In 1979, the world was introduced to Mobile Gundam Wing (Gundam Wing) — an anime that depicts a dystopian future of Earth in the year 0068 of the Universal Calendar. Within Gundam Wing, we are shown that a war rages between the Earth Federation and those subjected to live in space – the Principality of Zeon. So, how did an interstellar war come to existence?
The Earth’s overpopulation and lack of communal resources forced the Earth Federation to begin to create orbital habitats in space. These orbital habitats, named Sides, grew from clusters of small colonies to large self-sustaining populations that were controlled by the distant Earth Federation. The Principality of Zeon knew that the Earth Federation’s claims that it accurately could understand and represent the struggles of those in the Sides were hollow. This is because the Earth Federation leaders were living comfortably on Earth.
The Gundam’s were not from Earth but were built in outer space to help equal the playing field against their Earthern counterparts. Despite the Principality of Zeon’s stance being akin to Patrick Henry’s claim of “no taxation without representation” we are presented with questions that must be answered. First, what laws create the legal framework that apply to the situation presented? Are there any even available? If international law is to apply, what kind of conflict exists between Earth and those outside of it? Secondly, what is the legal status of the Principality of Zeon? Lastly, is the creation of the Gundam Wing Suits in direct violation of the 1967 Outer Space Treaty? Answering these will help decide how and what protections if any that the Gundam pilots would be treated with.
Celestial Law
Celestial law is a relatively newer area of law which means its framework is still under development. Currently, states have agreed via the 1967 Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies (Outer Space Treaty) to follow certain guidelines when it comes to conducting their affairs off world. Article 1 of the Outer Space Treaty holds that states will follow international law when it comes to applying the laws laid out within the Treaty. Furthermore, within the Annex to the Outer Space Treaty we see that the Treaty incorporates resolutions from the United Nations preventing actions that support acts of aggression and other breaches of the peace. Now, that we know that celestial law has incorporated international law into its framework between states it gives us our needed springboard.
A. International Armed Conflict
International armed conflict (IAC) is the most straightforward classification of conflicts. Under Common Article 2 of the 1949 Geneva Conventions IAC occurs when two sovereign states enter an inter-state conflict with one another. This status is affirmed even if one of the states in the conflict does not declare “war.” A simple example would be World War II where multiple sovereign states engaged in conflict against one another. It also applies to situations when one sovereign state partially or totally occupies territory of another sovereign state regardless if the occupation doesn’t include violence. Ultimately, when analyzing if an IAC is occurring, we look to actual events occurring on the ground. No formal declaration or conflict threshold is required to establish the creation of an IAC. At first glance with Gundam Wing, this is perceived to be the conflict between the Earth Federation and the Principality of Zeon. However, the status of the Principality of Zeon makes this analysis murkier.
B. Non-international Armed Conflict
A non-international armed conflict (NIAC) occurs when a sovereign state is involved in an armed conflict with a non-state group. An example would the U.S. fighting against the Taliban or ISIS. The protections and responsibilities are laid out in Common Article 3 of the 1949 Geneva Conventions. Unlike IAC, there is a threshold of conflict that has to be reached in order to distinguish NIAC from internal disturbances like riots, banditry, etc. This distinction is adopted from both Additional Protocol (AP) II 1(2) and the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslovia’s The Prosecutor v. Dusko Tadic case. The first threshold that has to be passed is the minimum form of conflict. To be a NIAC it has to be of such a collective character that the government is obligated to use military forces to counteract the insurgency. Second, the non-governmental groups have to be considered “parties to the conflict” meaning that they have a command structure and have the capacity to conduct military operations. AP II Art. 1(1) offers a slightly different analytical framework for NIAC: “which take place in the territory of a High Contracting Party between its armed forces and dissident armed forces or other organized armed groups which, under responsible command, exercise such control over a part of its territory as to enable them to carry out sustained and concerted military operations.” These aspects of NIAC are crucial and can turn how we approach the situation that is transpiring between the Earth Federation and the Principality of Zeon.
C. Combatants Defined.
The conflict frameworks provide the arena for determining what kind of combatants are to be allowed within their borders. However, not every fighter, soldier gets the ability to be classified as a combatant. Article (4) of AP II states that to be classified as a combatant one must: 1) wear arms openly; 2) wear a fixed symbol; 3) adhere to a chain of command; and 4) adhere to the principles of armed conflict. Typically, members of groups involved in NIACs against sovereign states are not given combatant status which means those individuals lose POW rights – an issue we wont discuss here. This will tie into how we look at both the members of the Earth Federation and those with the Principality of Zeon.
