In association with the International Commission of Jurists

Author: An Hertogen

14 Apr

This week on Opinio Juris, Chris Borgen drew our attention to a NY Times op-ed explaining the surprising reason why in the grand bargain dividing the top posts at the World Bank and the IMF between the US and Europe, the US ended up with the World Bank rather than the IMF. Kevin Heller posted the abstract of his response in a mini-symposium of the Texas International Law Journal on Karl Chang’s article arguing that the law of neutrality provides the legal framework for the US conflict with Al-Qaeda. He also referred us to Lawfare for a discussion of the Al-Nashiri prosecution. In a throwback to the Cold War, he also quizzed us on a quote about Cuba following the controversy surrounding Miami Marlin’s manager Ozzie Guillen, and posted about Congressman West’s allegations about Democrats being members of the Communist Party. He also critiqued ICC Prosecutor Moreno-Ocampo for undermining the OTP's credibility in Côte d'Ivoire. Peter Spiro wondered about the cautionary lessons for legal academics of “postparadigmism” in International Relations and discussed a European Court of Human Rights decision denying Greek non-resident citizens the right to vote in the Greek parliamentary elections from their foreign place of residence. Ken Anderson posted about a speech by the CIA’s General Counsel at Harvard Law School. In her post on this speech, Deborah Pearlstein discussed the authority for the CIA’s use of force under US constitutional law and the restraints on this use of force under international law.
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12 Apr

Two calls for papers for ASIL events are closing on April 15 and April 20 Second Annual ASIL Research Forum October 20-21, 2012, Athens, GA The American Society of International Law calls for submissions of scholarly paper proposals for the ASIL Research Forum to be held at the University of Georgia School of Law on October 20-21, 2012. The Research Forum, a Society initiative...

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08 Apr

Opinio Juris is proud to bring you a new regular feature aggregating all calls for papers, conference and event announcements that we receive. If you are organizing a conference or other event and would like to see the call for papers or the program announced on Opinio Juris please contact us. Calls for Papers Panel proposals for the International Law Weekend 2012, to...

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07 Apr

Roger Alford kicked off the new week with quotable quotes from the ASIL Annual Meeting. Also on ASIL, Julian Ku posted an excerpt from his report on the Chevron-Ecuador panel. Ken Anderson reported on the first decision by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights to recognize unlawful discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Julian Ku sensed a trend of US civil...

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05 Apr

As an advance group of UN peacekeepers arrived in Syria for talks on the monitoring of the ceasefire, violence erupted again. Russia is seeking more influence in the Syrian situation, and has invited the Syrian foreign minister and representatives of the Syrian opposition for separate talks in Moscow, on 10 April and 17-18 April respectively. Russia also urges other states not...

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04 Apr

A part of the Syrian peace plan, brokered at the behest of Kofi Annan, includes the deployment of 250 UN peacekeepers for a ceasefire monitoring mission, scheduled for arrival in Syria in the next 48 hours. Russia accuses the "Friends of Syria" group that met in Istanbul over the weekend of undermining the UN Special Envoy Kofi Annan's peace plan. After bombs...

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03 Apr

On the 30th anniversary of the Falklands Islands/Las Malvinas invasion, Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner decried the existence of a "colonialist enclave" in the 21st century as an injustice. At a remembrance ceremony in the UK, UK Prime Minister David Cameron referred to the Islanders' right of self-determination. According to Kofi Annan, Syria has agreed to a ceasefire starting on...

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02 Apr

A New Hampshire woman will be retried for immigration fraud. She allegedly lied about her involvement in the Rwandan genocide when applying for asylum in the US. US authorities deported a former leader of the Liberian Peace Council who had been living in Rochester since 2006 to the West African country. He is suspected of human rights abuses and war crimes,...

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01 Apr

The VU University Amsterdam is pleased to announce it will hold a conference on international criminal law titled 'Pluralism v. Harmonization: National Adjudication of International Crimes.' Opinio Juris' own Kevin Jon Heller and recent guest contributors Mark Drumbl and Jens Ohlin are among the impressive line-up of speakers. The event will take place at the KNAW's Trippenhuis in the center of...

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31 Mar

This week many of our readers will have attended ASIL’s 106th Annual Meeting. If you weren’t in Washington DC, we brought you Harold Hongju Koh’s statement regarding Syria (with the possibility to comment here). Deborah Pearlstein drew conclusions for further research from the panel on international humanitarian law and international human rights law. Via ASIL Cables, you could also read...

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31 Mar

Recent guest-poster, Professor Tai-Heng Cheng, has an interview on ASIL Cables with Professor James Crawford, this year's recipient of the Manley O. Hudson Medal:
Tai-Heng Cheng (THC): Congratulations on receiving the Manley O Hudson medal, Professor Crawford.  Your many accomplishments are well known to our members, and I was wondering what achievements in your career have you found most meaningful? James Crawford (JC): Thank you.  There have been too many moments to mention them all, but perhaps there are a few that stand out.  There was my time on the Australian Law Reform Commission in the 1980s when I worked on indigenous rights, admiralty and state immunity – quite a mixture.  I have a special place in my memory for my first case before the International Court of Justice, Certain Phosphate Lands in Nauru, in which I acted alongside Ian Brownlie representing the Republic of Nauru. Another case before the Court which stands out for me was the Gabčikovo-Nagymaros Project decision, which was my first lead in the Court.  Serving as Special Rapporteur on State Responsibility in the years leading to the adoption of the International Law Commission’s Articles on State Responsibility, was a particular highlight.  Latterly I’ve enjoyed working with terrific teams on cases for Colombia and Costa Rica, among others.  And a recent intense effort was the 8th edition of Brownlie’s Principles, which comes out in August. THC:  Looking back at the evolution of international law since 1945, what are some of the most significant developments? JC:  The most obvious developments have probably been in connection with the evolving position of the individual under international law – in the fields of international criminal law and international human rights law particularly.  Both of these fields were embryonic in the years following World War II and have since expanded exponentially.  Related to this is the development of investor-state arbitrations, with private entities bringing growing numbers of disputes against foreign states directly under bilateral and multilateral investment treaties, without needing to rely on diplomatic protection.  Our understanding of self-determination under international law has also changed since 1945, when it was primarily associated with decolonisation and the formation of new states, whereas it has since developed into a wider notion encompassing the ongoing guarantee of fundamental human rights and democratic accountability within existing states.  Some see these changes as an erosion of state sovereignty, but I would argue that sovereignty remains very much the foundation of our system of international law, and that the notion of sovereignty is flexible enough to accommodate modifications without collapsing altogether.
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30 Mar

At their fourth summit in New Delhi, the BRICS leaders established a high level working group to examine the creation of their own development bank. One commentator questions the feasibility and argues that it may result in a dilution of influence at the World Bank. The BRICS' Delhi Declaration confirms the primary role of the G20, which will be presided by Russia...

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