LCP4801
Assignment 2
Due 2025
, LCP4801
ASSIGNMENT 2 (Semester 2, 2025)
Question 1
1.1 What does the acronym TWAIL stand for?
TWAIL is an acronym for Third World Approaches to International Law. It refers to a
critical legal perspective that interrogates the foundations and operations of international
law from the viewpoint of countries historically categorized as part of the Third World.
This school of thought argues that traditional international legal structures have largely
served the interests of powerful, often Western, states while marginalizing the voices
and experiences of developing nations, particularly those with a history of
colonization.
1.2 What inspired the emergence of the TWAIL movement?
The origins of the TWAIL movement are rooted in the colonial experiences of
countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean, and how international
law was used as a tool of imperial domination. During the colonial era, European
powers relied on legal doctrines—such as terra nullius and the "standard of
civilization"—to justify the subjugation, occupation, and exploitation of non-
European peoples and their resources.
Even after decolonization, many of these newly independent states discovered that the
international legal order continued to reflect the power imbalances and structural
inequalities of the colonial period. Institutions such as the United Nations, World
Bank, and International Monetary Fund were dominated by former colonial powers,
and legal rules often failed to reflect the lived realities and development needs of the
Global South.
As a response to this, TWAIL scholars and practitioners emerged to critically
challenge the Eurocentric origins and operations of international law. They called
Assignment 2
Due 2025
, LCP4801
ASSIGNMENT 2 (Semester 2, 2025)
Question 1
1.1 What does the acronym TWAIL stand for?
TWAIL is an acronym for Third World Approaches to International Law. It refers to a
critical legal perspective that interrogates the foundations and operations of international
law from the viewpoint of countries historically categorized as part of the Third World.
This school of thought argues that traditional international legal structures have largely
served the interests of powerful, often Western, states while marginalizing the voices
and experiences of developing nations, particularly those with a history of
colonization.
1.2 What inspired the emergence of the TWAIL movement?
The origins of the TWAIL movement are rooted in the colonial experiences of
countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean, and how international
law was used as a tool of imperial domination. During the colonial era, European
powers relied on legal doctrines—such as terra nullius and the "standard of
civilization"—to justify the subjugation, occupation, and exploitation of non-
European peoples and their resources.
Even after decolonization, many of these newly independent states discovered that the
international legal order continued to reflect the power imbalances and structural
inequalities of the colonial period. Institutions such as the United Nations, World
Bank, and International Monetary Fund were dominated by former colonial powers,
and legal rules often failed to reflect the lived realities and development needs of the
Global South.
As a response to this, TWAIL scholars and practitioners emerged to critically
challenge the Eurocentric origins and operations of international law. They called
