Virtual Event on Crimes Against Humanity

July 31, 2020

On July 24, 2020, an Inter-sessional Dialogue on the Way Forward on a Global Convention on Crimes Against Humanity was hosted virtually by the Permanent Missions of Sierra Leone, Austria, Czech Republic, Mexico, and New Zealand to the United Nations, in collaboration with Florida International University and the Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute…read more

Side Event on Crimes Against Humanity During the U.N Sixth Committee

November 1, 2019

On October 29, 2019, the Harris Institute, along with the Permanent Mission of the Federal Republic of Germany, the Republic of Sierra Leone, and the Permanent Mission of Chile to the United Nations, hosted a panel discussion and interactive dialogue on crimes against humanity at the German House in New York City…read more

International Law Weekend (ILW 2019) Panel on Crimes Against Humanity

November 1, 2019

On October 11, 2019, the Harris Institute organized a panel on crimes against humanity during the premier international law event of the American Branch of the International Law Association – International Law Weekend in New York City….read more

UN International Law Commission Begins its Second Reading of Draft Articles on Crimes Against Humanity

May 16, 2019

A new global convention on preventing and punishing crimes against humanity is one step closer to reality. The UN International Law Commission (ILC) began its Second Reading of Draft Articles following a unanimous decision by Members of the Commission to send the Articles to the Commission’s Drafting Committee on May 7, 2019…read more
May 6, 2019

On 3 May 2019, the War Crimes Committee of the International Bar Association hosted a Discussion on the Draft Articles on Crimes Against Humanity at the Palais des Nations, home of the United Nations Office in Geneva. Co-hosted by the Permanent Mission of the…read more
Feb 11, 2019

On 21 February 2019, the Human Science Research Council and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in Johannesburg, South Africa will host a Policy Seminar on Crimes Against Humanity. In conjunction with the seminar, the Johannesburg Holocaust and Genocide Center will host a film screening of Never Again: Forging a Convention on Crimes Against Humanity…read more
Dec 5, 2018

On 27-28 September 2018, the Coalition for the International Criminal Court (CICC), the Institute of Democracy and Human Rights of PUCP (IDEHPUCP), the Master’s Program on Human Rights of PUCP and the School of Law of the Washington University in St. Louis organized two events on the Draft Convention for the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes against Humanity: A public event at PUCP, and a regional expert workshop…read more

CUNY and MADRE Host Experts’ Meeting to Discuss Gender and the ILC Convention on Crimes Against Humanity
Mar 26, 2018
Mar 16, 2018
Dec 26, 2017
The Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute has updated the compilation report of government reactions on the International Law Commission’s Project on crimes against humanity, which now includes the 72nd Session of the United Nations General Assembly Sixth Committee….read more
Nov 17, 2017
Oct 13, 2017
[Originally published on Brandeis News.] On Oct. 4, the International Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life at Brandeis University hosted a film screening of Never Again: Forging a Convention for Crimes Against Humanity.  The 45 minute documentary paints a stark…read more

In Memoriam: Professor M. Cherif Bassiouni (1937-2017)
Sep 29, 2017
On September 25, 2017, the world lost a great soul, Professor M. Cherif Bassiouni.  Cherif was a friend, a colleague, a mentor and an inspiration to me personally, and to many like me. He was also an active supporter and friend of Washington University School of Law…read more
Sep 22, 2017
This summer, at its sixty-ninth session, the United Nations International Law Commission (ILC) completed a first reading of the draft articles on a global convention for crimes against humanity. The Commission considered Special Rapporteur Sean Murphy’s third report,…read more
The St. Louis International Film Festival to screen Never Again: Forging a Convention for Crimes Against Humanity

The Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute at Washington University School of Law is proud to announce that the film Never Again: Forging a Convention for Crimes Against Humanity has been accepted to the 26th Annual St. Louis International Film Festival (SLIFF).  Never Again will be screened as part of the festival’s Human Rights Spotlight selection on Saturday, November 11th, 2017 at 12:30 p.m. at Washington University’s Brown Hall.  The film festival will take place from November 2-12, 2017.

