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Vid kriser som Estoniakatastrofen, tsunamin eller skogsbranden i Västmanland måste myndigheter kunna agera snabbt och effektivt tillsammans. Men detta måste ske utan att lagar överträds och utan att principerna för rättsstaten bryts, något som kan vara utmanande. Dessutom bygger vår krisberedskap i stort på principer och målsättningar som saknar ett bestämt juridiskt innehåll, till exempel ansvars- och närhetsprincipen, och på förhoppningar om att myndigheter och andra offentliga och privata aktörer övat samverkan och förmår komma överens.I denna bok utreds de rättsliga förutsättningarna för krishantering. Därtill ställs frågan hur detta sätt att reglera och styra agerandet i krissituationer faktiskt upplevs av de aktörer som är berörda. Förstår de vad som förväntas, tycker de att detta är genomförbart och uppfattar de var de rättsliga gränserna går?I boken diskuteras också om denna regleringsform gett upphov till oväntade gränsdragningsproblem och principiella konflikter i styrningen, och hur dessa i så fall förhåller sig till etablerade rättsstatliga principer om bland annat klarhet, koherens, rimlighet och kongruens.

As the post-2015 Development Agenda is set to replace the Millennium Development Goals (“MDGs”), one of the most controversial new elements of the new agenda is the rule of law. While all of the official fora for discussing and producing recommendations have concluded that the rule of law (or some variation) should be included, there are still significant challenges to its incorporation in the final Sustainable Development Goals (“SDGs”). The interrelated points of contention have included whether rule of law applies at the national government level, whether it encompasses domestic governance, and how the concept should be defined and measured. Going forward, there are a few key factors influencing whether and how the rule of law will be incorporated into the next round of development goals: 1) the compelling force of traditional views on development in determining member states’ positions in the debate; 2) the continued importance of the United Nations General Assembly (“UNGA”) Rule of Law Declaration; 3) the centrality of the General Assembly’s Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals (“OWG”); and 4) the ease of measurement and implementation of proposed indicators. If incorporated into the new agenda, a rule of law goal will likely include indicators that are easily evaluated and generate little political friction, such as legal identity.

Corruption has been recognized as a key challenge to post-conflict peacebuilding efforts, undermining the legitimacy and effectiveness of state institutions, and compromising key peacebuilding tasks such as disarmament and reconstruction. However, in the short run, accepting corruption might be necessary to finding a political settlement and stabilizing a post-conflict order. Our review of the debate suggests that corruption in these contexts is first and foremost a political problem and needs to be addressed as such. Anti-corruption measures, such as promoting accountability and the rule of law, need to be considered in the context of wider peacebuilding objectives.

This article examines rule of law (ROL) and security sector reform (SSR) linkages in crisis management. In particular, the article looks into why international assistance providers chose to categorize a situation and ensuing response strategy as rule of law or SSR, how this categorization is motivated and explained to international and national partners and stakeholders, and how this categorization affects national laws, institutions and other arrangements in post-conflict and crisis societies. The article is borne out of an observation, based on events in the Arab Spring, that the character of international community responses to rule of law threats and challenges has as a strong focus on security. Rule of law promotion taking place in UN and EU missions has undergone a ‘securitization’ in how reforms are conceived and put into practice, compared with rule of law in development aid and past experiences of rule of law assistance in post-communist transitions.

This article examines rule of law (ROL) and security sector reform (SSR) linkages in crisis management. In particular, the article looks into why international assistance providers chose to categorize a situation and ensuing response strategy as rule of law or SSR, how this categorization is motivated and explained to international and national partners and stakeholders, and how this categorization affects national laws, institutions and other arrangements in post-conflict and crisis societies. The article is borne out of an observation, based on events in the Arab Spring, that the character of international community responses to rule of law threats and challenges has as a strong focus on security. Rule of law promotion taking place in UN and EU missions has undergone a ‘securitization’ in how reforms are conceived and put into practice, compared with rule of law in development aid and past experiences of rule of law assistance in post-communist transitions.