For those in DC, this ASIL event certainly seems like a good one. James Griffin on parochialism in IL seems particularly interesting, since it seems that IL scholars fall so easily into camps and regionalism that just gets reinforced over and over. Whether this is a myth and/or whether it is more being put into boxes by others/career paths/foundations/etc. rather than the individual scholars taking on a particular mindset is an interesting question.
There is still a long way to go, but the Jessup website has noted that the 2008 problem will cover “the tension between ensuring human rights and responding to acts of terrorism”. It should be an exciting–and possibly controversial–competition.
The Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot officially kicks off tomorrow in Vienna. Having gone as both a participant and a coach for Harvard, I can wholly recommend the event. Though there are always issues with somewhat subjective competitions (and now, having been a Jessup judge, I can appreciate how hard it can be to evaluate teams), the spirit of the competition is fantastic and the all-together-at-once aspect is wonderful. There are teams from all over the world, all in Vienna at the same time, all competing but, equally important, getting to know one another. It is also THE networking event, especially for Europeans, who are far more dedicated to arbitration as a practice than we tend to be in the US, where it is mostly seen as an offshoot of litigation.
The VIS is a unique and fun event and I am more than a little jealous that I am not there this year. But I hope to be a judge for it in sometime in the future. In the meantime, the best of luck to all the participants!!
This week is far too busy deal-wise for anything but a short head’s up about ILJ’s symposium at Harvard tomorrow:
http://www.harvardilj.org/index.php?page=Symposium
It looks to be a great mix of speakers, including some nice representation from Fletcher. And with the increasingly heated rhetoric on Iran and North Korea these days, it should be worthwhile, even though sometimes framing it in “preemptive” terms already skews the question a bit and makes the topic seem more palatable than it really is, especially when what one is “preempting” is open to interpretation. The ticking-time-bomb trope is likely to be deployed by somebody in the debate.
The second planned topic is a somewhat lesser-addressed one, namely on “preemptive strikes against non-state actors without the approval of the sovereign nation in which the non-state actors are located.” But here the ticking-time-bomb will likely emerge again, no matter how messy such things might be in the real world.
Though it is always interesting to note/debate preemptive action on a large scale, say a full-scale invasion of a country, and also interesting to think of the non-approved surgical strike in another country (also a somewhat romanticized IL topic) — both of which make great movie plots — aren’t “lesser” incursions also forms of preemptive action, such as various parties making strikes in the Horn of Africa? Or targeted killings around the world? Or supporting with weapons, training, and sometimes even direct military support, various local groups you think might help your cause? Or former colonizers getting involved in actions in their former colonies? Of course state consent then becomes an issue (which it looks like tomorrow’s problem will dodge), and one can debate what level of consent is required and when (before, during, after?). Is it ok just to be the enemy of someone’s enemy?
But despite the heady talk of “classic” preemptive strikes, no doubt of continuing and key importance, smaller-scale interventions are occuring at multiple levels all over the world and affecting vast numbers of people on a daily basis. Sometimes these are just “defined away” out the debate, or maybe not well thought of because they occur in lesser-known parts of the world (though often done by “key” actors). But it is also worth considering if and what international law can say (or do) about these “preemptive” attacks.
