In association with the International Commission of Jurists

Asia-Pacific

29 Sep

[Debora N. Gunawan is a Doctor of Juridical Science (S.J.D.) student at University of Michigan Law School] The Indonesian government’s response to the August 2025 protests should not be dismissed as mere “excessive force” or even as cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment, it amounts to torture under the Convention against Torture (CAT). This post argues that the crackdown satisfies CAT’s four...

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29 Sep

[Davit Khachatyan is an international lawyer and lecturer, teaching international law, arbitration, and investment law at the Russian-Armenian University and the American University of Armenia] Armenia’s national symbols have long included Mount Ararat, a symbol of cultural and historical significance to Armenians, despite lying just across the border in Turkey. Ararat appears at the center of Armenia’s coat of arms and...

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23 Sep

[Sanjana Hooda is a Lecturer at Jindal Global Law School, O. P. Jindal Global University, India] Revolt does not sprout only out of misery: it is also born from the love of life, from the desire to build a more beautiful existence. Creativity takes the form of a vitality that speaks of the pleasure of revolution.Julia Ramirez Blanco It was indeed the...

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09 Sep

[Róisín Pillay is a supervisor and Ayşe Bingöl Demir is the director of the Turkey Human Rights Litigation Support Project, a Middlesex University School of Law–based initiative focused on strategic litigation, research, and advocacy] In a courtroom in Istanbul on 9 September, a trial will take place that may be all too emblematic of our times. Leaders of the Istanbul Bar...

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29 Jul

[Aakash Chandran (X: @ChandranAakash is the Legal Advocacy and Communications Manager at Asia Justice Coalition.] The international community is currently navigating a turbulent phase marked by armed conflicts, aggression, and manifest violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law. The situation in South, Southeast, and East Asia also continues to present alarming developments, including the escalating situation in Myanmar, exacerbated...

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21 Jul

[Dr Nina Araneta-Alana (she/her) is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Australian National University (ANU) under an ARC fellowship, where her research examines state engagement with and backlash against the international legal order] The arrest of former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte by the International Criminal Court (ICC) is a moment of rare consequence in the often-elusive pursuit of accountability for heads of...

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11 Jul

[Joanna Kulesza is an Assistant Professor of International Law, and Executive Director at Lodz Cyber Hub, University of Lodz, Poland] Following the initial escalation of conflict between India and Pakistan, marked by India’s missile strikes on Pakistan-administered Kashmir on May 7, 2025, tensions quickly de-escalated. Despite this rapid decrease in hostilities, the episode left significant implications for the contemporary understanding of...

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03 Jun

[Melanie O’Brien is Associate Professor of International Law at the University of Western Australia and President of the International Association of Genocide Scholars. Javaid Rehman is Professor of Law at Brunel University of London and former Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran (2018–2024). He is currently Visiting Fellow at the Australian National University Law School...

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02 May

[Dr Henrique Marcos is a lecturer at the Foundations of Law Department, Faculty of Law Maastricht University] This text is inspired by the discussions held at the event “Whatever Happened to TikTok” organised by the Law & Popular Culture Network at Maastricht University Faculty of Law in February 2025. In this post, I discuss the recent ban and subsequent unbanning of TikTok...

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11 Mar

When the news broke that the former Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte had been arrested and detained upon arrival at Manila’s airport from an overseas trip, by Philippine police executing an international arrest warrant, it was the culmination of months of speculation. The political feud and infighting in the Philippines halls of power certainly facilitated this moment. But let us not forget, it’s been the relentless work...

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10 Feb

[Nurul M. Azmi is a Legal Researcher and Ciara Laverty is a Legal Adviser with UpRights, an NGO which builds partnerships with victims, civil society, and judicial authorities to document human rights violations and international crimes, and identify and pursue effective legal pathways to accountability, including in the contexts of Ukraine and North Korea] Recent reporting has confirmed the deployment of...

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