McGill Centre for Human Rights & Legal Pluralism
September 2021 Newsletter

Upcoming events: 

• Sept 17: COVID and Civil Liberties
• Sept 24: The Taliban and the Future of Women’s Rights in Afghanistan

Save the date:

• Oct 4/5: Nuremberg 75th anniversary: Mass Trials for Mass Violence

Other events of interest:

• Sept 30: Science in Exile Webinar: Long-term support of refugee and displaced scientists: the power of mentorship

Words of Welcome

Bonjour à tous et à toutes. A warm hello to all. We have all been learning and adapting constantly over the past year and a half and we are happy to have been able to do that together with many of you. Thank you to all who were in touch or who attended CHRLP events last year and please join us again in whichever way suits you best. Our new Co-Directors have a busy year in mind and new ideas and collaborations are also welcome. In these challenging times, we value our connections and solidarity with you more than ever.  Health, success, and best wishes for 2021-2022.

Upcoming Events

COVID and Civil Liberties
Friday, September 17, 1:00-2:30 PM (ET)
Zoom: click here to access the event.

Please join us for a roundtable conversation about the interface between measures to deal with the current pandemic and civil liberties, with a focus on the issues as legal developments. A Q&A with the audience will follow.

Speakers:

• Frédéric Mégret, Professor of Law and a William Dawson Scholar at McGill University, Co-Director of the Centre for Human Rights and Legal Pluralism.
• Pearl Eliadis, an award-winning lawyer, educator, and author who has successfully led complex, global human rights and governance projects for multilateral agencies, including the UN, in China, Ethiopia, Nepal.
• Richard Gold, James McGill Professor at McGill University, Founding Director and current Director of the Centre for Intellectual Property Policy.

Zoom Sept 17: https://mcgill.zoom.us/j/85446923482.

The Taliban and the Future of Women's Rights in Afghanistan
Webinar in collaboration with Women Living Under Muslim Laws (WLUML)

Friday, September 24, 10:00-11:30 AM (ET)
Zoom: click here to access the event.

Moderated by Vrinda Narain, Associate Professor at McGill University and Board Member of WLUML.

Speakers:

• Asma Faizai, General Counsel at Access Copyright, President and Chair of the Board of Directors of the Afghan Women's Organization.
• Wazhma Frogh, co-founder of the Women and Peace Studies Organization in Afghanistan, recipient of the 2009 International Women of Courage Award.
• Dr. Sima Samar, Nobel Peace Prize nominee, renowned human rights advocate, Chairperson of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) since 2002, Chairperson of the Commission for the Prevention of Torture.
• Belquis Ahmadi, Senior Programme Officer at the United States Institute of Peace in Washington DC.

Zoom Sept 24:  https://mcgill.zoom.us/j/82939591010.

Save the Date

Mass Trials for Mass Violence
Nuremberg 75th anniversary international symposium between Brussels and Montréal

Monday, October 4, 8:00 AM – 1:30 PM (ET) and Tuesday, October 5, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM (ET)

Registration required: masstrial@ulb.be.
In-person location and Zoom link to follow upon registration.

Monday’s sessions moderated by Marie-Laurence Hébert-Dolbec (ULB) and Frédéric Mégret (McGill); Tuesday’s session moderated by Laurent Kennes (ULB).

Other Events of Interest 

Long-term support of refugee and displaced scientists: the power of mentorship
Science in Exile webinar series

Thursday, September 30, 7:00 – 8:30 AM (ET)
Register here.

Speakers include:

• Rana Dajani, professor of molecular biology at Hashemite University, Jordan.
• Eqbal M. A. Dauqan, associate professor of biochemistry, Nutrition department, University of Oslo, Norway.
• Olga Palinkasev Gregorian, senior advisor and head of scholar support services, The Institute of International Education's Scholar Rescue Fund (IIE-SRF), United States.

Calls for Papers

Constitutional Rights and Freedoms in Canada: Critical Reflections & Engagement (conference on April 8, 2022)

As we approach the 40th anniversary of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the constitutional recognition of Indigenous rights, it is timely to reflect upon the impact of these constitutional reforms. This workshop is aimed at mobilizing and sharing critical reflections regarding the meaning and application of diverse constitutional rights and freedoms, including theoretical, comparative, and interdisciplinary perspectives. It will provide an occasion to share past research and explore potential future research collaborations. 

Participation in the workshop (for those presenting) would involve preparing a short think piece (1,000-2,000 words) on a topic related to the constitutional rights entrenched in 1982. Others may simply be interested in attending.

