International Law Prof Blog

Freedom of the Press in Foreign Countries

On Thursday the U.S. Senate passed HR 3714, which would amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to include in the Annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices information about freedom of the press in foreign countries.

Hat tip to the ABA Governmental Affairs Office

(mew)

UN Security Council Adopts Piracy Resolution

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) unanimously adopted Resolution 1918 on April 27 calling on Member States to criminalize piracy in their domestic laws and to consider prosecuting pirates in domestic courts.  The Resolution also directs the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki Moon, to prepare a report on possible options for prosecution of pirates in the future, including the feasibility of establishing a regional or international tribunal to prosecute pirates.  The Secretary General is to present that report to the UNSC within three months.

(cgb) 

EU Provides Ukraine with To-Do List for Closer Relations

The European Union (EU) recently provided Ukraine with a "honey do" list of 18 tasks if Ukraine wishes to have a closer relationship with the EU and eventually become an EU member.  Ukraine is already a priority partner country under the European Neighborhood Policy and hopes to establish free trade with the EU by signing an Association Agreement later this year.  

The European Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighborhood Policy, Stefan Fule, presented the list of reforms to Ukraine this week.  The list includes reforms in the areas of government, finance, business, energy and the environment.  Fule's April 28 remarks on this topic may be found here.  Many of the tasks are accompanied by specific incentives.  For example, judicial reform to improve the efficiency and independence of the judiciary may lead to an additional 10 million euros in aid.  Financial aid of 610 million euros is tied to financial reforms including the resumption of payments on a loan from the International Monetary Fund which were suspended when Ukrainian legislators could not agree on a budget last year.  (Perhaps these incentives will be more successful in accomplishing the "honey-do" list than in my home.)  The ability of Ukrainian legislators to agree on a package of reforms is in doubt, however, after recent media broadcasts of fighting and egg-throwing in the parliament.  If you haven't already seen it, the video can be found here.

(cgb)

Midwest Association for Canadian Studies

The 2010 Midwest Association for Canadian Studies Conference -- Building Bridges between Countries and Disciplines -- will take place October 22-24 at The University of Windsor.  

The deadline for proposals is May 15 and conference papers on all topics related to Canada and Canadian Studies are welcome.  Click here to read the Call for Papers.

Additional details are available on the website for the Midwest Association for Canadian Studies. 

Hat tip to Jennifer Herlein, Public & Governmental Affairs Officer / Attachée aux affaires publiques & gouvernementales, Quebec Government Office in Chicago / Délégation du Québec à Chicago

Practical Lawyering Skills Conference in Thailand

The International Association of Organizational Innovation is organizing its first Southeast Asian Symposium for Lawyering Skills at Siam University in Bangkok, Thailand, from August 4-6, 2010. The symposium will focus on lawyers from Southeast Asia, Oceania, and the United States and provide attendees with an opportunity to share information about practical lawyering skills, including writing, oral advocacy, drafting, and client representation.

The principal organizer is Professor Kirsten Dauphinais, the Director of Lawyering Skills at the University of North Dakota School of Law. She invites lawyers in Thailand and neighboring countries near Thailand to attend or sponsor this new and exciting event.  Further information about the conference and the International Association of Organizational Innovation is available by clicking here. 

If you have an interest in attending, please send an expression of possible interest to Professor Dauphinais at kdauphinais [at] law.und.edu.

Hat tip to Kirsten Dauphinais 

 

(mew)

Using U.S. Influence to Help Haiti Cancel its Debts

U.S. President Barack Obama has signed H.R. 4573 (PL 111-158), a law that directs the secretary of the U.S. Treasury to instruct the U.S. executive directors at the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, and other multilateral development institutions to use the voice, vote, and influence of the United States to cancel immediately and completely Haiti’s debts to those institutions.

Hat tip to the ABA Office of Government Affairs.

(mew)

New International Legislation to Protect Minors, Extend International Organizations Immunity Act, and Congratulate Baltic States on 20 Years of Independence

The following pieces of legislation have been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives

HR 5137 (Crowley, D-NY), to amend Title 18, United States Code, to provide penalties for transporting minors in foreign commerce for the purposes of female genital mutilation; to Judiciary. H2876, Congressional Record 4/26/10.

HR 5138 (Smith, R-NJ), to protect children from sexual exploitation by mandating reporting requirements for convicted sex traffickers and other registered sex offenders intending to engage in international travel, providing advance notice of intended travel by high interest registered sex offenders outside the United States to the government of the country of destination, and requesting foreign governments to notify the United States when a known child sex offender is seeking to enter the United States; to Foreign Affairs. H2876, Congressional Record 4/26/10.

