South Africa should lead effort to ban killer robots

Original post: Mail & Guardian

16 April 2018

As nations convene at the United Nations in Geneva this week to continue deliberations on “lethal autonomous weapons systems” or “killer robots”, it is clear that the diplomatic process is moving too slowly.

If we are to avoid a future where robots decide who gets to live and who dies, there is no time or money to waste — governments must act now.

30 March 2018

On 27 March 2018, the African Union held a High-Level Seminar on Lethal Autonomous Weapon Systems for African Union Missions to Geneva at the United Nations Headquarters in Geneva., Switzerland. The Seminar was organised by the South African Research Chair in International Law, University of Johannesburg in collaboration with the African Union and the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots.

 

Go to original post: www.gov.za

21 Mar 2018

Address by Deputy President David Mabuza during the commemoration of Human Rights Day in Sharpeville, Gauteng, where he encouraged all South Africans to participate in the South African National Schools Moot Court Competition, organsied by ICLA memebers Nyambeni Davhana and Alexia Katsignis, together with Prof Christof Heyns

Our Hosts, the Acting Premier of Gauteng, Mr Panyaza Lesufi and the Executive Mayor of Sedibeng District Municipality, Cllr Busisiwe Modisakeng,
Minister of Arts and Culture, Mr Nkosinathi Mthethwa and all Ministers present,
Deputy Ministers, Members of the Gauteng Provincial Executive Council and Members of Parliament and Provincial Legislature present,
President of the Pan Africanist Congress,
Leaders of various political parties represented here,
Leaders of Labour, Faith-based organisations, and Civil Society,
Community of Sedibeng,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Dumelang! Sanibonani! Good Day!

HLP-on-70th-anniversary-of-UDHR-1

BY MARY GRACE CAREY, UNIVERSAL RIGHTS GROUP MARCH 13, 2018 BLOG IN FOCUS: DOMESTIC IMPLEMENTATION OF UNIVERSAL NORMS

On Wednesday 28th February, the Human Rights Council marked the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the 25th anniversary of the Vienna Declaration and Plan of Action with a High Level Panel, as requested by Russian-led resolution 35/1. The discussion focused on the implementation of the provisions of these key human rights documents, including the benefits of enhanced international cooperation to that end. In a sign of renewed interest national-level compliance with universal norms, much of the discussion focused on the newly emergent ‘implementation agenda’ – how States might better translate their international obligations into improved laws and practices, and how the international community might better support them in that regard.

UN

The Institute for International and Comparative Law in Africa, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, invites applications from individuals interested in pursuing a doctorate degree in law, specifically on the topic of the impact of the United Nations human rights treaties on the domestic level.

 

jessup 2018

The Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition is the world's largest moot court competition in which teams compete by representing countries in a simulation of a fictional dispute before the International Court of Justice. Participants from over 645 law schools in 95 countries will compete in the 2017-2018 season.

IMC-group-picture

The International Moot Court (IMC) is a two-yearly international competition organised by The Hague City Council in collaboration with the City of New York. The competition is intended for high school learners and is aimed at encouraging an engagement with international (criminal) law. The competition is open to learners from all countries and is hosted in The Hague, Netherlands.

UN

 

Download this statement in PDF format

6 February 2018 - The Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria is pleased to announce the start of a comprehensive study into the impact of the United Nations (UN) human rights treaty system in 20 countries around the world.

policing-with-human-rights

Visit original blog post to listern to the talk: Centre of Governance & Human Rights (CGHR)

24 January 2018 - On January 18 this CGHR panel discussion brought international experts from the United Nations into conversation with academics based in Cambridge and elsewhere to explore the role of police, the act of policing, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).

SASCA-2018

16 January 2018

The Organisers of the Stellenbosch Annual Seminar on Constitutionalism in Africa (SASCA) are pleased to announce the call for papers for the Sixth Stellenbosch Annual Seminar on Constitutionalism in Africa (SASCA 2018) which will be held in Stellenbosch (South Africa) from 4 -7 September 2018.

The theme for this seminar is "Democracy, elections and constitutionalism in Africa."