Sure, but how does that apply to the end of a war? War crimes by the losers are more likely to be prosecuted than those of the winners. The winners get to write the rules, and the history. Until there is some solid concept of international government the laws have no more teeth than the eligibility requirements for membership in a garden club. And the harshest punishment they can deliver is invalidating membership or not letting someone join.
Well, no offence, but “the rules of international law are not consistently apply when a war ends with one side defeating the other” is a very different, and much more modest, claim than “International law is a concept, not currently a reality in our world as there is no overarching world government to enforce any rules or laws” It was the claim you made the first time that I was arguing with.
I won’t argue with your restated claim; I have already made the point myself in this thread that the Allied treatment of POWs after the war is difficult to reconcile with the requirements of the Geneva Conventions.
1954, on some items, IIRC.
There can still be a deterrent effect. War crimes are committed during the period when the war is still being fought and, at that point, nobody can be sure which side will win the war. So some officer thinking about killing a bunch of civilians might decide not to take the chance that he might be on the losing side and be forced to answer for his crimes in a couple of years.
I think I’m saying the same thing throughout, it’s adherence by convenience. This thread is about the aftermath of war and I addressed the subject in that regard.
What I’ve always wondered (slight hijack) is what happened historically to soldiers when the war ends, and they’re not at home? Especially on the defeated side. Like for example, what happened to the soldiers on either side after Appomattox? Or what happened to all the Mexicans after San Jacinto? Or after innumerable wars through history?
Here’s what happened to some of the important officers after the war:
They went home.
Well, yeah I know that. But was it somehow organized by one side or the other, or did they all just wander off toward home as best as they could, after the whole Chamberlain saluting episode?
And how did the Federal troops get home? Did they all get stuck with occupation duty? Did some march back to rail depots and get shipped back home? Were they just turned loose wherever they were?
Since the war was being fought in the South when it ended, the rebels pretty much headed home shanks’ mare. After they surrendered and gave their parole, the Federal forces ceased to care about them in any way. Federal troops remained in cohesive units through the end of their enlistment periods, doing garrison duty as required. Most units eventually returned to their respective states and demobbed from there.