Decolonization of international law: pedagogical mechanisms to confront the multiple forms of colonialism

Abstract

This article presents, from perspectives of confronting the multiple forms of colonialism, the diagnosis that capitalism and colonialism also structure inequalities in the way knowledge is elaborated and, specifically, how internatio-nal law is taught. To overcome these inequalities, critical and pedagogical tools, both theoretical and practical, can be used to confront the colonialism of legal structures. The example of decolonial tools, aligned with third-world approaches to international law (TWAIL), is brought as ways of thinking about international law critically and against the structuring of these inequalities. In this sense, the aim here is to discuss the fact that the theoretical references used in the teaching of Brazilian law have a predominantly Eurocentric basis, which is destined for a certain universality that epistemologically silences alternative narratives. Metho-dologically, a literature review was chosen, since it was necessary to investigate the epistemological bases that format the studies of international law and also because it was important to analyze the critical theories of theorists regarding the idealization of a decolonial pedagogy. A practical-pedagogical proposal was also made, based on decolonial approaches, which enables a critical and deco-lonized view of international law. It was found that the teaching of international law, in a critical manner, can be seen as a powerful tool for overcoming these inequalities in the way law is perpetuated.

Keywords

• critical legal education
• international law
• twail
• postcolonial studies
• decolonial pedagogy