A treaty can be signed in five minutes.
A life can be broken in five.
That gap--between elegant words and messy reality--is exactly what makes IB Global Politics so interesting (and so examinable). When you’re asked, “How effective is international law in protecting human rights?” you’re really being asked to judge whether rules without a world government can still change state behaviour.
The quick exam checklist (what to evaluate)
For IB Global Politics, strong answers usually weigh international law across three lenses:
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Norm-setting: does law define what “acceptable” looks like?
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Accountability mechanisms: can violations be investigated, recorded, and judged?
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Enforcement and compliance: what happens when states ignore rules?
If you can balance all three, you avoid the common trap of sounding either cynical or naive.
How international law protects human rights (where it works)
International law is often most powerful before it ever “punishes” anyone. It sets the language of legitimacy: what governments should do, and what abuses they can no longer defend openly.
In IB Global Politics, this matters because legitimacy shapes power. A state accused of violating widely recognised human rights faces reputational costs--pressure from allies, media scrutiny, and domestic blowback. Even when enforcement is weak, the changes the conversation.