HR 5139 (Berman, D-CA), to provide for the International Organizations Immunities Act to be extended to the Office of the High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina and in the International Civilian Office in Kosovo; to Foreign Affairs. H2876, Congressional Record 4/26/10.

H Con Res 267 (Shimkus, R-IL), congratulating the Baltic regions of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania on the 20 th anniversary of the reestablishment of their full independence; to Foreign Affairs. H2877, Congressional Record 4/26/10.

Hat tip to the ABA Government Affairs Office

(mew)

U.S.-Cuba Relations

The U.S. House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee will hold a hearing on U.S.-Cuba policy on Thursday, April 29, 2010 at 10:00 a.m. in Washington D.C. (Room 1100 of the Longworth Office Building). The hearings will before the Trade Subcommittee will focus on whether relaxing current Cuba travel and trade restrictions would advance U.S. economic objectives, democracy, and human rights in Cuba.

Hat tip to the ABA Government Affairs Office

(mew)

New Book on "Stakeholders in the Law School"

Fiona Cownie, a professor of law at Keele University, has published what appears to be an interesting book on legal education.  The book brings together a distinguished group of researchers to examine the power relations which are played out in university law schools as a result of the different pressures exerted upon them by a range of different stakeholders, including students, governments, lawyers, and universities. Here's the information about the book in case you want to investigate further.

Jan 2010    268pp    Pbk    9781841137216    US$60

Published by Hart Publishing Ltd, 16C Worcester Place, Oxford, OX1 2JW, UK

Telephone number: 01865 517530; Fax Number: 01865 510710 Website http://www.hartpub.co.uk

(mew)

ABA Section of International Law -- Canada Committee

The American Bar Association Section of International Law has approximately 60 committees that focus on substantive areas of international law practice and on specific regions of the world. 

One of those committees is the Canada Committee.  The Canada Committee focuses on programs and policy dealing with international and cross-border aspects of issues affecting Canada and its trading partners across a broad range of areas, including

• national security,
• cross-border litigation,
• privacy,
• government procurement,
• product safety regulation,
• antitrust,
• trade remedies,
• insolvency,
• customs,
• immigration,
• economic sanctions
• export controls,
• financing,
• M&A,
• public law, and
• bilateral and multilateral trade and investment agreements, including NAFTA and the agreements of the World Trade Organization.

For more information about the ABA Section of International Law, click here.

For more information about the Canada Committee, click here.

If you're a member of LinkedIn (and a member of the ABA and the ABA Section of International Law), you can join the group for the Canada Committee on LinkedIn.  Click here for more information about the Canada Committee Group on Linked In.

(mew)

World Intellectual Property Day

April 26, 2010 represents the 10th Anniversary of World Intellectual Property Day.  The membership growth in international treaties protecting intellectual property (IP) and harmonizing IP laws has grown significantly since the creation of the TRIPS Agreement (Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property) became part of the multilateral World Trade Organization (WTO) family of agreements. However, protection of intellectual property continues to be a delicate balancing act.  On the one hand, IP protection provides incentives to creative persons who know they will reap the financial rewards of their hard work and will be able to control what happens with their creations, at least for a number of years.  We need to encourage continued innovation to find solutions to disease, hunger and climate change.  On the other hand, too great protections for IP can limit access to needed medicines and jeopardize farmers' ability to re-use seed to start next year's crops.  Thus, the world community might consider using this anniversary to examine whether a proper balance is being struck between these competing interests.

(cgb) 

Paraguay Suspends Due Process

Yesterday, the Paraguayan Congress voted to give the President and army emergency powers to deal with guerillas who are responsible for kidnappings in the northern part of the country.  The Congress proclaimed constitutional order at risk and declared a 30-day emergency in a five-state region.  Pursuant to his new emergency powers, President Fernando Lugo will be able to order arrests and transfers of suspects without court approval.  The law also limits other freedoms, such as the freedom of assembly, to limit protests.  The Paraguayan Minister for the Interior emphasized the temporary and limited nature of the emergency powers, which do not alter the country's democratic form.

The guerilla group, known as the Paraguayan People's Army, claims to be kidnapping people for ransom which will be used to finance political change to help the rural poor.  Since 2008, it has raised $700,000 in the kidnappers of two wealthy ranchers.  It also has been accused of killing police and civilians in attacks on police stations and military posts.

Many human rights treaties permit State Parties to derogate from certain human rights obligations in times of national emergency.  Article 4 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) is an example of such a derogation clause.  However, certain rights, such as the right to life and the right to be free from slavery and torture, are considered so fundamental that no derogation is permitted.  To invoke the derogation clause, a State Party such as Paraguay is required to publicly announce a state of emergency, to report to the United Nations (UN) and to provide an ending date for the derogation.  While news reports did not indicate whether Paraguay has officially reported to the UN, it appears to have met the other preconditions of article 4 of officially proclaiming a national emergency and providing a date of termination.

