Joakim Dungel Lectures in International Justice
The Joakim Dungel Lectures in International Justice were founded in memory of Joakim Dungel, an alumnus of Gothenburg University, with the aim to deepen our understanding of justice-related issues world by analysing them through an international law lens.
Joakim Dungel, an alumnus of Gothenburg University (Jur kand. '04) and New York University (LL.M. '07), was killed on 1 April 2011 in Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan, where he was working as a human rights legal officer for the United Nations.
In Joakim's brief existence, he blazed the trails of international justice, working for the United Nations International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, the Special Court for Sierra Leone, the Temporary International Presence in Hebron, and the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan.
Joakim was also a prolific author and published scholarly works on a wide range of issues, including command responsibility, the protection of national security interests, the right to humanitarian assistance during internal armed conflicts, and crimes against humanity.
For the purpose of honouring Joakim's life and work, Joakim's family and friends have, together with Gothenburg University, instituted the annual Joakim Dungel Lectures in International Justice, at which leading scholars and practitioners in the field of international human rights, international humanitarian law, and international criminal law will present lectures that seek to advance the bounds of our knowledge in order to bring justice to those in dire need.
This year's seminar
Nuclear weapons: legality and diplomacy
9 February 2023
The nuclear threat is growing. Escalating warfare, political posturing, and geopolitical shifts raise the immediacy of concerns regarding the immense destruction that the use of nuclear weapons would leave in their wake.
The 2023 edition of the Joakim Dungel Lectures in International Justice will seek to make sense of the issue as our speakers help us understand the technology, history, legality, and politics of nuclear weapons. The speakers will also draw on their extensive experience and research to shed light on efforts to regulate nuclear weapons, and what this regulation and the multilateralism it depends on mean in an increasingly conflict-prone and polarized global setting.
Past Lectures
Session I
Polarization and International Law: Government and Legal Perspectives
Polarization from a Global Perspective: Viewpoints from Diplomacy
Ann Wilkens, Ambassador
Polarization and International Law: Viewpoints from Academia
Sari Kouvo, Associate Professor, Department of Law, Gothenburg Univeristy
Session II
Working with Human Rights in Polarized Times: Regional and National Perspectives
Polarization, Human Rights and International Law: Lessons from the Middle East
Habib Nassar, Director of Policy and Research, Impunity Watch
Freedom of Media and Expression in Contemporary Europe: Possibilities and Challenges
Andrew Stroehlein, European Media Director, Human Rights Watch
Session 3
Future Challenges for Human Rights and International Law in a Polarized World: Concluding Discussion
Polarization and Human Rights in a Digitalized World: What Can We Expect?
Professor Susan Perry, American University, Paris
Session I
International Perspectives on the Arms Trade Treaty: Law, Politics and Conflict
Sari Kouvo
The Global Authorized Arms Trade: Facts, Figures, and Context
Paul Holtom
The Arms Trade Treaty: Background, Aims, and Context,
Paul Beijer and Paul Holtom
Session II
Swedish Perspectives on the Arms Trade Treaty and Sweden: Law, Politics, and Business
Paul Holtom
The Swedish Defense Industry and Arms Trade: Facts, Figures and Developments
Linda Åkerström
Sweden’s Role in Implementing the Arms Trade Treaty
Paul Beijer
The international legal framework to address climate change
Marianna Bolshakova, Legal Officer, Legal Affairs Programme, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
Land: Land and the Protection of Human Rights, the Guarantee of Justice, and the Realization of World Peace
Richard Byron-Cox, Action Programme Alignment and Capacity Building Officer, The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)
Sea: Environmental Justice in the Oceans—A Conceptual Analysis of Legal Frameworks Applicable to the Remediation of Sea-Dumped Chemical Weapons
Grant Dawson, Principal Legal Officer, Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)
Session I
Biological and Chemical Weapons
Dr. Robert Heinsch, Associate Professor, University of Leiden
Dr. Valeria Santori, International Consultant, Former Senior Policy Officer with the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons
Session II
Nuclear Weapons
Dr. Tytti Erästö, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI)
Panel discussion and Q&A session
Josefin Lind, Swedish Physicians Against Nuclear Weapons
Dr. Mikael Baaz, Associate Professor, University of Gothenburg
Dr. Robert Heinsch, Dr. Valeria Santori, Dr. Tytti Erästö
Moderator: Dr. Andreas Moberg, Associate Professor, University of Gothenburg
International Core Crime vs transnational crime – where does the crime of terrorism stand?
Philipp Ambach, Chief of the Victims Participation and Reparation Section in the Registry of the International Criminal Court (ICC)
Combatting terrorism “bottom-up”- globalisation of States’ responses to an emerging global threat
Nicolas Guillou, Chef de Cabinet to the President of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon
Combatting terrorism “top down” – the UNSC’s initiatives to tackle a new global problem
Kimberly Prost, Chef de Cabinet to the President of the International Criminal Court
Global Context
Presentation on the evolution of the foreign terrorist fighter phenomenon and the response of the international community.
Nikolaus Schultz, UN Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate, New York
Local Context
A perspective from those working with the topic in the Swedish society will give the audience contextual knowledge a in order to further understand both the problem and the proposed legislative measures to combat it. Are the trends and underlying reasons the same as in the global context?
Evin Ismail, Uppsala University and Zan Jankowski, City of Gothenburg
Swedish law
Currently voices are calling for the Swedish legislator to act. The Swedish government has ordered a number of inquiries, some of which have received quite heavy criticism when presented. What proposals for legislation are currently on the table? Is there Swedish Law in force prohibiting the active participation as an FF/FTF?