 

ILC Drafting Committee Adopts a Full Set of Draft Articles for a Crimes Against Humanity Convention

During the first half of its sixty-ninth session, the International Law Commission’s Drafting Committee considered and provisionally adopted five additional draft articles, as well as a corresponding annex and a draft preamble, completing the Commission’s consideration of draft articles on a future convention for crimes against humanity. The Commission intends to conduct a first reading of the draft articles later this summer, and if a first reading is completed, the draft articles could be submitted to the Sixth Committee for comments. Read more

Harris Institute Spearheads Progress on a Global Crimes Against Humanity Convention

In fall 2016, the Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute held a series of events to support its flagship project, the Crimes Against Humanity Initiative, including a side-event at the Fifteenth Session of the Assembly of States Parties in The Hague and an Asia-Pacific Consultation Meeting in Singapore. The Initiative’s documentary film Never Again: Forging a Convention for Crimes Against Humanity will become publically available in Summer 2017.  Read more

Compilation of Government Reactions to the International Law Commission’s Project on Crimes Against Humanity

The Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute presents a compilation report of government reactions on the International Law Commission’s Project on crimes against humanity during four sessions of the United Nations General Assembly Sixth Committee (68th, 69th, 70th and 71st Sessions). Read more

ICC-ASP Side Event: “Draft Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes Against Humanity”

1:30 – 3 PM | Room Oceania 2 | World Forum Convention Center, The Hague

On Monday, 21 November 2016, the Harris Institute, and the Governments of Germany and Korea will host a side event during the Fifteenth Session of the ICC Assembly of State Parties. The panel discussion will provide a briefing by the Special Rapporteur on crimes against humanity, Professor Sean Murphy, on the work of the UN International Law Commission to elicit reactions from key expert panelists who will comment briefly on the Commission’s work from their perspectives. After their interventions from the podium, the floor will be opened for questions and comments from the audience. more

Leading NGOs Support the Work of the UN International Law Commission on Drafting Articles for a New Global Convention

On 16 February 2016, several leading non-governmental organizations submitted a letter to Special Rapporteur Professor Sean Murphy in support of the current work of the International Law Commission on crimes against humanity. The letter underscored the importance of certain key provisions for the ILC’s consideration as the Commission prepares to meet in summer 2016 to discuss the Second Report on the draft articles for a global convention on crimes against humanity. Read the Letter from the NGOs.

Workshop on the Drafting of a Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes Against Humanity

On 19-21 November 2015, members of the International Law Commission, international and national legal experts in international criminal law, and members of the Crimes Against Humanity Initiative’s Steering Committee met at the International Nuremberg Principles Academy in Nuremberg, Germany. Discussions at the two-day workshop on the Drafting of a Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes Against Humanity will inform the next draft report prepared by Professor Murphy, and presumably the views of the Commission when it reconvenes in May to discussed the draft articles.

Prof. Leila Sadat Presents on the Need for a CAH Treaty to Prestigious Audience in Portugal

On April 20, 2015, Prof. Leila Sadat gave a presentation regarding the need for a new global treaty on crimes against humanity at the Universidade Católica Portuguesa.  In attendance were students, administrators, faculty, deans, members of Portugal’s Supreme Court and Portugal’s Attorney General. [more]

Senator Durbin’s Speech Highlights ABA Working Group on Crimes Against Humanity

U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) will reintroduce Crimes Against Humanity (CAH) legislation in Congress. Referring to the lack of such legislation as a “legal loophole,” he explained that “[d]espite longstanding U.S. support for the prosecution of crimes against humanity committed in World War II … in Pol Pot’s Cambodia, Rwanda, the former Yugoslavia, Sierra Leone and elsewhere … there is no U.S. law prohibiting crimes against humanity.” Senator Durbin’s initiative to reintroduce CAH legislation coincides with the recently formed ABA Working Group on CAH, of which Professor Leila Sadat, Director of the Harris Institute, is an inaugural member.  To read more and to watch Senator Durban’s speech, visit: https://www.international-criminal-justice-today.org/news/senator-durbins-speech-highlights-aba-working-group-on-crimes-against-humanity/.

Recent articles in the Economist and The Hill highlights the gap in U.S. and international law as it relates to crimes against humanity

“Seventy years after the liberation of the Nazi concentration camps, many countries lack the legal authority to prosecute war criminals and perpetrators of atrocities and give redress to victims.” Genocide, and a number of war crimes, including torture and enforced disappearance, have dedicated UN treaties, but there is still none which covers crimes against humanity. Moreover, there is a gap in U.S. legislation that limits the country’s ability to bring perpetrators who are in its custody to justice.

