Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute

Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute
Established 2000
Director Leila Nadya Sadat
Location St. Louis, Missouri
Website http://law.wustl.edu/harris/pages.aspx?id=1709

The Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute at Washington University School of Law serves as a center for instruction and research in international and comparative law.

The Harris Institute was established in November 2000 as the "Institute for Global Legal Studies"[1] and was later renamed as the "Whitney R. Harris Institute for Global Legal Studies"[2] in honor and recognition of Whitney R. Harris' lifelong achievements in the field of international justice. Whitney R. Harris served as a trial counsel prosecuting the major German war criminals before the International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg in 1945 and he kept the Nuremberg dream alive through his writings and his advocacy, and later through his philanthropic generosity and support of legal education and research. In 2008, he and Anna Harris endowed the Institute’s "World Peace Through Law Award"[3] at a ceremony during which the Harris Institute’s name was changed to the "Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute," the name it bears today.

The Harris Institute has sponsored more than 80 speakers and held or co-sponsored more than 20 major international conferences since it opened. It also houses an "Ambassador-in-Residence" program and hosts debates and scholarship roundtables on pressing issues in international law and policy. By drawing on a vast pool of international and national expertise, the Harris Institute fosters collaboration, continuous dialogue and exchange among scholars and practitioners engaged in international or comparative work.

The Crimes Against Humanity Initiative

In 2008, the Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute launched Crimes Against Humanity Initiative[4] to study the need for a comprehensive international convention on the prevention and punishment of crimes against humanity, analyze the necessary elements of such a convention, and draft a proposed treaty. The Initiative helped inspire the United Nations International Law Commission to pick up this topic, with a view towards drafting a UN treaty on Crimes Against Humanity.[5]

Objectives of the CAH Initiative

The Crimes Against Humanity Initiative had three primary objectives: (1) to study the law and sociological reality as regards the commission of crimes against humanity; (2) to combat the indifference and the negative legal consequences emergent from the idea that crimes against humanity are less serious than genocide; and (3) to address the gap in the law by elaborating the first-ever comprehensive specialized convention on crimes against humanity.

The CAH Initiative is carried out in four phases, three of which have been completed. The first phase was to prepare the project in various aspects, including methodological development. The second phase was to conduct a private study through the writing of papers and expert collaboration. Fifteen such papers were presented at a conference at Washington University School of Law on April 13–14, 2009. In March 2010, a capstone conference at the Brookings Institution in Washington further highlighted the importance of this Initiative in a Declaration on the Need for a Comprehensive Convention on Crimes Against Humanity.[6]

The third phase of the Initiative resulted in the elaboration and publication of a Proposed International Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes Against Humanity in English and French.[7] Nearly 250 experts were consulted and the Proposed Convention underwent seven major revisions. The Proposed Convention is intended to function as a platform for discussion by States with a view toward the eventual adoption of a United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes Against Humanity.

In March 2011, Cambridge University Press published Forging a Convention for Crimes Against Humanity, an edited volume on the work of the Initiative, which contains the text of the Proposed Convention in French and English, a comprehensive history of its drafting, and fifteen expert commentaries from the Expert’s Meeting in April 2009. The book received considerable praise and attention, including being awarded the Book of the Year Award by the Association Internationale de Droit Pénal (American Branch).[8] A second edition, with the text of the convention in Spanish and Arabic, was later published.

The Proposed Convention

The Proposed Convention contains 27 articles and 6 annexes. Its text attempts to bring prevention into the instrument in a much more explicit way than predecessor instruments, by including the possibility of responsibility for the criminal acts of legal persons, by excluding defenses of immunities and statutory limitations, by prohibiting reservations, and by establishing a unique institutional mechanism for supervision of the Convention. Echoing its 1907 forbearer, it also contains its own "Martens Clause" in the Preamble.

The Proposed Convention builds upon and complements the ICC Statute by retaining the Rome Statute definition of crimes against humanity, but has added robust interstate cooperation, extradition, and mutual legal assistance provisions in Annexes 2-6. Universal jurisdiction was retained (but is not mandatory), and the Rome Statute served as a model for several additional provisions, including Articles 4-7 (Responsibility, Official Capacity, Non-Application of Statute of Limitations) and with respect to final clauses. Other provisions draw on international criminal law and human rights instruments more broadly, including the Enforced Disappearance Convention, the Terrorist Bombing Convention, the Convention Against Torture, the UN Conventions on Corruption and Organized Crime, the European Transfer of Proceedings Convention, and the Inter-American Criminal Sentences Convention. The Proposed Convention provides for State as well as individual responsibility, and would vest jurisdiction in the International Court of Justice to resolve differences as to interpretation and application of the Proposed Convention.

