ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses a public international law controversy involving the Malaysian and United States governments. The Malaysians claim that a capitalist country need not respect 'western' human rights. The United States government disagrees, arguing that market-led economic growth necessarily will drive the development of a universal culture of human rights. The chapter concerns itself with the situation in which parties claim to adhere to rule of law principles, but in practice direct public law towards the needs of a narrow commercial class. In the US defense industry during the Cold War, state interests converged with the interests of the private sector. The oligarchic state model was also adopted during the de-colonization movements by newly independent states. Just as during the Lochner period, the rhetoric of the free market pervading privatization and globalization discussions widely ignores governments' role as proactive supporters of private industry.
