Use of Force Constraints

Purpose

This document defines non-negotiable constraints governing the use, delegation, and limitation of force under the Humanity Framework.

Force is treated as a failure mode of coordination. Its use is constrained to prevent domination, abuse, and escalation.

Core Principle

The legitimacy of force derives solely from its role in preventing greater harm when peaceful mechanisms fail.

Force is never a first solution. Force is never a substitute for governance. Force is never a tool of convenience.

Right to Self-Defense

1. Preservation of Agency

Humans retain the right to defend themselves against immediate and unlawful coercion, violence, or domination.

This right exists to prevent helplessness, not to grant authority over others.

2. Resistance to Domination

No authority may maintain power through exclusive control of force without accountability and consent.

Systems that render populations defenseless while concentrating force elsewhere are structurally tyrannical.

Constraints on Use of Force

3. Proportionality

Force must be:

• proportional to the threat
• limited in scope
• constrained in duration

Excessive force invalidates legitimacy.

4. Necessity

Force is permissible only when:

• peaceful alternatives have failed or are unavailable
• delay would result in irreparable harm

Force used for punishment, deterrence through fear, or symbolic dominance is illegitimate.

5. Discrimination

Force must:

• distinguish between aggressors and non-aggressors
• minimize harm to uninvolved parties
• preserve human dignity even in conflict

Indiscriminate force is forbidden.

Collective Force and Authority

6. Conditional Delegation

Communities may delegate force only under explicit, limited, and revocable authority.

Delegated force must:

• have defined scope
• have defined oversight
• be subject to recall

Permanent or unaccountable force structures are invalid.

7. Transparency and Accountability

Use of force must be:

• observable
• documented
• reviewable

Secret force is incompatible with legitimacy.

Weapons and Technology Neutrality

8. No Technology Fetishism

This framework does not guarantee access to any specific weapon.

Constraints apply regardless of:

• weapon type
• technological era
• delivery mechanism

What matters is impact, not implementation.

9. Prevention of Asymmetry

Force structures must not create irreversible asymmetries of power between authority and population.

When asymmetry exists, additional accountability is required.

De-escalation and Repair

10. Preference for De-escalation

Systems must prioritize:

• containment over destruction
• de-escalation over escalation
• restoration over retaliation

Force that increases future conflict fails its purpose.

11. Repair After Force

After force is used:

• harm must be acknowledged
• responsibility must be assigned
• repair must be attempted
• conditions that led to force must be corrected

Normalization of force is a civilizational failure.

Prohibited Uses of Force

Force must never be used:

• to suppress dissent
• to enforce belief or ideology
• to maintain power through fear
• to compensate for governance failure

Force used to preserve domination invalidates all claims of legitimacy.

Enforcement

Any system or authority that violates these constraints:

• forfeits moral and civil legitimacy
• must be constrained, reformed, or dismantled

Stability built on coercion is temporary. Peace built on restraint endures.

Relationship to Other Documents

• Ethical Principles define the moral basis of restraint.
• Rights and Responsibilities define human protections.
• Governance Models define authority limits.
• Safety and Responsibility define harm constraints.

Summary

Force exists to prevent domination, not to impose it.

A society that requires constant force to function has already failed to govern.

Restraint is strength.