The unsatisfactory results of the global fight against the growing phenomenon of terrorism have demonstrated the inadequacy of international legal tools to address this challenge efficiently. Ad hoc solutions have been developed by major key players such as the United Nations and the European Union, but the legitimacy under international law of actions undertaken by such organizations remains largely debatable, and so does the expansion of prerogatives of their executive organs. Nor are the measures adopted in the war on terror perceived as fully compatible with international human rights law guarantees. This seminar sought to provide an interdisciplinary approach to these issues, gathering perspectives from scholars, practitioners, human rights activists. It aimed to achieve a discussion of practicable solutions for ensuring the efficacy of the struggle against terrorism, while safeguarding the credibility of international action, and making counter-terrorism coherent with international law principles and human rights standards. The seminar took place on 10 June 2008.
The participants of the seminar where the following: Dr. Pete Fussey (Senior Lecturer in Criminology, School of Law, University of East London); Dr. Matthew Happold (Barrister, Reader, Law School, University of Hull); Dr. Carmen Draghici (Leverhulme Post-doctoral Research Fellow, Centre on Human Rights in Conflict, School of Law, University of East London; Organizer of the event); Prof. Chandra Lekha Sriram (Professor in Human Rights, Director of the Centre on Human Rights in Conflict, School of Law, University of East London); Prof. Bill Bowring (Barrister, Professor of Law, Birkbeck College, University of London);
Dr. Fernando Val-Garijo (Assistant Professor, Department of Public International Law, UNED, School of Law, Madrid, Spain); David Marrani (Lecturer in Public and Comparative Law, Department of Law, University of Essex); John Strawson (Reader in Law, School of Law, University of East London) and Saleh Mamon (CAMPACC).
Presentations and papers
Extraordinary Rendition: Illegal Limbos, Legal Safeguards and International Responsibility by Dr. Fernando Val-Garijo.
Islam and the Politics of Terrorism: Aspects of the British Experience by John Strawson.
A report of the event can be found here.
The Centre on Human Rights in Conflict held a seminar on Business and Human Rights in Conflict on 14 June 2007.
This seminar sought to explore the role of private sector in situations of armed conflict. The economic dimension of intrastate armed conflicts has gained unprecedented academic and policy attention in recent years. Many of today’s conflicts have close links with the exploitation of and trade in natural resources, with the revenues generated from such trade exercising significant influence over their character and duration. Companies, particularly multinational enterprises, are key actors in the exploitation and trade of natural resources in conflict zones and therefore could play an important role in both the perpetuation and the resolution of such conflicts.
The main objective of this seminar was to bring together the different perspectives of those working on the relationship between private sector activities and human rights, in particular the impact of business activities in conflict zones. Academics of different disciplines, civil society and advocacy groups, the business community, and government bodies and policy makers, often deal with these issues in relative isolation from each other. This seminar sought to contribute to a cross-sector dialogue and to identify areas for research and policy collaboration in this field. Links to presentations are available from this page.
The seminar was organised in three sessions and covered the following issues:
Case studies
This session was chaired by John Strawson, reader at the University of East London, and analysed case studies of particular business sectors, countries, and new actors:
Legal responses
This session was chaired by Professor Rebecca M.M. Wallace, professor of International Human Rights Law at Aberdeen Business School, Robert Gordon University. It covered the international legal framework that governs the relationship between business and human rights, with particular focus on the legal instruments and voluntary initiatives relating to companies’ activities in conflict zones:
Policy, advocacy and business responses
This session was chaired by Dr. Kofi Kufuor, reader at the University of East London. This session analysed the policy, advocacy and business priorities in the development of voluntary initiatives and in the engagement of business, civil society and governments to provide effective responses:
The seminar was attended by a range of experts. The complete list of participants is available here.
For any further information in relation to this seminar or the work of the Centre on business and human rights in conflict zones please contact Dr. Olga Martin-Ortega.
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