Sam Smith has posted The Architecture of Impunity: How States Launder Torture Through Law and Geopolitics A Framework for Understanding State Crime and Its Counter-Forces on SSRN. Here is the abstract:
Why does impunity for state-sponsored torture persist despite its universal prohibition? This article challenges the conventional explanation of "weak enforcement," introducing the Injustice Laundering Model (ILM). The ILM reframes impunity not as a systemic failure but as the functional outcome of a deliberately engineered architecture. Early in the text, it defines its core concepts, including Sovereign Laundering, which sanitizes abuse internally through a range of tactics with varying complexity, such as Conceptual Laundering (rebranding the crime), Procedural Laundering (which spans from sham inquiries to the full instrumentalization of the judiciary), and Perception Engineering (normalizing the abuse). This is integrated with a spectrum of External Laundering mechanisms, precisely categorized as Mechanisms of Raw Protection, which includes the Geopolitical Shield (blocking accountability with raw power) and Covert Outsourcing (relocating the crime to legal black holes); Mechanisms of Reputational Cover, which includes Legitimacy Laundering (providing a one-way reputational endorsement) and its evolution into Symbiotic Laundering (exchanging legitimacy for mutual gain); and the increasingly significant Economic Laundering (securing silence with financial incentives). This entire architecture is driven by the Politics of Appearance—the strategic need for states to manage their reputation while committing illicit acts.
The model's primary innovation is its integrated framework, which demonstrates how these internal and external mechanisms are functionally interconnected, linking the micro-foundations of impunity—often driven by the convergence of bureaucratic and political interests rather than a single master plan—to macro-level geopolitical bargains. In response, the article also identifies and analyzes the primary counter-force: Transnational Counter-Laundering Networks (TCLNs), which employ adaptive strategies to disrupt this architecture. The model's flexibility is demonstrated by applying it across a wide range of state actors, from a global superpower to shielded regimes. A preliminary analysis of China is also included to test the model's applicability beyond a Western-centric framework.
By revealing how the apparent “failure” of international institutions is often a functional success of the ILM, the model offers more than a theoretical diagnosis. It concludes by providing a practical framework for scholars and practitioners, offering concrete, actionable recommendations to strategically dismantle the architecture of impunity, while also proposing future research to deepen the analysis of the model's components.