Read more at: The Economist: http://econ.st/1zl77lY | The Hill: http://bit.ly/1Hc0bhx

Triple Book Launch at 13th Session of the ICC Assembly of States Parties Features ‘On the Proposed Crimes Against Humanity Convention’

Decades after the conclusion of the 1948 Genocide Convention and 1949 Geneva Conventions, 16 authors discuss how the Proposed Crimes Against Humanity convention may consolidate the definition of crimes against humanity, and develop measures for their prevention and punishment. [more]

A New International Convention on Crimes Against Humanity

In the recent issue of International Judicial Monitor, Justice Richard A. Goldstone, Former Justice of the Constitutional Court of South Africa, First Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia, and Steering Committee member of the Crimes Against Humanity Initiative, highlights the importance of a new international convention on crimes against humanity.  Behind the concept of crimes against humanity is the idea that some massive and heinous crimes are so egregious that they are deemed to have been committed not only against the immediate victims but against all of humankind. [more]

Forging a Convention for Crimes Against Humanity

American Foreign Law Association Luncheon [more]
Presentation by Professor Leila Nadya Sadat
December 10, 2014 | Jones Day | New York, NY

A Convention for Crimes Against Humanity

Lecture by Professor Leila Nadya Sadat
November 11, 2014 | Wayne State University Law School | Detroit, MI

Forging a Convention for Crimes Against Humanity

Lecture by Professor Leila Nadya Sadat
October 21, 2014 | Indiana University | Bloomington, IN

The World-Wide Crimes Against Humanity Initiative

Lecture by Professor Leila Nadya Sadat… [more]
September 15, 2014 | Misericordia University | Dallas, PA

Codifying the “Laws of Humanity” and the “Dictates of the Public Conscience” – Towards a New Global Treaty on Crimes Against Humanity

Faculty Works in Progress Lecture by Professor Leila Nadya Sadat
September 4, 2014 | University of Minnesota Law School | Minneapolis, MN

ABA House of Delegates Adopts Resolution on Crimes Against Humanity

At its recent 2014 Annual Meeting in Boston, the American Bar Association House of Delegates, the policy-making body of the ABA, adopted Resolution 300 on the prevention of crimes against humanity.  In the resolution, the ABA urged the United States government to take an active role in the negotiation and adoption of a new global convention for the prevention and punishment of crimes against humanity. [more]

UN International Law Commission adds the topic of “crimes against humanity” onto its active agenda

This important development follows the Experts’ Meeting entitled “Fulfilling the Dictates of Public Conscience: Moving Forward with a Convention on Crimes Against Humanity” and the subsequent conference Report published on July 17, 2014.  Convened by the Crimes Against Humanity Initiative, the meeting in Geneva brought together leading experts in international criminal law, including members of the International Law Commission, to discuss the complex issues the ILC will face as it begins the study and drafting process of a global convention on crimes against humanity. [more]

Click here to read Amnesty International’s Public Statement on this development.

Experts Meet in Geneva to Discuss Fulfilling the Dictates of Public Conscience: Moving Forward with a Convention on Crimes Against Humanity

May 16-17, 2014 | Villa Moynier | Geneva, Switzerland

This historic two-day conference on a global crimes against humanity treaty was held at the Villa Moynier, the residence of Gustave Moynier, the first president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, and the site of the drafting of the first Geneva Convention of 1864. The meeting brought together leading experts in international criminal law, including members of the International Law Commission, to discuss the complex issues the ILC will face as it begins the study and drafting process of a global convention on crimes against humanity.  To view the program agenda, event photos, and Report from the conference, click here.

Former Chief Prosecutor David Crane Discusses Allegations of Crimes Against Humanity in Syria

David Crane, former Chief Prosecutor of the Special Court for Sierra Leone and the head of the Syrian Accountability Project, recently spoke about a report alleging the commission of crimes against humanity and war crimes in Syria.

Click here to watch the interview.

