Background
Crimes against humanity are among the most serious crimes under international law. Unlike other international crimes however, such as war crimes, genocide, torture and enforced disappearance, to date there is no international treaty specifically dedicated to regulating the prevention and punishment of crimes against humanity.
Importance
Dedicate an hour to understanding the importance of closing this gap in the international legal framework on crimes against humanity.
Be informed of the importance for a specific convention that sits outside of the Rome Statute (which many Asian Pacific States are not signatories to).
The briefing will highlight the relevance of the Draft Articles on the Crimes Against Humanity Convention in Asia-Pacific, and the contribution that civil society organisations and not-for-profits can play in advocating to have their government support the proposed convention to promote peace and stability via the adoption of this mechanism.
Speakers
Dr Priya Pillai: Head of the Asia Justice Coalition Secretariat and an international lawyer with over twenty years of expertise in international justice, transitional justice, human rights, and humanitarian issues. Recently the coalition has been key to efforts to hold the Burmese military accountable by supporting legal proceedings in international and domestic courts. Under her leadership, a new multi-year program to enhance leadership of women in international law across Asian jurisdictions has commenced, intended to dismantle systemic barriers. She previously worked at the UN International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia on trials in the Balkans, and on global humanitarian issues at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Geneva.
Aakash Chandran: Legal Advocacy and Communications Manager at the Asia Justice Coalition secretariat and an international lawyer and researcher with expertise in international humanitarian and criminal law. Previously, he was associated with various international tribunals, organisations, and NGOs including, the UN International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals, Global Rights Compliance, Asian-African Legal Consultative Organization, South Asian Human Rights Documentation Centre, and the United Nations Development Programme. Aakash serves as a consulting editor of the Indian Journal of Law and Public Policy.
Chair
Dr Kirril Shields: member of the Asia-Pacific Centre for the Responsibility to Protect located at The University of Queensland, and manages various projects in the region that work to curb atrocity crimes and human rights abuse. He also works as an Expert Consultant for the UN and is the current Editor-in-Chief of the international journal Genocide Studies and Prevention.
Date: May 23rd
Time zones:
- Nadi: 6pm
- Brisbane: 4pm
- Manila: 2pm
- Jakarta: 1pm
- Bangkok: 1pm
- Phnom Penh: 1pm
- Dhaka: 12pm
- Kuala Lumpur: 2pm
- Yangon: 12:30pm
- Post Vila: 5pm
- Port Moresby: 4pm
Register in advance for this meeting: https://uqz.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEvcOmsrj0rE9Zf4kp1N0BRBoqNGFechJi9
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
Briefing on the International Law Commission’s proposed Draft Articles on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes Against Humanity.
Background
Crimes against humanity are among the most serious crimes under international law. Unlike other international crimes however, such as war crimes, genocide, torture and enforced disappearance, to date there is no international treaty specifically dedicated to regulating the prevention and punishment of crimes against humanity.
Importance
Dedicate an hour to understanding the importance of closing this gap in the international legal framework on crimes against humanity.
Be informed of the importance for a specific convention that sits outside of the Rome Statute (which many Asian Pacific States are not signatories to).
The briefing will highlight the relevance of the Draft Articles on the Crimes Against Humanity Convention in Asia-Pacific, and the contribution that civil society organisations and not-for-profits can play in advocating to have their government support the proposed convention to promote peace and stability via the adoption of this mechanism.
Speakers
Dr Priya Pillai: Head of the Asia Justice Coalition Secretariat and an international lawyer with over twenty years of expertise in international justice, transitional justice, human rights, and humanitarian issues. Recently the coalition has been key to efforts to hold the Burmese military accountable by supporting legal proceedings in international and domestic courts. Under her leadership, a new multi-year program to enhance leadership of women in international law across Asian jurisdictions has commenced, intended to dismantle systemic barriers. She previously worked at the UN International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia on trials in the Balkans, and on global humanitarian issues at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Geneva.
Aakash Chandran: Legal Advocacy and Communications Manager at the Asia Justice Coalition secretariat and an international lawyer and researcher with expertise in international humanitarian and criminal law. Previously, he was associated with various international tribunals, organisations, and NGOs including, the UN International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals, Global Rights Compliance, Asian-African Legal Consultative Organization, South Asian Human Rights Documentation Centre, and the United Nations Development Programme. Aakash serves as a consulting editor of the Indian Journal of Law and Public Policy.
Chair
Dr Kirril Shields: member of the Asia-Pacific Centre for the Responsibility to Protect located at The University of Queensland, and manages various projects in the region that work to curb atrocity crimes and human rights abuse. He also works as an Expert Consultant for the UN and is the current Editor-in-Chief of the international journal Genocide Studies and Prevention.
Date: May 23rd
Time zones:
- Nadi: 6pm
- Brisbane: 4pm
- Manila: 2pm
- Jakarta: 1pm
- Bangkok: 1pm
- Phnom Penh: 1pm
- Dhaka: 12pm
- Kuala Lumpur: 2pm
- Yangon: 12:30pm
- Post Vila: 5pm
- Port Moresby: 4pm
Register in advance for this meeting: https://uqz.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEvcOmsrj0rE9Zf4kp1N0BRBoqNGFechJi9
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.