Current Work of the CAH Initiative

As part of its fourth and final phase, the Crimes Against Humanity Initiative aims to raise global awareness of the need for an international convention on crimes against humanity, and to encourage the international community to adopt the Proposed Convention. The Crimes Against Humanity Steering Committee has also reached out to national and international policy makers to begin a dialog about the strengths and benefits of the Proposed Convention and the responsibility of the international community to prevent and punish crimes against humanity.

The Institute produced a 45-minute documentary film entitled Never Again: Forging a Convention for Crimes Against Humanity, which was featured in the 2017 St. Louis International Film Festival’s Human Rights Spotlight[9] and was selected for the New Haven International Film Festival.[10]

Leadership

The Crimes Against Humanity Initiative is directed by a global Steering Committee of experts and scholars in the field of international criminal law including Professor Leila Nadya Sadat (chairwoman), Professor M. Cherif Bassiouni, Ambassador Hans Corell, Justice Richard Goldstone, Professor Juan E. Méndez, Professor William Schabas and Judge Christine Van Den Wyngaert. The Crimes Against Humanity Initiative also benefits from the expertise of an Advisory Council composed of high-ranking international law and human rights practitioners and scholars from around the world.

Gun Violence and Human Rights

In Fall 2017, the Institute launched a new initiative on gun violence examining U.S. government responses to gun violence in light of U.S. obligations under international human rights law.[11] In connection to this new project, the Institute was one of four members of civil society invited to present testimony before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights during a hearing on “The Regulation of Gun Sales and Social Violence in the United States” in Bogotá, Colombia on February 27, 2018.[12] The hearing highlighted that there are proven and effective measures that the U.S. government can implement to reduce the number of lives lost due to gun violence. An appropriate government response that takes a public health and human rights approach to this problem would reduce homicide and suicide rates in the United States, and reduce illegal gun trafficking that is rampant in the Americas.[13]

World Peace Through Law Award

The World Peace Through Law Award is bestowed upon an individual who, by his or her work and writings, has considerably advanced the rule of law and thereby contributed to world peace. Established in 2006, the Award recognizes individuals who have achieved great distinction in the field of international law and international relations. To date, this award has been bestowed upon the following distinguished individuals:

  • 2015 - Benjamin B. Ferenz, former Nuremberg Prosecutor[14]
  • 2013 - Sir Christopher Greenwood QC [15]
  • 2011 - Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Fatou Bensouda[16]
  • 2010 - Professor M. Cherif Bassiouni[17]
  • 2008 - The Honorable Richard Goldstone
  • 2006 - The Honorable Phillipe Kirsch

Other Programs

Conferences

  • International Experts’ Meeting on the Illegal Use of Force: Reconceptualizing the Laws of War (September 2015)[18]
  • Global Perspectives on Colorism Conference (April 2015)[19]
  • The Legal Challenges of Globalization: A View from the Heartland (September 2014)
  • Mini-Colloquium Conceptualizing a New Institutional Framework for International Taxation (April 2013)
  • The International Criminal Court at 10 (November 2012)
  • Immigration Law and Family Reunification: A Comparative Perspective (March 2012)
  • International Climate Change: Post-Kyoto Challenges (October 2008)
  • International Criminal Law Symposium: Judgment at Nuremberg (September/October 2006)
  • Promoting U.S. - China Business Relations (May 2006)

Crimes Against Humanity Research Project

The Harris Institute recruits research assistants to support Institute Director Leila Sadat in her work as the Special Advisor on Crimes Against Humanity to the International Criminal Court Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda.[20] As part of the CAH Research Project, students assist the Office of the Prosecutor with researching and analyzing active cases on crimes against humanity issues.

In September 2009, the Harris Institute concluded a Co-Operation Agreement with the International Criminal Court which began the ICC Legal Tools Project.[21] Under the Co-Operation Agreement, the Institute is responsible for collecting and uploading documents for the "National Jurisdictions" and "National Cases Involving Core International Crimes" folders in the ICC Legal Tools database. The Harris Institute has been researching, collecting, and analyzing relevant domestic legislation and case law concerning genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes for the following States: Albania, Azerbaijan, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Comoros, Georgia, Ghana, Kiribati, Kyrgyzstan, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mauritius, Namibia, Niger, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Swaziland, Tajikistan, Tonga, Tuvalu, Tanzania, Uzbekistan and Zambia.[22]

International Humanitarian Law (IHL) Program

The Harris Institute International Humanitarian Law (IHL) program provides a unique opportunity to Washington University law students interested in international law field advocacy. In spring 2012, the IHL program entered a new phase and partnership with the Enough! Project. The Washington, D.C. based NGO works with concerned citizens, advocates, and policymakers to prevent, mitigate, and resolve crises of genocide and crimes against humanity. Law students have a unique opportunity to aid in Enough’s Raise Hope for Congo campaign through the Conflict-Free Campus Initiative (CFCI).[23] This Initiative aims to alleviate atrocities committed over conflict minerals in Congo by pressuring electronics companies to use conflict-free minerals in their products.

