Moral equality of soldiers in war: Necessity of separating jus ad bellum from jus in bello

In a world and age in which wars are a daily phenomenon, soldiers and combatants are often times judged as moral or immoral based on the morality of the war they are fighting. This is not the right path to take, as soldiers are to be judged solely for the way they are fighting in a war, not based on...

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Main Author: Stanar Dragan
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Ministry of Defence of Serbia - Military Publishing House, Belgrade 2016-01-01
Series:Војно дело
Subjects:
Online Access:https://scindeks-clanci.ceon.rs/data/pdf/0042-8426/2016/0042-84261608033S.pdf
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author Stanar Dragan
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description In a world and age in which wars are a daily phenomenon, soldiers and combatants are often times judged as moral or immoral based on the morality of the war they are fighting. This is not the right path to take, as soldiers are to be judged solely for the way they are fighting in a war, not based on the justification of the war itself. Soldiers do not start wars, in reality they do not even have the freedom of choice whether to fight in them or not, nor can they stop wars on their own. They are trapped in a situation they did not cause, and have no power to exit it. Their enemies are not criminals, they are also men in uniforms, following orders from their superiors. This does not mean that soldiers have no moral responsibility whatsoever, on the contrary, they are fully responsible for the way they fight, how they apply violence and how they conduct warfare, and they are to be judged for their actions in combat, and in war in general. Thus it is possible for a soldier to fight justly, even if he fights for the unjust side. Similarly, it is also possible for a soldier to be unjust, even if he is on the just side of the conflict. These two elements must be separated, and judged independently.
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spelling doaj.art-cabad819ac4a4133bc7e7ff6820c46482023-10-10T13:41:55ZengMinistry of Defence of Serbia - Military Publishing House, BelgradeВојно дело0042-84262683-57032016-01-01688334110.5937/vojdelo1608033S0042-84261608033SMoral equality of soldiers in war: Necessity of separating jus ad bellum from jus in belloStanar Dragan0University UNION - Nikola Tesla, Faculty of International Politics and Security, SerbiaIn a world and age in which wars are a daily phenomenon, soldiers and combatants are often times judged as moral or immoral based on the morality of the war they are fighting. This is not the right path to take, as soldiers are to be judged solely for the way they are fighting in a war, not based on the justification of the war itself. Soldiers do not start wars, in reality they do not even have the freedom of choice whether to fight in them or not, nor can they stop wars on their own. They are trapped in a situation they did not cause, and have no power to exit it. Their enemies are not criminals, they are also men in uniforms, following orders from their superiors. This does not mean that soldiers have no moral responsibility whatsoever, on the contrary, they are fully responsible for the way they fight, how they apply violence and how they conduct warfare, and they are to be judged for their actions in combat, and in war in general. Thus it is possible for a soldier to fight justly, even if he fights for the unjust side. Similarly, it is also possible for a soldier to be unjust, even if he is on the just side of the conflict. These two elements must be separated, and judged independently.https://scindeks-clanci.ceon.rs/data/pdf/0042-8426/2016/0042-84261608033S.pdfmoral equalityjus ad bellumjus in bellosoldiersdutycriminalization of war
spellingShingle Stanar Dragan
Moral equality of soldiers in war: Necessity of separating jus ad bellum from jus in bello
Војно дело
moral equality
jus ad bellum
jus in bello
soldiers
duty
criminalization of war
title Moral equality of soldiers in war: Necessity of separating jus ad bellum from jus in bello
title_full Moral equality of soldiers in war: Necessity of separating jus ad bellum from jus in bello
title_fullStr Moral equality of soldiers in war: Necessity of separating jus ad bellum from jus in bello
title_full_unstemmed Moral equality of soldiers in war: Necessity of separating jus ad bellum from jus in bello
title_short Moral equality of soldiers in war: Necessity of separating jus ad bellum from jus in bello
title_sort moral equality of soldiers in war necessity of separating jus ad bellum from jus in bello
topic moral equality
jus ad bellum
jus in bello
soldiers
duty
criminalization of war
url https://scindeks-clanci.ceon.rs/data/pdf/0042-8426/2016/0042-84261608033S.pdf
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