied NGOs further declare that
1. Research Director, Independence Institute, Golden, Colorado; Associate Policy Analyst, Cato Institute, Washington, D.C., http://www.davekopel.org. Author of The Samurai, the Mountie, and the Cowboy: Should America Adopt the Gun Controls of Other Democracies? (1992). Coauthor of Gun Control and Gun Rights (2002). French, Spanish, and Portuguese translations of national constitutions and of English decisions written in Law French are by Kopel. 2. Senior Fellow, Independence Institute, Golden Colorado. http://www.independenceinstitute.org. 3. Senior Fellow, Independence Institute, Golden, Colorado. Coauthor (with Kopel and Gallant) of numerous articles on international gun policy in publications such as the Notre Dame Law Review, Journal of Law, Economics & Policy, Texas Review of Law and Politics, Engage, UMKC Law Review, and Brown Journal of World Affairs. We would like to thank Peter Allen for editing assistance; Tyler Martinez, John Pate for research assistance; Dr. Rob S. Rice (ccat.sas.upenn.edu/rrice/rrice.html) and Prof. Michael Hendy (www.curculio.org) for help with Latin and Italian (Hendry) translations and other assistance with pre-modern sources; and Dr. Jeanine Baker for statistical assistance. The authors are solely responsible for any errors. 4. In re Hirota and Others, 15 ANN. DIG. & REP. OF