1. Conferences/Seminars
2nd Semester Opening Lecture:LLM in International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights
Monday 20 February at 17:30 at the Villa Moynier
Rue de Lausanne 120b, Geneva.
“Civil protest and the Arab Spring one year later”
by Lapo Pistelli
One year after the Arab Spring, it is time to make a temporary assessment of the situation. In his lecture, Mr Pistelli will deal with the media framework which has been used to explain to the public opinion the revolts and revolutions in Maghreb, Mashreq and in the Gulf. Why didn't they succeed before? Why wasn’t the West aware that some Arab countries were a boiling tea pot? He will also discuss the common elements of the revolts and the multiple diversities among Arab countries and he will compare the initial reactions of the main geopolitical actors. A particular attention will be devoted to Syria, to examine how and why it could be the game changer of the regional balance of power. Before proceeding to the Q&A session, Mr Pistelli will conclude by looking at the future challenges that Arab countries will have to face in relation to the international scene.
Lapo Pistelli holds a University Degree in Political Science/International relations. Senior Lecturer at Stanford University and at Florence University. He is currently a Member of the Italian Parliament (Chamber of Deputies), Foreign Affairs Committee; he also held a position during the 1996-2004 legislatures as a member of the Foreign Affair Committee and a member of the Italian Delegation to the OSCE. From 2004-2008, he was a member of the European Parliament (EP), Head of the Italian delegation in the ALDE group. He is Head for Foreign Affairs and International Relations in the Democratic Party (DP). He is also member of the Board of IAI, IPALMO, CeSPI and the magazine EAST (European and Asian Strategies).
Opening Lecture: LL.M. in International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights
Thursday, 20 October, 6.30 pm, Auditoire Jacques Freymond (The Graduate Institute),
Rue de Lausanne 132, Geneva
Professor Daniel Thürer
Daniel Thürer has been the Chair of International Humanitarian Law at the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights in 2010-2011.
The Legality of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons: The ICJ Advisory Opinion Reconsidered
Fifteen years ago, the International Court of Justice rendered an Advisory Opinion concerning the legality of the threat or use of nuclear weapons. The findings of the Court were full of ambiguities and highly contested. In the Opening Lecture, Professor Thurer will formulate seven critiques of the Opinion based on fundamental principles, concepts and ideas of international law. The main question addressed in the Lecture is whether or not the Court would or should decide differently if it had to deal with the General Assembly’s request today.
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2. Study Trips
2011 - Study trip to Bosnia
Last May, the students of the LL.M. programme of the Geneva Academy had the opportunity to participate in a study trip to Bosnia, organized by the Academy and the Student Association (ADHSA). The trip took place between May 2nd and May 7th, 2011. The main goal of the trip was to show the students the reality of a post-conflict zone, and to enable them to learn the ways in which different organizations operate on the field.
The students travelled to Bosnia by bus, which enabled them to perceive the changes in the landscape as they got closer and closer to Bosnia. They also had the chance to see the outcomes of the war that took place in the area between 1992-1995.
The students spent 2 days in Sarajevo. There, they met with representatives from the Bosnian War Crime Chamber – a judge presiding in the Appeals Chamber of the tribunal and a prosecutor. During the meeting the students heard from the distinguished representatives about their practical work at the tribunal and the ways it is perceived by locals. In addition, the students got the chance to meet with representatives of TRIAL, an NGO dedicated to the advocacy of Human Rights in the area. During that meeting the students met in person with victims who survived the conflict and could shed some light on the phenomenon of enforced disappearance in the area during the war.
Moreover, the tour in Sarajevo included visits to the National History Museum of Sarajevo, where the students could learn about the area’s modern history and the events surrounding the outbreak of the conflict in the area; a guided tour by a local guide, during which the students learned about the ancient history of Sarajevo, saw different famous monuments in the city connected to its history and the recent conflict; and visited “The Tunnel Museum” – a museum telling the story of the tunnel built during the war and that served for providing humanitarian assistance to the Bosnians in Sarajevo during the siege.
After 2 days in Sarajevo, the students headed to the north of Bosnia, to the town of Kozarac. Here they visited a memorial monument, dedicated to the numerous victims who were killed in the area during the conflict, as well as the former concentration camp ‘Trnopolje’. The students also met survivors of the camp, who are now working with human rights issues in the area.
The trip to Sarajevo was a successful experience. It gave the students the ability to get familiar with a post conflict area, its complexities and the difficulties arising during the “healing process”. Moreover, the trip contributed to the social cohesion of the class since the students got to spend an intense week together sharing with each other their experiences and thoughts.
2011 - Study trip to the Hague
On 4 to 6 May 2011, an other group of students from the Geneva Academy participated in a study trip to The Hague, the Netherlands, as part of an optional course entitled ‘The UN and the Emerging Culture of the End of Impunity’ taught by Professor Nicolas Michel with the collaboration of Katherine Del Mar, teaching assistant. The students met with judges, prosecutors, defence counsel, and other personnel from the International Criminal Court (ICC), the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL). These included Judge Cotte (ICC Trial Division), Judge Kaul (ICC Pre-Trial Division), Judge Kourula (ICC Appeals Division), Judge Meron (ICTY Appeals Chamber), Judge Ralph Riachy (STL, Vice-President), Judge Daniel Fransen (STL, Pre-Trial Judge), Prosecutor Brammertz (ICTY), Prosecutor Bellemare (STL), Rod Ranstan (ICC, Office of the Prosecutor), François Roux (STL, Head of the Defence Office), Alia Aoun (STL, Deputy Head of the Defence Office), Xavier Jean-Keïta (ICC, Principal Counsel, Office of Public Counsel for Defence), and Renan Villacis (ICC, Director of the Secretariat of the Assembly of State Parties). They also attended a hearing at the ICC in the case of Prosecutor v. Bemba Gombo, and a hearing at the ICTY in the case of Prosecutor v. Stanišić and Župljanin. The study trip was generously funded by the Geneva Academy.
3. Other
