FLÁVIA SALDANHA KROETZ

In this trilogy "Homo Sacer", "State of Exception" and "What remains of Auschwitz", Giorgio Agamben analyzes important aspects of the human condition and human rights concepts over the centuries. Through an internationalist perspective, and based on the concepts brought about by Agamben’s Homo Sacer, this paper argues that the State of exception is constantly in force, alongside the universality of human rights – thus the coexistence of the universality of the exception and the universality of human rights, not ignoring the debates on universalism versus relativism, and the hazard of imposing a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to every situation. Furthermore, this research explores the denial of the otherness as a means to justify mass atrocities grounded on speeches and policies that reject any kind of diversity. Additionally, taking into consideration the boundaries between the human and the Homo Sacer, this study questions the possibility of an international vindication of human rights, and the legitimacy of external interference in States that are lenient towards violations of human rights. This analysis will be guided by the concept of jus cogens and the role of the International Criminal Court as an alleged mechanism of deterrence of further abuses and reinforcement of International Human Rights Law.