allowing a danger to continue . A seemingly minor human rights issue , if unchecked , may develop into a major security catastrophe . If another Rwanda or Srebrenica is to be avoided , the international community must be able to draw a line somewhere between routine oppression and genocide .
Justice and consent
Stephen Harwood
A related issue is the morality of institutions . Ahead of a prospective intervention , the involved parties must make clear the precise nature and goals of such action . There may be additional steps that can be taken to rectify a humanitarian crisis without the need of an armed intervention . Intervenors also have a duty not only to end a crisis , but put in place measures which prevent the future emergence of one . They must also be able to create a sense of legitimacy behind the intervention and be prepared to face resistance from a temporarily occupied population .
Liberal defenders of human rights are frequently accused of presupposing a shared
164 moral compass where there is not one . Despite this , there are strong ethical reasons for defending liberal values even in illiberal places . If we were to apply Rawls ’ Original Position thought experiment on a global scale , the contractors would reasonably reach an agreement over the value of human rights enforcement ( Laberge , 1995 : 20-1 , Holzgrefe , 2003 : 31 ). As well as being ignorant of their capabilities and status in a given society , they would also be ignorant of the nature of their society . At risk of living in a society that abuses their human rights , contractors would likely decide on a principle of fair humanitarian intervention . In fulfilling this principle , intervening states must also commit to long-term goals of humanitarian prevention in the target state ( Holzgrefe , 2003 : 27 , Tesón , 2003 : 117 ). With regards to a perceived legitimacy of the illiberal regime , intervening states must consider a risk of resistance in their moral calculations , but this alone should not bar a humanitarian intervention from taking place . An intervention would be stepping outside its humanitarian scope if it were to