We would greatly appreciate hearing from you about your interest in participating by September 30th, including the issue/question you would likely explore in your short think piece. Email: human.rights@mcill.ca.

CHRLP Forum and Blog

CHRLP Forum 2021–2022:
Solidarity in an Interconnected World

Inspired by the fabled meeting place in ancient Rome, the Centre for Human Rights and Legal Pluralism (CHRLP) Forum is founded on the principles of inclusive citizenship and deliberative democracy. The Forum aspires to create a space for learning from the past, deliberating about the present, and building a common future together.
The CHRLP Forum aims to bring rich and plural insights on the concept of solidarity through engagement with diverse theories of change and ideas of justice.

We invite students, practitioners, and scholars to participate in discussion groups that will explore the nature of international solidarity as a way to bridge differences and opposites. This year's theme, Solidarity in an Interconnected World is detailed here.

Do you have an issue you would like to discuss?
Please email us at human.rights@mcgill.ca with a statement of intent, list of readings, and suggested discussion questions.  We look forward to hearing from you.

Call for blogs

Do you have an upcoming article you would like to publicize? A blog post you would like to write?

The CHRLP is also proud to launch the fourth year of its Blog with an open call for blog posts. Interested authors are encouraged to draw inspiration from the theme "Solidarity in an Interconnected World". More information, including editorial guidelines, can be found in the following call for submissions.

Submissions (in English, French, or Spanish) can be sent to human.rights@mcgill.ca.

Welcome to our Visiting Fellows

The CHRLP is proud to welcome three O'Brien Fellows in Residence this fall! 

Andrey Shcherbovich (Russia)

Dr. Andrey Shcherbovich graduated from the National Research University Higher School of Economics, Faculty of Law (Department of International Law), Moscow, Russia, in 2008. Between 2008 and 2010, he was a project coordinator in the NGO ‘Inter-regional Library Cooperation Centre’, working body of the UNESCO Information For All Programme. Between 2011 and 2020 Dr. Shcherbovich was a Professor at the Department of the Constitutional and Administrative Law of the National Research University Higher School of Economics in Moscow (Russia). In 2013, he completed his Ph.D. with a thesis entitled “Constitutional Guarantees of the freedom of speech and right to access the information on the Internet”.

Dr. Shcherbovich’s professional interests are related to Russian public law (constitutional and human rights law) with special regard to international principles of Internet Governance. Among others, he teaches a special course on the human rights of Internet users.

Read more about Andrey here.

Valentin Nshurani Migabo (DRC, continuing Fellow)

Congolais d’origine, Valentin Migabo possède une solide expérience en tant que travailleur de terrain dans les zones de conflit ou post-conflit. Il a participé aux Opérations de maintien de la paix en Afrique de l’Ouest et du Centre. En 2009-2010, son mandat en Côte d’Ivoire, au sein de l’Unité post-conflit du Programme des Nations Unies pour le développement (PNUD), l’a amené à participer à la mise en œuvre du programme de désarmement, de démobilisation et de réinsertion sociale des anciens combattants. Pour en savoir plus sur lui, cliquez ici.

Öykü Didem Aydin (Turkey, continuing Fellow)

Associate Professor Dr. Öykü Didem Aydın is a tenured professor of Constitutional Law at the Hacettepe University Law School in Ankara. They are a member of the Ankara Bar Association, the Founding President of the Nation's First Center for LGBTIQ+ Rights of the Ankara Bar Association and a former member of the Commission for Democracy through Law (The Venice Commission) of the Council of Europe. Ökyü Didem Aydin researches national and international criminal law, criminal law reform politics, freedom of thought, thought crimes, women's rights, sexual rights and children's rights. Read more about them here.

Welcome to our new Graduate Fellows

The CHRLP also extends a warm welcome to our new O'Brien Graduate Fellows. Further news to follow!

Jeanne Pérès, LLM (Montreal) is exploring doctrinal and jurisprudential developments with respect to Indigenous land claims in the Canadian context and analyze the best ways to integrate international law and Indigenous legal traditions into Canadian law.

Amanda Nutakor, LLM (Ghana) is reviewing the juvenile justice system of Ghana, and particularly, the juvenile's right to legal representation and legal aid.

Cynthia Eboson, LLM (Nigeria) is interested in to what extent does the human rights approach ensure the effective internalization, transmission and legitimacy of inheritance rules in societies with entrenched gender-based discrimination.

Yuri Romana-Rivas, DCL (Colombia) is thinking about Afro-Colombian communities and transitional justice in Colombia, looking particularly towards an effective reparation system with an ethnically and racially differentiated approach.

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