Basic Considerations of Humanity in Relation to Diplomatic and Consular Law

The adoption of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and the 1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, followed by their wide acceptance by the member States of the international community, was soon to be reckoned as a landmark in the codification of modern International Law. It was attributed to their pertaining to State conduct, rather than to "the substance of inter-State relations. Turning to the contemporary international practice on the matter, it may be pointed out that two weeks after the adoption of Advisory Opinion n. 16 by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights [IACtHR], the Ministry of External Relations of Mexico issued a circular note to all its diplomatic and consular posts stressing the importance of that Advisory Opinion and of due compliance with it. The matter dealt with in the Advisory Opinion was already occupying a special place, in recent years, in Mexico's diplomatic and consular practice.Keywords:consular law; diplomatic law; humanity; International Law