Category Archives: Events

Event: Trials in Absentia in International Criminal Justice

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IBADate: 8 June 2016 from 14:00-17:30

Venue: The Hague Institute for Global Justice, Sophialaan 10, The Hague, Netherlands

This event is organized by the International Bar Association.

The Keynote presentation will be delivered by the President of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), Judge Ivana Hrdlicková. 

Following the Keynote presentation, two panels of experts will discuss issues related to the theory and practice of trials in absentia: ‘Trials in absentia: human rights law & the judicial process’ (moderated by Dr Mark Ellis, IBA Executive Director) and ‘Effective representation & ethics in trials in absentia‘ (moderated by Ms Anne-Marie Verwiel, expert in international criminal practice).

 Topics to be addressed include

  • Issues related to the fairness of proceedings, including notice to the accused, the right to re-trial, and effective assistance of Counsel
  • The tensions between the promotion of the rule of law, fair trial rights and efficiency of proceedings
  • The future of trials in absentia in international criminal law

The panelists include Mr Geoffrey Robertson QC, the former President of the UN’s Special Court for Sierra Leone, Mr François Falletti, the former Chief Prosecutor of the Paris Court of Appeals, Dr Guido Acquaviva, the Deputy Registrar of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers, Ms Héleyn Uñac, Deputy Head of the Defence Office of the STL, as well as other international experts and practitioners with experience in in absentia trials, including at the Special Tribunal for Lebanon and the Bangladesh War Crimes Tribunal.

Participation is free of charge. However, prior registration is required to attend the event.

You can register by sending the name and email of all attendees to [email protected] before 25 May 2016.

For the full programme of the event, click here.

Book Launch: Foreign Fighters under International Law and Beyond

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Foreign Fighters International LawDate: 31 May 2016, at 7pm.

Venue: T.M.C. Asser Instituut, R.J. Schimmelpennincklaan 20-22, The Hague, Netherlands.

This book, Foreign Fighters under International Law and Beyond, offers various perspectives, with an international legal focus, on an important and underexplored topic, which has recently gained momentum: the issue of foreign fighters. It provides an overview of challenges, pays considerable attention to the status of foreign fighters, and addresses numerous approaches, both at the supranational and national level, on how to tackle this problem. Outstanding experts in the field – lawyers, historians and political scientists – contributed to the present volume, providing the reader with a multitude of views concerning this multifaceted phenomenon. Particular attention is paid to its implications in light of the armed conflicts currently taking place in Syria and Iraq.

Programme:

  • 19:00: Welcome and introduction by Dr. Christophe Paulussen, T.M.C. Asser Instituut & ICCT
  • 19:10: Presentation by Dr. Francesca Capone, Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna
  • 19:30: Presentation by Prof. Edwin Bakker, Institute of Security and Global Affairs & ICCT and Mr. Mark Singleton, ICCT
  • 20:00: Q&A
  • 20:30: Closure by Dr. Christophe Paulussen and Mr. Frank Bakker, T.M.C. Asser Press

Registration for this event is mandatory. In order to register, please click here.

Event: Lecture and Book Launch on the Legal Ramifications of the Armenian Genocide

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The Armenian Genocide LegacyDate and Time: 12 April 2016, at 19:00h

Venue: T.M.C. Asser Instituut, R.J. Schimmelpennincklaan 20-22, The Hague, Netherlands

This lecture, and launch of the book The Armenian Genocide Legacy, is organised in cooperation with the International Humanitarian and Criminal Law Platform.

Speakers:

  • Alexis Demirdjian, Trial Attorney, Office of the Prosecutor, International Criminal Court
  • Nolwenn Guibert, Legal Officer in Trial Chambers, International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia

Alexis Demirdjian will be providing an overview introduction of the book, and one of his co-authors, Nolwenn Guibert will deal with the issue of reparations and compensations.

The book itself is an interdisciplinary volume that Alexis Demirdjian led as editor. It contains 20 chapters drafted by specialists and academics from a variety of disciplines, including law, history, political science, sociology, anthropology, literature, education and media studies.

The main themes of the book are (1) the relevance of the Armenian Genocide in modern-day academic studies, as a prototype to further comparative studies, and (2) the impact of the Genocide on various fields of study in particular questions of identity (anthropology), coping mechanisms (through literature and filmic representations) and interstate politics.

