On December 12, the 12th session of the series of introductory lectures on law of Wuhan University hosted by the law school of Wuhan University was held in Room 101, teaching building 4, Ministry of Arts and Science. The theme of the lecture was "An Introduction to public international law". Professor Huang Zhixiong was the lecturer. All 2019 undergraduate students from Wuhan University Law School attended the lecture.

Prof. Huang explained the basic principles of public international law from "what was public international law", "what was not public international law" and "public international law and the peaceful development of China".

1.      What was public international law?

At the beginning of the lecture, Prof. Huang asked a question: what was public international law? He pointed out that international law was closely related to our daily life, for example, the international air activities had a close connection with the operation of the rules of international law.

It is generally recognized that public international law came into being in Europe around the 17th century. After the Renaissance, the international relation rules among the nation states gradually formed.

In the development of public international law, jurists played an important role. Grotius was the father of modern international law. His the law of war and peace became the criterion for European countries to deal with international relations in the 17th century. Prof. Zhou Gengsheng studied abroad for more than ten years and wrote the book international law with what he had learned all his life. Prof. Mei Ru’ao served as the chief justice of the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, fighting for our country.

From what he said, Prof. Huang gave the definition of public international law. Public international law was a set of law principles, rules and systems, which was formed from the interaction between countries.

Public international law included international law of peace and wartime law. For a long time in the past, there were frequent wars between countries, so the law during the war has become an important part of international law. Nowadays, peace and development have become the theme of the times. In modern public international law, wartime law cannot keep pace with international law of peace. International law of peace included territorial law, international law of the sea, international environmental law, international organization law, international human rights law, diplomatic and consular relations law.

2.    What was not public international law?

Prof. Huang pointed out that compared with the domestic law, international law had its own characteristics in three aspects: legislation, legal interpretation and application, and law enforcement.

From the perspective of international law making, international law was not a kind of law made by an organ superior to international members and must be observed by all members. Taking United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea as an example, it was not made by the United Nations. The United Nations only provided a place for negotiations and coordinating for them. There was a fundamental difference between the legislation of international law and domestic law.

From the perspective of interpretation and application of law, there was no such a supreme legislative organ above all countries to interpret international law. The jurisdiction of international judicial organs was based on the provisions among the nations. Generally, whether the disputes between two nations could be solved through international judicial organs depended on their agreement of accepting jurisdiction.

When the United Nations was founded, the Security Council played the function of international police. However, there was still a long way to go before it could really played the role of international police.

Through the detailed analysis, Prof. Huang concluded that international law was similar to a separation of powers among equal sovereign countries. Unlike domestic law, international law was not based on domination. Human social activities were inseparable from the observance of international law.

3. International law and peaceful development of China

As an important member of the international community, China still had a long way to go in the study of international law. It was an urgent task to develop the foreign legal affairs, further improve the legal system concerning foreign affairs, and comprehensively promote the legalization of foreign affairs.

As an unique and important legal system, international law was not omnipotent, but it would play a more important role in international communications. If China wanted to go to the center of the world stage, it would need the support of international law.

The lecture ended with applause from the students.

Edited by Su Yi & Wu Liuqing