Click here to read the report

Forging a Convention for Crimes Against Humanity

Lecture by Professor Leila Nadya Sadat
March 27, 2014 | Vermont Law School | South Royalton, VA

Forging a Convention for Crimes Against Humanity

Distinguished Lecture by Professor Leila Nadya Sadat
February 21, 2014 | Washington and Lee University School of Law | Lexington, VA

A Proposed Convention for Crimes Against Humanity

Presentation by Professor Leila Nadya Sadat
November 20, 2013 | The John Marshall Law School | Chicago, Illiniois
[More]

Panel on Forging a Convention for Crimes Against Humanity

October 26, 2013 | 9 a.m. | McNally Amphitheatre, Fordham Law School | New York City, New York

This panel at the International Law Weekend – New York considered the need for an International Convention for the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes Against Humanity, and the possibility of its elaboration by the International Law Commission. It also considered the risks and benefits of a new Crimes Against Humanity convention, examined how such a treaty could assist with atrocity crime prevention, and explored how the proposed instrument could complement the work of the International Criminal Court as well as international human rights bodies. [More]

Crimes Against Humanity Initiative Objectives Gain Support from UN International Law Commission

The work of the Crimes Against Humanity Initiative recently bore fruit when the United Nations International Law Commission (ILC) voted on July 30, 2013, to add the elaboration of a treaty on “crimes against humanity” to its long-term work program. Established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948, the ILC is tasked with promoting the progressive development of international law and its codification, and this recent vote is a critical step toward the adoption of an international treaty to punish and prevent crimes against humanity. [More]

Crimes Against Humanity in the Modern Age

Leila Nadya Sadat | 107 American Journal of International Law 334 (April 2013)

This article analyzes the centrality of crimes against humanity prosecutions to the International Criminal Court’s fulfillment of its mandate to prevent and punish atrocities committed in strife-torn regions. Adhoc international criminal tribunals established in several states will complete their work soon, leaving the Court as the sole functioning international criminal authority. But the Court’s jurisprudence since its 1998 founding raises serious concerns about its interpretation of, and willingness to fully utilize, the powers conferred by its jurisdictional statute. [More]

Forging a Convention for Crimes Against Humanity

Presentation by Professor Leila Nadya Sadat, Ambassador Hans Corell, and Judge Van den Wyngaert

November 20, 2011 | 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. | 11th Session of the ICC Assembly of States Parties | The Hague, The Netherlands

[More]

Charles G. Taylor Found Guilty of Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes

April 26, 2012

Charles G. Taylor, the former president of Liberia and once a powerful warlord, is the first head of state to be convicted by an international court since the Nuremberg trials after WWII. Taylor was convicted by Special Court for Sierra Leone tribunal for arming, supporting and guiding a brutal rebel movement that committed mass atrocities in Sierra Leone during the civil war in the 1990s.

[More]

President Barack Obama Announces a New Atrocities Prevention Board

April 23, 2012

President Barack Obama recently announced the establishment of an Atrocities Prevention Board as part of his comprehensive strategy to prevent genocide and mass atrocities.

The Atrocities Prevention Board is a key feature of the reforms package initiated following the Presidential Study Directive in August 2011 that made the prevention of atrocities a key thrust of U.S. foreign policy. The Board is made up of senior officials from throughout the federal government including the State Department, USAID and Defense, and will convene once a month to create and implement policies to prevent atrocities and respond urgently to situations as they arise.

[More]

“Widespread and Systematic!” – Crimes Against Humanity in the Shadow of Modern International Criminal Law

Fifth International Humanitarian Law Dialogs
August 28-30, 2011 | Chautauqua Institution, New York

This unique event invites past and present international prosecutors, leading experts in the field of international criminal law, and the general public to discuss the scourge of crimes against humanity and the role of modern international criminal law in preventing and punishing their commission.

Prosecutors:

Daniel A. Bellemare | Special Tribunal for Lebanon

Fatou Bensouda | International Criminal Court

Serge Brammertz | International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia

Andrew T. Cayley | Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia

H.W. William Caming | United States Military Tribunal, Nuremberg

David M. Crane | Special Court for Sierra Leone

Hassan Jallow | International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda

Brenda J. Hollis | Special Court for Sierra Leone

Robert Petit | Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia

Ambassador Stephen Rapp | Ambassador at Large for War Crimes Issues

Speakers:

Diane Marie Amann | University of Georgia School of Law

Elizabeth Andersen | American Society for International Law

John Q. Barrett | St. John’s University School of Law

M. Cherif Bassiouni | DePaul University School of Law

Ambassador Hans Corell | Legal Affairs and the Legal Counsel of the United Nations