A quarter of the book is dedicated to legal ramifications, including the chances of success of a case before the International Court of Justice, the status of the Armenian case and whether it fits the definition of genocide, sexual violence during the Genocide, the issue of genocidal intent and excuses of counter-insurgency, the issue of reparations and finally questions relating to the failure of judicial systems during armed conflicts.

SCL Lectures are public and free of charge. Registration is not necessary, seats are available on a first-come-first-served basis.

2016 International Criminal Court Summer School

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Date: 27 June-1 July 2016

Location: Irish Centre for Human Rights, National University of Ireland, University Rd, Galway, Ireland.

Default_conf_TopstripThe annual International Criminal Court Summer School at the Irish Centre for Human Rights is the premiere summer school specializing on the International Criminal Court (ICC). The summer school allows participants the opportunity to attend a series of intensive lectures over five days. The lectures are given by leading academics on the subject as well as by legal professionals working at the International Criminal Court. The interactive and stimulating course is particularly suited to postgraduate students, legal professionals, scholars, and NGO workers. Participants are provided with a detailed working knowledge of the establishment of the Court, its structures and operations, and the applicable law. Lectures also speak to related issues in international criminal law, including: genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, the crime of aggression, jurisdiction, fair trial rights, and the rules of procedure and evidence. Continue reading →

ADC-ICTY Advocacy Training

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Date: 16 April 2016

Location: training will take place at the premises of an international court

ADC-ICTY-300x300The Association of Defence Counsel practising before the ICTY (ADC-ICTY) will be holding an Advocacy Training day conducted by Ms. Colleen Rohan. Ms. Colleen Rohan has been practicing criminal defence for over 30 years. She has acted as defence counsel at the ICTY, the EULEX courts in Kosovo and domestically in the USA. She is a founding member of the International Criminal Law Bureau and a member of 9 Bedford Row International.

The topics which will be covered include drafting motions, final briefs and appeals.

Registration is open to all. Places are limited and are allocated on a first come, first served basis. The registration form is available here. 

For more information, see the flyer or visit the ADC-ICTY website.

Call for Papers: 25th Annual SLS-BIICL Conference on Theory and International Law

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BIICLTitle of the Conference: “Beyond our comfort zone? Situating the authority of international lawyers, institutions, & other international actors”

By the British Institute of International and Comparative Law and the European Society of International Law’s Interest Group on International Legal Theory

Date: Monday 25th April 2016, 14:00-19:00

Venue: British Institute of International and Comparative Law, Charles Clore House, 17 Russell Square, London WC1B 5JP

The 2016 theme reflects an enduring question: the concept of authority in international law. That the international legal system is a legal system properly socalled should by now be an accepted fact: even if not always and universally enforced, the validity of international legal rules functions itself as a reason for compliance, quite independently of the nature or character of the actions to be done. The legitimacy of international law, therefore, derives from more than the consent to be bound.

The conference convenors welcome contributions on the concept of authority in international law, including, but not limited to:

  • Theorising about the nature of authority, its relationship to legitimacy and power, and how authority serves to justify the validity of international legal rules;
  • The responsibility of international legal officials (judges, legal officers in international organisations, State legal representatives, international legal practitioners) in upholding the international legal system;
  • The role of international lawyers in performing functions not necessarily linked to their expertise in international law, in particular political, diplomatic or advisory functions, serving on commissions of inquiry, etc;
  • The interaction between international lawyers and experts in other fields, in particular those of a scientific or technical character, and the nature of that interaction in, for example, disputes concerning the environment, cyber, surveillance, etc; and
  • The role of amici curiae in international legal proceedings, the risks and rewards of inviting non-legal expertise into the courtroom.

Continue reading →

Event: The War on Terror, Part II: International Law after Paris

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Guest Lecture co-organized by the International Law department of the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies and the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights as part of the Geneva Academy Wednesdays (GAW) series.

Paris

Date: Wednesday 16 December I 17:30

Venue: Auditorium A2 I Maison de la Paix (Chemin Eugène-Rigot 2 - 1202 Geneva, Switzerland)

Marko Milanović - Associate Professor at the University of Nottingham and Visiting Professor at the Geneva Academy - will explore the key legal issues and challenges arising from the recent attacks carried out around the world by the Islamic State’s followers. In particular, Professor Milanović will address:

  • The interplay between international humanitarian law (IHL), human rights law and terrorism;
  • The geographic and temporal scope of IHL;
  • The law on the use of force, in light of the recent strikes by France, UK and other countries on Syrian soil.