Gustaf Almkvist, Uppsala University
Comparative law
There is an on-going debate about how to counter the ongoing recruitment of men and women into terror groups operating mainly in the Middle East. Swedish Media tends to focus on the shortcomings of the authorities in this endeavour. What is the current state of legislation to combat terrorism and in particular to prevent the travel of foreign fighters in other jurisdictions?
Manuel Eising, Senior Legal Adviser, OSCE Secretariat - Action against Terrorism Unit
International law
In order to tie everything together, a session on International Law connects the topic to available international legislation. What rules of contemporary international law are applicable? What future change is envisaged? What is the difference, if any, between a mercenary, PMC, FF, FTF?
Svetlana Martynova, UN Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate, New York (Via Videolink)
Criminalisation of participation through terrorist organisations in armed conflict
Is there a need to criminalise participation in armed conflict on the side of a terrorist organisation? This question is currently on the table, as a Swedish government inquiry works with this delicate issue in the interface between national law and International Humanitarian Law.
Ola Engdahl, Swedish Defence University, Expert counselor to the Inquiry to prevent and combat terrorism
Mikael Bernardini, Gothenburg University
Christer Mattson, Segerstedtinstitutet, Gothenburg University
Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflicts: Lessons from the EU crisis management and the Afghan conflict
Sari Kouvo, EEAS, Department of Law, Gothenburg University
Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflicts: Survivors and Protection Mechanisms, with a Focus on Serbia
Milica Kostic, Humanitarian Law Center, Belgrad
Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflicts: Mechanisms to Ensure Accountability, with Particular Focus on the ICC
Diane Brown, Women’s Initiative for Gender Justice
Scattered Reflections on Challenges of Adjusting Vintage Rules to Modern Armed Conflict
Judge Bakhtiyar Tuzmukhamedov, International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and the International Criminal Tribunal for former Yugoslavia. He is currently based in the Hague. (keynote speaker).
What is a Drone?
Peter Bull, Swedish Defence College.
Disciplining drones: is there a role for the UN and international law?
Gleider I Hernández, Lecturer at Durham Law School. Former Associate Legal Officer at the International Court of Justice.
The Changing Nature of Warfare and the Long-Term Needs of Victims of ConflictKirsten Kirsten Roberts, PhD candidate and Dickson Poon Scholar, King’s College London. Previous Acting Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Research, Policy and Promotion of the Irish Human Rights Commission (IHRC).
Panel discussion: Cecilia Tengroth, Red Cross Sweden.
Moderator: Per Cramér , Dean of the School of Business, Economics and Law, University of Gothenburg.
Lessons in Humility: Working in Conflict and Post-Conflict Settings
Niki Ganz, Political Affairs Officer for the Middle East and Western Asia Division, United Nations Department of Political Affairs, New York
The Libya Operation from a Nordic Perspective: Identifying the Parties to an Armed Conflict in a Multinational Operation Context
Ola Engdahl, Docent in International Law, Swedish National Defence College.
About Responsibility
Judge Wolfgang Schomburg, honorary and teaching Professor at Durham University. Judge Schomburg was elected the first German Judge by the General Assembly of the UN to join the UN- ad hoc Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague (NL) in 2001.
Moderator: Professor Per Cramér, Dean, School of Business, Economics and Law at Gothenburg University.
Tribute to Joakim Dungel’s Unfinished Work: Whether the Incident at Wounded Knee Creek on 29 December 1890 Was a Crime Under the Applicable Law of the Time.
Grant Dawson, Legal Officer United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.
The International Criminal Court: The Next Step Towards a Comprehensive International Criminal Justice System.
Dr. Philipp Ambach, Special Assistant to the President, International Criminal Court.
The Association in Memory of Joakim Dungel
Mission Statement:
Joakim Dungel, an alumnus of Gothenburg University (Jur. Kand. '04) and New York University (LL.M. '07), was killed on 1 April 2011 in Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan, where he was working as a human rights legal officer for the United Nations. In Joakim's brief existence, he blazed the trails of international justice, working for the United Nations International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, the Special Court for Sierra Leone, the Temporary International Presence in Hebron, and the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan. Joakim was also a prolific author and published scholarly works on a wide range of issues, including command responsibility, the protection of national security interests, the right to humanitarian assistance during internal armed conflicts, and crimes against humanity.
For the purpose of honouring Joakim's life and work, the non-profit Association in Memory of Joakim Dungel (Sw. Föreningen Joakim Dungels Minne, ideell förening) has been founded.
The association aims to foster involvement, education and the spreading of information within Humanitarian Law; Human Rights; International Law; and on democracy issues in accordance with the values expressed in the United Nations Conventions. The association is a non-profit organisation without religious or political affiliation.
The association will work for those issues related to Humanitarian Law, Human Rights and International Law that Joakim was committed to and worked for. Annual lectures are held at Gothenburg University to foster dialogue around the issues outlined above. Leading scholars and practitioners in the field of international human rights, international humanitarian law, and international criminal law will present lectures that seek to advance the bounds of our knowledge in order to bring justice to those in dire need. In the future the association will strive to provide monetary means to students and others who share Joakim’s commitment and wish to prosper within the issues that the association works for.
Support us
For the purpose of honouring Joakim's life and work, the non-profit Association in Memory of Joakim Dungel (Sw. Föreningen Joakim Dungels Minne, ideell förening) has been founded.
The association aims to foster involvement, education and the spreading of information within Humanitarian Law; Human Rights; International Law; and on democracy issues in accordance with the values expressed in the United Nations Conventions. The association is a non-profit organisation without religious or political affiliation.
Do you want to be a contributing member?
You can support us by donating to Föreningen Joakim Dungels Minne. Direct your contribution to BG 119-4406. For contributions from outside Sweden use IBAN: SE43 5000 0000 0500 3119 5709 and BIC: ESSESESS.
