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Square Pegs And Round Holes: Mexico, Drugs, And International Law, Craig A. Bloom
Square Pegs And Round Holes: Mexico, Drugs, And International Law, Craig A. Bloom
Craig A Bloom
The drug-related violence in Mexico has become so ubiquitous that President Calderon is using the Mexican Army to fight the drug cartels. This paper argues that this situation rises to the level of a non-international armed conflict and discusses the international legal obligations and rights that arise from that designation under international humanitarian law. It then proposes several means of ensuring compliance with these rights and obligations.
Under international humanitarian law, to qualify as a non-international armed conflict, there must be protracted armed violence involving at least one sufficiently organized non-state party. This requirement does not give any guidance on …