In association with the International Commission of Jurists

Public International Law

17 Apr

[Sarah Imani, LL.M. (NYU), is a German qualified lawyer and legal advisor at the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCH) in Berlin. She is responsible for its work on German and European colonial crimes, reparations and restitution as well as critical and decolonial perspectives on the law.] Addressing colonial injustices has not been conceived as a matter of the law for a long time, let...

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17 Apr

[Sebastian Willert is a Research Associate at the Leibniz Institute for Jewish History and Culture – Simon Dubnow in Leipzig and Part-time Lecturer at NYU Berlin]. A central theme of Confronting Colonial Objects is law’s complicity in cultural takings and colonial violence. Carsten Stahn’s book shows how colonial law transformed conceptions of property and culture and facilitated cultural extractions. It argues that law...

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16 Apr

[Oscar Genaro Macias Betancourt is the Former Director of Restitutions at the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a Specialist in International Law on Cultural Property.] "Confronting Colonial Objects" is a timely contribution to the debate on restitution. It explores the multiple layers surrounding the issue of relocating cultural objects to their place or people of origin. The study by Carsten Stahn tackles restitution from a multidisciplinary perspective...

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16 Apr

[Sebastian M. Spitra is postdoctoral researcher at the Department for Legal and Constitutional History of the University of Vienna. He is recipient of the Award of German Legal History Association 2022 for his book Die Verwaltung von Kultur im Völkerrecht. Eine postkoloniale Geschichte (Administering Culture in International Law. A Postcolonial Narrative)] Confronting Colonial Objects by Carsten Stahn is the most comprehensive monograph addressing...

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16 Apr

[Alonso Gurmendi Dunkelberg is Lecturer in International Relations at King’s College London] Carsten Stahn’s Confronting Colonial Objects: Histories, Legalities, and Access to Culture is a fantastic volume that deserves wide readership. International law’s material turn has been the less discussed of all the recent turns – the historical turn, the linguistic turn, etc. The book is therefore an innovative and refreshing take on international law and, as...

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16 Apr

[Carsten Stahn is Professor of International Criminal Law and Global Justice at Leiden University and Queen’s University Belfast] The debate on restitution and return of stolen or looted cultural objects is as old as humanity. In contrast to return of Nazi-looted art, governed inter alia by the Washington Principles, cultural takings in the colonial era have received limited structural attention. The debate has been dominated by...

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16 Apr

The restitution and return of colonial objects is one of the most important sites of debate over engagement with the colonial past. It forms an integral part of claims of reparation for colonial injustice, which have been voiced in the UN for decades (e.g., Amadou-Mahtar M'Bow’s famous Plea for the Return of Irreplaceable Cultural Heritage to Those Who Created It)....

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11 Apr

[Sylvia Acan is a survivor; abducted at 13 years, Sylvia lived in captivity for almost 8 years. Following her repatriation, Sylvia returned to school and completed tertiary level education. In 2011, she founded Golden Women Vision Uganda to provide support to women and children victims of the LRA war, including many victims of Dominic Ongwen.] I am a survivor of the atrocities...

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10 Apr

[Lorraine Smith- van Lin is the Founder and Executive Director of Tallawah Justice for Women e.v, a non-profit association which works to connect, empower and amplify the voices of women leaders of survivor and grassroots organisations.] Introduction The reparations decision in the case of Dominic Ongwen, a former commander  of the Ugandan rebel group, the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) on February 28,...

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10 Apr

[Alejandra Vicente is the Head of Law at REDRESS Renata Politi is a Legal Advisor at REDRESS.] Introduction The recent reparation order issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the case of Dominic Ongwen, a former Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) commander convicted of 61 counts of crimes against humanity and war crimes in northern Uganda, has brought victims and survivors a...

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09 Apr

[Pamela Angwech is the Executive Director of Gulu Women Economic Justice and Globalisation in Gulu, Northern Uganda. She has received numerous awards for her work on human rights and gender justice for victims of the affected communities including the 2017 European Union Human Rights Defender Award.] As a grassroots activist and human rights defender in Northern Uganda, who has worked for...

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09 Apr

[Joseph A. Manoba is a Ugandan lawyer and Co-Counsel with Francisco Cox in the representation of victims in the case of the Prosecutor Versus Dominic Ongwen.] The Ongwen case is in many respects a significant milestone for justice and accountability for the victims of the atrocities in northern Uganda. Dominic Ongwen is the only one of  five commanders of the Lord’s...

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