Qatar University College of Law (QU-LAWC) recently held a lecture on “Qatar’s International Positioning on Peace and Justice” in collaboration with The Hague Institute for Global Justice, and Innovation Centre for Education Doha LLC(G) (iCE Doha).
The event was attended by Dr Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al Khulaifi, Dean of LAWC, faculty and students.
Dr Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al Khulaifi said: “The aim of these seminars is to raise awareness among individuals and students of the importance of principles and ideals to consolidate the meaning of justice. In the current period, we must shed light on these laws and strengthen our relations with international, civil and justice institutions besides the human rights organisations in facing the challenges of the blockade.”
Dr Bahia Tahzib-Lie, Ambassador of the Kingdom of The Netherlands to Qatar gave a speech in which she highlighted that The Hague is called as the International City of Peace and Justice and the legal Capital of the World.
Dr Bahia said: “I am proud that many important international legal institutions, in particular the International Court of Justice, have their seat in The Hague. Over 14,000 professionals in The Hague work at these institutions, working everyday towards peace and justice in the world. For the Dutch, a just world is a prerequisite for a safe world. Developing and safeguarding the international legal order is so important to us that we have even enshrined it in our Constitution. The Kingdom of The Netherlands will be a member of the UN Security Council in 2018.”
“Our focus will very much be on our core foreign policy goals, including conflict prevention and sustaining peace, the protection of civilians, and the rule of law and accountability. The Netherlands is keen on working with its international partners and welcomes Qatar’s partnership,” she added.
The programme agenda featured presentations delivered by iCE Doha President and Honorary Ambassador-at-Large for The Hague Institute for Global Justice Dr Winand D.E. Staring and The Hague Institute for Global Justice CEO and interim Steven van Hoogstraten and Non-Resident Distinguished Fellow Dr Stephen Rapp.
Discussions focused on the legal dimensions of the Qatar’s blockade from different legal perspectives such as international law, maritime navigation law, diplomacy and international dispute resolution, international human rights law, the general theory of international organizations, the World Trade Organization (WTO), and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
The participants also had the opportunity to discuss the topic of “cyber-attacks” as an act of aggression by judicial re-interpretation and analogy to previously defined acts of aggression, as well as the subject of threats to attack civilian aviation based in Qatar, in the context of crimes against humanity.
