Abstract
This thesis assesses the normative legitimacy of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK). The question is whether UNMIK rule can be morally justified to the Kosovars and therefore imposes a duty on them to comply.
UNMIK is a novel form of political authority. As the civilian side of the UN s peace-building measures after the war in 1999 the interim administration was established to help the Kosovars build a multicultural democratic society. In order to do this UNMIK has taken the role of government, acting a lawmaker and executive. This high level of authority was not reduced when the Kosovars elected an assembly, a government, and a president. UNMIK can still veto any decision made by the new local institutions. Kosovo under UNMIK rule therefore have many of the same features as the former trusteeships under the UN.
The assessment of the normative legitimacy of UNMIK is done using the idea of self-determination as a point of departure since Kosovo under UNMIK rule intuitively seems to violate this principle. As premises for the normative discussion the recent history of Kosovo and the sociological legitimacy of UNMIK is used. Sociological legitimacy is consent from the governed because they think the political authority in question is right, not because they feel forced to or because of self-interest. UNMIK s sociological legitimacy is very low since most Kosovars think UNMIK should hand over its authority to the local institutions. The assessment of the normative legitimacy of UNMIK is done according to a cosmopolitan and a communitarian defence of self-determination. In addition to describing what self-determination is and why it should be valued the theoretical framework includes how to understand the social contract, the question of consent, intervention, and paternalism. Charles Beitz represents the cosmopolitan, while Michael Walzer represents the communitarian point of view. The analysis concludes that UNMIK has normative legitimacy according to the cosmopolitan framework, but does not according to the communitarian framework.
The concluding chapter compares the cosmopolitan and the communitarian approaches and conclusions. The communitarian conclusion is rejected since there is a lack of fit between the motive for defending the idea of self-determination as an expression of a thin morality in international politics and the consequences of applying it. The motive is to accommodate difference. The analysis shows, however, that self-determination at the present stage would be a hindrance to the rights of the members of the minority communities in Kosovo and consequently a detriment to difference. UNMIK therefore has normative legitimacy. That UNMIK has normative legitimacy can be understood as endorsement of a kind of benevolent imperialism since the civil interim administration (UNMIK) takes over a foreign territory not to exploit them, but with the intent of helping the people living there. This is not paternalistic as long as the intent and practice of UNMIK is to safeguard the rights of all members of the Kosovo society. Rather, it can be understood as an application of John Stuart Mill s harm-principle.