So what are they?
The conflict between the Earth Federation and the Principality of Zeon should be classified as a NIAC not an IAC. Why? At first blush, it seems that the two warring parties are sovereign states. The Earth Federation representing the states on Earth and the Principality of Zeon representing those within the Sides in space. However, the Sides were not designed to be inherently separate from Earth, but rather serve as an extension of Earth’s population and was maintained and operated by the Earth Federation. This means that the Principality of Zeon’s claim for independence exists on land, even if thousands of miles away, belonging to the Earth Federation making the situation a NIAC. The establishment of the conflict being a NIAC reduces the legal protections afforded to the individuals aligned with the Principality of Zeon especially those piloting the Gundam Wing Suits.
The Principality of Zeon members exist within a gray area of the law when it comes to status in the conflict. As stated above, the NIAC determination tends to preclude individuals from receiving combatant and POW status as the Geneva Conventions don’t apply to them except for AP II. So, even if Principality of Zeon members met this criteria, which I think they would satisfy, they still wouldn’t get combatant protection. However, they may get a generic status as a fighter and get protections under national laws for directly participating in hostilities. This means the Earth Federations law would have a lot of controlling weight here on how they would be classified and what rights they might have. What can be guaranteed though for those who fight for the Principality of Zeon is that they would get the protections afforded under Common Article 3 which ensures they won’t get tortured and their human dignity would be respected.
Out of this world
Gundam Wing Suits do not violate the Outer Space Treaty because they do not violate international law. International law contemplates the evolution of weapons and their use in both IACs and NIACs. The boundary lines for weapons really tends to focus on how the state or armed group chooses to use them. This means that an important factor in their use is to see if there is a human element that can differentiate between the targets to ensure a war crime isn’t committed. Here, the pilots of the different suits both for the Earth Federation and the Principality of Zeon have the means to distinguish between civilians and those fighting in the conflict. Further, the suits and their weapons are not designed to inflict superfluous injury and unnecessary suffering upon their opponents.
Watching the Gundam series, the individual suits are able to wreak havoc at a scale that one could equate to that of a nuclear bomb. Yet, the Gundam Wing Suits are not to be banned under the potential classification of being weapons of mass destruction (WMDs). Why? Wouldn’t it make sense that we banned something that could kill that many people? It does. But even in today’s world we still have nuclear weapons despite having a nuclear proliferation treaty that seeks to prohibit further development of this weapon system. Nuclear weapons exist within a gray area of international law; just know they play a critical role in global security despite the collective dislike of their existence. The suits don’t violate the treaty because they haven’t been classified as a WMD, and they are not nuclear based which would be a breach of the 1967 Outer Space treaty. Thus, they are still permitted to exist regardless of their ability to cause havoc at an unprecedented level.
Conclusion
Celestial law is the last frontier of law to be developed. With the application of international law, we are given a basic framework to build upon moving forward. International law provides us the basic left and right limits on how states and armed groups are to act in space, especially when it comes to conflict. This is needed because without guard rails we would see an abundance of issues that wouldn’t have any punishment mechanisms to deter these actions.
International law helps us understand that the conflict between the Earth Federation and Principality of Zeon is a NIAC based on one being a state and the other being an armed group rising up within the other’s territory. Because this is a NIAC this means they don’t get the maximum level of protection because they are not in an IAC and not combatants. From AP II to Common Article 3 to the Earth Federation’s national laws helps us see that Principality of Zeon members get basic protections if and when they are captured during their conflict. This means that
The Gundam Wing suits themselves don’t violate international law regardless of how dangerous people may believe them to be. They have a human pilot which helps them distinguish between protected classes and can make crucial decisions on using certain attacks. Further, the suits are not inherently designed to cause superfluous injury nor unnecessary suffering. Lastly, these suits are not nuclear based, and even if they were to be classified as a WMD I do not see them being banned because we have yet to even a universal ban on nuclear weapons. New weapons will always be a part of war to meet the needs of the conflict at hand. The Gundam Wing suits are just a clear example of this. Their deployment may change the international law frameworks that currently bind the Earth Federation and the Principality of Zeon. Yet, the Gundam Wing suits are not a violation of IHL and the pilots and members of the Principality of Zion are afforded some protections due to the nature of the conflict.