Antonio Coco and Patryk Labuda will serve as discussants, after which the floor will be opened up to comments and questions.

If you plan to attend, please register here.

ADC-ICTY Annual Conference 2015

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ADC-ICTY-300x300Reminder: The Association of Defence Counsel Practising before the ICTY and Representing Counsel before the MICT (ADC-ICTY) will host its annual conference, entitled “The Situation of Defence Counsel at International Criminal Courts and Tribunals”, at the Bel Air Hotel on 5 December from 9:00 to 17:30. Registration is open until 30 November.

This one-day conference will feature four distinguished panels on various topics in relation to the role and importance of the Defence. The keynote speech, entitled “No Justice without Defence Counsel”, will be given by Judge Prof. Dr. h.c. Wolfgang Schomburg and the closing remarks will be delivered  by ADC-ICTY President Colleen Rohan. Panellists will include renowned Defence Counsel, Judges and representatives from various international criminal courts and tribunals.

Participation fees: 35 Euros (including coffee breaks) for external participants, 20 Euros for ADC-ICTY members, students and unpaid interns. Lunch will cost 15 Euros per person upon reservation. It is possible to obtain credits for continuing legal education purposes.

The ADC is looking forward to welcoming many external participants, students and interns. For further information and to register, please contact the ADC-ICTY Head Office at [email protected], and access this link.

Event: Sentencing, Rehabilitation and Perpetrators of International Crimes

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CICJHosted by the Center for International Criminal Justice, VU University Amsterdam

Date: 30 November 2015

Venue: VU University Amsterdam, in Agora 2 (3rd floor Main Building).

Over the past decades, international criminal tribunals and courts have convicted over 150 perpetrators of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. International convicts serve their sentences in numerous countries all over the world, from Mali to Sweden, from Benin to Estonia.

Whereas international criminal tribunals aim to rehabilitate perpetrators of international crimes and cite rehabilitation in their case-law as one of the sentencing goals and a criterion for early release, recent publications indicate that this ulterior aspiration in reality seems to be devoid of a clear conceptualization, thought through objectives and consistent implementation. In the future the International Criminal Court as well as domestic jurisdictions prosecuting perpetrators of international crimes will continue to be confronted with the question of whether, how, and to what extent, to rehabilitate perpetrators of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.

This interdisciplinary seminar brings together scholars and practitioners working on issues of relevance to this intricate and underexplored issue: (i) perpetrators of international crimes; (ii) sentencing and enforcement of sentences at the international criminal courts and tribunals and at domestic courts prosecuting war criminals and finally (iii) rehabilitation interventions for “conventional” offender. The first seminar of its kind, it explores the rationale to rehabilitate these individuals, evaluates past and present practices and searches avenues for improvement.

  • The programme of the seminar can be found here
  • Attendance is free
  • The number of participants is limited
  • Register before 20 November by filling out this registration form

Event: Pablo De Greiff to Deliver Distinguished Lecture on Transitional Justice

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Katholieke Universiteit Leuven

The Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (Belgium)

By the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KU Leuven)

Date: Thursday 19 November, 17:15-19:00

Venue: KU Leuven, Faculty of Theology, Maria Theresia College, Small Aula, room 00.15

Chair: Em. Prof. Marc Bossuyt, Member of the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and University of Antwerp

Rapporteurs: Dr. Pietro Sullo (KU Leuven) & Dr. Estelle Zinsstag (KU Leuven)

17:15 Welcome Prof. Bernard Tilleman, KU Leuven

17:20 Introduction Prof. Stephan Parmentier, KU Leuven

17:30 Distinguished Lecture on Transitional Justice Prof. Pablo de Greiff, New York University and United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Truth, Justice, Reparation and Guarantees of non-repetition

18:15 Questions and Answers

18:45 Final remarks: Em. Prof. Hans Van Houtte, President Iran-United States Claims Tribunal and KU Leuven

19:00 Closing

The lecture is part of a newly established Fund on Transitional Justice at the KU Leuven with the aim to promote research and activities in this field.

The lecture is public and open to all without advance registration.

For more information, click here.