(cgb)

State Department Invites Grant Proposals for U.S.-Afghanistan Professional Partnership Program

In his December 1, 2009, speech in West Point, New York, U.S. President Barack Obama said that a new diplomatic initiative in Afghanistan would be part of the U.S. strategy to bring peace and stability in the Afghanistan/Pakistan region.

As part of this initiative, the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) of the U.S. Department of State is seeking proposals for a new program, called ``The U.S./Afghanistan Professional Partnership Program.''

This program will bring young professionals from the two countries together to develop cross cultural relationships and develop professional skills that will positively impact people's lives and will result in stronger ties between the two nations. 

Applications are due by May 21, 2010.  The ECA expects to award one grant of $1.2 million for this project.  Get more information at 75 Fed. Reg. 18005 (2010) or click here.

(mew)

U.N. Envoy Appointed to Help Resolve Guyana-Venezuela Border Controversy

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon appointed Norman Girvan--a respected diplomat, academic, and economist from Jamaica--to assist Guyana and Venezuela in resolving a long-standing border controversy.

Mr. Girvan’s appointment responds to a request from the parties to resume the Secretary-General’s good offices, which were suspended in 2007 after the death of Oliver Jackman, who had previously served as the U.N. Secretary-General’s Personal Representative on the Border Controversy between Guyana and Venezuela. 

Mr. Girvan was Secretary General of the Association of Caribbean States from 2000-2004.  He is currently a Professorial Research Fellow at the University of the West Indies’ Institute of International Relations.

(mew) 

Leadership Nominations for the International Association of Law Schools (IALS)

The nominating committee of the International Association of Law Schools has released the following nominations for officers and board members:

 

IALS Officers and Date of Expiration of Term in Office

Mónica Pinto, IALS President, University of Buenos Aires, Argentina (2011)

Francis SL Wang, IALS President-Elect, Kenneth Wang School of Law, Soochow University, China (2011)

Carl Monk, IALS General Secretary / Treasurer, USA (2011)  

IALS Board Members (with terms expiring in 2010)

Mariam Hassan al-Khalifa, University of Bahrain College of Law, Kingdom of Bahrain (2010)

Noor Aziah Haji Mohd Awal, National University of Malaysia Faculty of Law, Malaysia (2010)

Roger Burridge, University of Warwick School of Law, United Kingdom (2010)

Michael Coper, Australian National University Faculty of Law, Australia (2010)

Claudio Grossman, American University Washington College of Law, United States (2010)

Chuma C. Himonga, University of Cape Town Faculty of Law, South Africa (2010)

Reem Bahdi, University of Windsor, Canada (2011)

Nerina Boschiero, University of Milan Faculty of Law, Italy (2012)

Fatou Kiné Camara, University of Dakar (Universite Cheikh Anta Diop), Senegal (2011)

Lidia Casas, Diego Portales University Faculty of Law, Chile (2012)

Dakas C. J. Dakas, University of Jos, Nigeria (2011)

V.S. Elizabeth, National Law School of India University, India (2012)

Aalt Willem Heringa, Maastricht University Faculty of Law, The Netherlands (2012)

Cheng Han Tan, National University of Singapore Faculty of Law, Singapore (2012)

Fernando Villarreal-Gonda, Facultad Libre de Derecho de Monterrey, Mexico (2011)

Hariolf Wenzler, Bucerius Law School, Germany (2011

Nominations for Newly Elected IALS Board Members (Terms Expire 2013)

Michael Coper, Australian National University Faculty of Law, Australia

Akram Daoud, An-Najah National University Faculty of Law, Palestine

Claudio Grossman, American University Washington College of Law, United States

Mohd Akram bin Shair Mohamed, International Islamic University Malaysia Ahmad Ibrahim Kulliyyah Of Laws

Valentina Smorgunova, Herzen State Pedagogical University, Russia

Amy Tsanga, University of Zimbabwe Faculty of Law, Zimbabwe

Hat tip to Jane LaBarbera

 

(mew)

 

Whitney Harris, Former Prosecutor at Nuremberg, Has Died

We are sorry to report that Whitney Robson Harris died yesterday, at the age of 98, at his home in St. Louis, Missouri.  He was the last surviving prosecutor who appeared before the International Military Tribunal (IMT) at Nuremberg during the trial of the principal surviving Nazi war criminals.

The following information comes from an email from Professor John Q. Barrett of St. John’s University School of Law.

