2012-2013 War Crimes Speaker Series
The Migration of International Criminal Law: Moving Beyond the Court Rooms in The Hague
On Thursday, April 4, Larissa van den Herik spoke at WCL as part of the War Crimes Speaker Series. Professor van den Herik, who teaches Public International Law at the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies at Leiden University, discussed efforts to individualize international law enforcement outside the court room.
Ongoing War Crimes and Crimes against Humanity Investigations within Syria
On Monday, March 18, William Wiley spoke at WCL as part of the War Crimes Speaker Series. Dr. Wiley, who has worked at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, and the International Criminal Court, currently serves as lead subject-matter expert at the Syrian Commission for Justice and Accountability, documenting allegations of violations of international criminal and humanitarian law by all parties to the current conflict in Syria. He discussed the challenges of investigating war crimes in the midst of the ongoing Syrian conflict.
Examining the United Nations War Crimes Commission: Lessons from over 2,000 World War Two-era Trials
As part of the War Crimes Speaker Series, the War Crimes Research Office hosted an event titled Examining the United Nations War Crimes Commission: Lessons from over 2,000 World War Two-era Trials. The event wasmoderated by WCRO Director Susana SáCouto, and panelists included Professor Chris Simpson, Author of "The Splendid Blond Beast", AU School of Communication; Kip Hale, Senior Counsel, The American Bar Association Center for Human Rights; Director of ABA International Criminal Court Project; and Shanti Sattler, Research Associate, War Crimes Project, Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy, SOAS University of London.
Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Post Arab Spring: Syria’s Challenges to Protection and Accountability
As part of the War Crimes Speaker Series, the War Crimes Research Office co-hosted an event titled Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Post Arab Spring: Syria’s Challenges to Protection and Accountability with the Women in International Law Interest Group of the American Society of International Law and the American Red Cross. The event, examining the issue of sexual and gender-based violence in the conflict in Syria, was moderated by WCRO Director Susana SáCouto, and panelists included Laila Alodaat, Human Rights Lawyer & Board Member of Syria Justice and Accountability Center (participating via skype); Rafif Jouejati, English Spokesperson for the Local Coordination Committees in Syria & Director of FREE-Syria; and Blake Peterson, Special Advisor at the US Department of State’s Office of Global Criminal Justice.
The Bagosora Judgment: A Prosecutor's Perspective on the Case Against the Military Masterminds of the Rwandan Genocide
As part of the War Crimes Speaker Series, Barbara Mulvaney, Former Senior Trial Attorney at the United Nations Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, spoke about the Bagosora trial, including the field work involved in gathering evidence and witnesses, the treatment of sexual violence, and whether the trial met its fundamental goal of delivering justice to Rwanda.
Atrocity Documentation Projects in Afghanistan, Cambodia, and Syria
As part of the War Crimes Speaker Series, the WCRO held a panel discussion examining war crime and atrocity documentation/archiving projects in Afghanistan, Syria, and Cambodia, and the potential for future prosecutions and transitional justice efforts based on such documentation. Panelists included Patricia Gossman, of the Afghanistan Documentation Project; Mohammad Al Abdallah, Executive Director of the Syria Justice and Accountability Centre; and John D. Ciorciari, of the University of Michigan and Senior Advisor to the Documentation Center of Cambodia.