Ambassadors Program

Founded in 2007, the Harris Institute Ambassadors Program brings foreign service professionals to the law school to share their experiences and knowledge with the law school and university community. The Ambassadors Program draws current and retired professionals from the international diplomatic corps to provide students with a first-hand description of international law and policy in action.

Former Ambassadors-in-Residence include: Ambassador Stephen J. Rapp (2009), Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues; Ambassador Charles Stith (2009), former United States Ambassador to Tanzania; Ambassador Feisal Amin Rasoul al-Istrabadi (2009), the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Deputy Permanent Representative of Iraq to the United Nations; Carla A. Hills (2008), former United States Trade Representative; and Thomas A. Schweich (2008), former State Department coordinator for counternarcotics and Justice Reform in Afghanistan.

Dagen-Legomsky Student Fellowship Program

In 2001, Margaret Dagen–an early pioneer of the civil rights movement in St. Louis–endowed the Dagen-Legomsky Student Fellowship Program for Washington University law students to work in the field of international human rights and to study at the prestigious Hague Academy of International Law during the summer recess. With the financial support of this program, Dagen-Legomsky International Public Interest fellows partake in summer externships at the U.S. Department of Justice, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, the European Council on Refugees and Exiles, the Mekong Region Law Center (Bangkok), and many more.[24]

References

  1. ↑ http://digitalcommons.law.wustl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1546&context=wujlp
  2. ↑ http://www.fredonia.edu/org/jacksonsymposium/harris.asp
  3. ↑ "Harris was last Nuremberg prosecutor; HMLC supporter" STL Jewish Light, May 2010
  4. ↑ http://crimesagainsthumanity.wustl.edu/
  5. ↑ "Towards a New Global Treaty on Crimes Against Humanity" EJIL Talk
  6. ↑ "Declaration on the Need for a Comprehensive Convention on Crimes Against Humanity" (PDF). Retrieved 7 August 2012.
  7. ↑ "Crimes Against Humanity Initiative Releases Final Text of Proposed International Treaty" NewsWise
  8. ↑ "Two Professor Win Book Awards". WIA Report. Retrieved 31 August 2012.
  9. ↑ "Never Again, Cries From Syria at St. Louis International Film Festival" Fox2Now St Louis
  10. ↑ "Trinity, New Haven, Host Two Jam-Packed Film Fests" Hartford Courant
  11. ↑ "U.S. government failure to prevent gun-related violence may violate international human rights" the Source, February 2015
  12. ↑ "Estados Unidos Regulación de Armas"Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos, Youtube
  13. ↑ "Harris Institute Presents Testimony on Gun Violence at the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights" Washington University School of Law, News
  14. ↑ "Former Nuremberg Prosecutor Benjamin Ferencz, Recipient of the 2015 World Peace Through Law Award, acceptance remarks on 9/11/15" Washington University School of Law, Mediasite
  15. ↑ "Harris Institute Honors H.E. Sir Christopher Greenwood with World Peace Through Law Award" Washington University Law
  16. ↑ "Fatou Bensouda receives 2011 World Peace Through Law Award". The Point. Retrieved 7 August 2012.
  17. ↑ "M. Cherif Bassouni". DePaul University College of Law. Retrieved 31 August 2012.
  18. ↑ http://law.wustl.edu/harris/IllegalUseForce.aspx5
  19. ↑ "Discrimination based on skin tone is global problem; conference here looks at colorism" St. Louis Public Radio, April 2015
  20. ↑ "ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda Appoints Patricia Sellers, Leila Sadat and Dianne Marie Amann as Special Advisers".
  21. ↑ "From 2008 to 2010, TRIAL contributed to the ICC Legal Tools Project". TRIAL. Retrieved 31 August 2012.
  22. ↑ "Responsibilities of Each External Partner". ICC Legal Tools Project.
  23. ↑ "Raise Hope for Congo Participating Schools". Enough Campaign.
  24. ↑ "Directory of Law School Public Interest and Pro Bono Programs: Washington University". American Bar Association Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service and the Center for Pro Bono. Retrieved 31 August 2012.
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