At Nuremberg during 1945 and 1946, then Lieutenant-Commander Harris (United States Navy), serving as U.S. Trial Counsel, was primarily responsible for the prosecutions of defendant Ernst Kaltenbrunner, former Chief of the Reichssicherheitshauptamt (RSHA, or Reich Main Security Office), and defendant organizations the RSHA, the Gestapo and the Sicherheitsdienst (SD, or Security Service).  Whitney Harris also was a principal, trusted aide to U.S. chief prosecutor Justice Robert H. Jackson and assisted him throughout the trial, including during his cross-examination of defendant Hermann Goering.

Here is a video clip that shows Whitney Harris in Nuremberg.

 

 

Whitney Harris was the Chair of the American Bar Association Section of International Law from 1953-54.  He also served as Executive Director of the American Bar Association.

He was a graduate of the University of Washington and the University of California Berkeley Boalt Hall School of Law.  As a young lawyer, he was in private practice in Los Angeles.  Following Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor, he enlisted in the Navy.  During his World War II Navy service, he was recruited to the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), where his assignments included work relating to war crimes.  In London during summer 1945, he assisted Justice Jackson’s staff informally.  He soon was recruited to join the staff and became one of its most important members at Nuremberg.

After Nuremberg, Whitney Harris served successively as Chief of Legal Advice during the Berlin Blockade, as a law professor at Southern Methodist University, as director of the Hoover Commission's Legal Services Task Force, as the first Executive Director of the American Bar Association, and as Solicitor General of Southwestern Bell Telephone Company in St. Louis.  He authored Tyranny on Trial, a monumental account of the Nuremberg case and evidence.  He also became a generous philanthropist, including at Washington University in St. Louis, and a leader and conscience in his community.

Whitney Harris is survived by his beloved wife Anna, by devoted family members, by legions of friends and admirers, by his many students, and by his former client, Civilization.  He represented it beautifully, and he left it with great confidence that it is in good hands.

(mew)

The Law and Politics of the International Criminal Court

The John Marshall Law School in Chicago will hold a one-day program tomorrow on "International Justice in the 21st Century: The Law and Politics of the International Criminal Court."

The symposium chair is Professor Shahram Dana.  Speakers include Judge Philippe Kirsch, who served on the International Criminal Court from 2003 to 2009 and was its first President.  Other speakers include Professors Jordan Paust (University of Houston Law Center), Nancy Combs (William & Mary Law School), Stuart Ford (The John Marshall Law School), Brian Lepard (University of Nebraska-Lincoln), Lisa Laplante (Marquette), Vincent Nmehielle (University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa), Kenneth Gallant (Arkansas), Margaret deGuzman (Temple), and Gregory Gordon (North Dakota).

I will be one of the moderators, as will my colleagues William Mock and Kim Chanbonpin.  Professor William Schabas (National University of Ireland at Galway) was scheduled to attend but is stuck in Europe in the aftermath of Iceland's volcanic eruption.  The luncheon speaker will be Jeanne Smoot of the Tajhirih Justice Center.

Papers from the symposium will be published in The John Marshall Law Review.

(mew)

IACHR Rules that Sexual Orientation Discrimination Violates the American Convention on Human Rights

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights ruled on April 7, 2010 that discrimination against a parent in a child custody dispute because of his or her sexual orientation violates the American Convention on Human Rights.  The Commission's ruling came in a case brought against Chile by Karen Atala.  In 2004, the Supreme Court of Chile ruled that Karen's children could be removed from her custody because she is a lesbian.  The Inter-American Commission's ruling repudiates that Chilean Supreme Court decision.

The decision is not publicly available (it was given only to the parties), and Chile is now considering how to respond to the ruling.  The case is described in a bulletin issued by the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission.  Click here to read that bulletin and to see links to other information about the case.

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights is an autonomous body within the Organization of American States (OAS).  The Commission was created to promote observance of human rights in the Americas. It consists of seven Commissioners, elected by the General Assembly of the OAS, and is headquartered in Washington, D.C.  The Commissioners are independent human rights experts whose role is primarily to investigate and monitor human rights violations, promote public education about human rights, and resolve violations in a collaborative way as between the individual and the state. It is not a judicial body, as such but it can refer cases to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.

Hat tip to Paula Ettelbrick and the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission.

(mew)

Happy Earth Day!

Thursday, April 22 is the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day. It is a day to raise awareness about the environment.  There are many events happening around the world, including an international focus on issues of access to safe water and climate change.  Take a "green" action to celebrate!

(cgb)

Elections in Nauru

The tiny Pacific island nation of Nauru invited the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat to send election observers to monitor and assess upcoming national elections on April 24, 2010.

The Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat said that a small group of election observers will be present in Nauru for two weeks--a period that includes pre- and post-election activity so that the observers can gain a broad overview of the environment in which the election will take place.

Hat tip to the East-West Center

(mew)