Prior to her studies at the EUI, Tianying Song worked as a legal officer at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) East Asia Delegation, in Beijing. With a master's degree in international law and a bachelor's degree in law from China University of Political Science and Law (Beijing), she brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to her research.
The focus of Tianying Song's thesis, Criminal law between cosmopolitanism and war: social and philosophical dynamics within a cosmopolitan war crimes law, is a cross-disciplinary study exploring the meaning and purpose of war crimes trials. She envisions criminal law with cosmopolitan aspirations within the complex environment of war. By adopting a cosmopolitan perspective, her thesis ascribes moral significance to war crimes law and addresses the challenges of moral psychology in the context of war. She delves into the mobilising force of war crimes law, examining how it can influence the motivations of both the global public and participants in war, and foster a collective appreciation for the value of life and human dignity, even towards strangers or enemies.
One of the key findings of her research is that war crimes law serves to criminalise excessive violence during armed conflicts, establishing a minimum standard for respecting human life and dignity in the most challenging situations. She intertwines criminal law with cosmopolitan morality on one hand, and the realities of war on the other. She demonstrates how cosmopolitan solidarity can support the punitive function of criminal law and the protection of intrinsic human values.
However, her research also highlights the normative strengths of cosmopolitan law and the cognitive and motivational weaknesses of individual human agents in war. By drawing on extensive psychological evidence, individual soldier accounts, and war studies, Tianying Song exposes how war undermines the normative outlook and exacerbates the psychological vulnerabilities of ordinary soldiers. In this context, she argues that cosmopolitan moral justifications and the rationale behind criminal law may be inspiring and persuasive outside the heat of war and closed military organisations. However, they prove to be less effective in the midst of armed conflict. The social environment of war engenders a general risk of committing war crimes for anyone involved, rendering even the most virtuous individuals susceptible. This corruption of human agency sheds light on the intrinsic moral cost of war and the gravity of the crime of aggression, making it highly relevant to considerations regarding conflicts such as the Russia-Ukraine war and the role of criminal law.
Tianying Song's motivation for choosing this particular topic for her thesis stems from her previous experience working for the ICRC, where she engaged with international humanitarian law and witnessed the devastating consequences of war during a field mission to the Gaza Strip. Her desire to comprehend how the law operates in the context of war led her to undertake this holistic investigation into the role of law in armed conflicts.
The contributions of Tianying Song's research to the field of law are significant. In terms of practical implications, policymaking, and academia, Tianying Song's study urges the general public and policymakers to perceive war crimes as an integral part of the evil inherent in war itself, rather than merely the result of individual agency. This perspective emphasizes that cosmopolitan care for the remote victims of war should encompass not only preventing and punishing war crimes committed by ordinary soldiers but also addressing the responsibility of states, military institutions, and political and military leaders who initiate and perpetuate armed conflicts. By distributing blame for excessive violence in war more comprehensively, prevention and punishment strategies can adopt a top-down approach, enabling a more holistic approach to justice.
Looking ahead, Tianying Song plans to continue participating in international criminal law debates as an academic and policy advisor. She is preparing to publish her thesis as a book and is already working on a new research topic exploring the relationship between religion and international law. She is currently Research Fellow at the Centre for International Law Research and Policy (CILRAP) and Member of the Steering Group of the Coalition for International Criminal Justice (CICJ).