Mark Drumbl | Washington and Lee University School of Law

Mark Ellis | International Bar Association

Mike Newton | Vanderbilt University School of Law

Leila Nadya Sadat | Washington University, St. Louis School of Law

Beth Van Schaack | Santa Clara University School of Law

William Schabas | Irish Center for Human Rights, National University of Ireland, Galway

Michael P. Scharf | Case Western University School of Law

Amb. David J. Scheffer | Northwestern University Law School

[more]

Live Seminar: “Countries in Upheaval: Developing a Protection Network in Situations Short of Armed Conflict”

July 28, 2011 | 9:30 – 11:00 a.m. | Program on Humanitarian Policy and Conflict Research, Harvard University

A range of states around the world continue to experience serious violence and social disruption without the situation qualifying as an armed conflict to which the framework of international humanitarian law would apply. Questions arise as to what international legal frameworks may apply for government and humanitarian professionals working to develop a protection strategy aimed at enhancing the security of the civilian population. Amid recent or ongoing violence in places such as Syria, Bahrain, and Kyrgyzstan, this Live Web Seminar will address the following questions:

• What protections does human rights law provide in such contexts?

• In what ways might international humanitarian law provide a relevant framework to consider?

• What accountability mechanisms and normative protections does international criminal law provide?

• What doctrines – such as Responsibility to Protect – provide a normative or operational framework to promote protection of civilians?

Presenters:

Vincent Cochetel, The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)

Sam Zarifi, Amnesty International

Professor Leila Sadat, Washington University in St. Louis School of Law

Professor John Cerone, New England Law | Boston

[more]

Forging a Convention for Crimes Against Humanity

Presentation by Professor Leila Nadya Sadat

June 23, 2011 | Irish Center for Human Rights, Galway, Ireland

Forging a Convention for Crimes Against Humanity

Presentation by Professor Leila Nadya Sadat

June 16, 2011 | International Criminal Court, The Hague, The Netherlands

Expert Meeting on the Crimes Against Humanity Project

May 4, 2011 | 2:00 – 5:00 p.m. | French National Consultative Commission on Human Rights, Paris, France

Presentation:

  • Professor Leila Nadya Sadat, Director, Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute; Henry H. Oberschelp Professor of Law, Washington University Law; Alexis de Tocqueville Distinguished Fulbright Chair, University of Cergy-Pontoise, France

Roundtables:

  • Roundtable 1: Legal and technical aspects of the project
  • Roundtable 2: Political feasibility of the project

Moderator:

  • Emmanuel Decaux, Professor, Université Paris II

Development Dialogue – Dealing with Crimes Against Humanity

Issue no. 55 | March 2011

This issue of Development Dialogue focuses on the continuing efforts to create normative global frameworks to address prevention and punishment of atrocity crimes. Following earlier volumes (nos. 50 and 53), this is the third installment in a series dealing with the challenges of how to take appropriate action in the face of genocide, mass violence, and crimes against humanity. [more]

Panel Debate: Responses to Crimes Against Humanity

March 8, 2011 | 5:15 – 6:45 p.m. | Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study, Uppsala, Sweden

Organized by the Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation and the Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study.

Welcoming remarks:

  • Björn Wittrock, Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study

Discussants:

  • Nanci Adler, NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies/The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences
  • Iain Cameron, Swedish Institute of International Law/Uppsala University
  • Knud Haakonssen,
 Sussex Centre for Intellectual History/University of Sussex, Boston University, currently a fellow at the Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study
  • Leila N. Sadat, Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute/Washington University School of Law, St. Louis (currently Alexis de Tocqueville Distinguished Fulbright Chair, University of Cergy-Pontoise, France)
  • Marie Tuma, Raoul Wallenberg Institute/University of Lund

Moderator:

  • Henning Melber, Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation

Closing remarks:

  • Paul Levine, Hugo Valentin Centre/Uppsala University

[more]

Panel Discussion: Book Launch and Conversation on Crimes Against Humanity

March 4, 2011 | 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. | The City University of New York, New York City

Organized by the Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation and the Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect.

Discussants:

  • Edward Luck, International Peace Institute
  • Henning Melber, Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation
  • Lawrence Woocher, United States Institute of Peace

Moderator:

  • Monica Serrano, Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect

[more]