Revisiting Sovereignty and Recognition of Oppressive Governments; A focus on Myanmar

* Please note this event takes place at 1pm UK time, rather than the usual start time for Discussion Group seminars, to accommodate time zone differences. *

If you wish to participate in this (remote) seminar, RSVP is necessary. Please complete the Registration Form before noon on Wednesday 2 March (please note that if you register after noon, a link may not be sent to you).  Prior to the Thursday seminar, you will be sent a Zoom link to join. 

Prof Errol Mendes calls for a revisiting of the origins of  the concept of sovereignty in PIL  due to a misconception of its origins in the Peace of Westphalia in 1648  that continued to be entrenched in the Charter of the UN. He will discuss a need to connect a concept of sovereignty based on the international  rule of law with an emerging practice of non-recognition of oppressive governments with a focus on the present situation of the coup in Myanmar by the military junta. The claims of the government in opposition and in exile to act on behalf of the people of the country seeking accountability for atrocities will also be discussed.

Professor Errol Mendes is a lawyer, author, professor and has been an advisor to corporations, governments, civil society groups and the United Nations. His teaching, research and consulting interests include constitutional and international human rights law, corporate law, global governance, public international law (including humanitarian and international criminal law). Professor Mendes completed his term as Director of the Human Rights Research and Education Centre on June 30, 2001, and returned to full-time teaching in the Common Law section of the Faculty of Law, University of Ottawa. In 1999, in recognition of his work on business ethics in Canada, the Office of the Secretary General of the United Nation invited Professor Mendes to be an advisor on the Global Compact initiative of the Secretary General. Professor Mendes is also the founding and present Editor-in-Chief of Canada’s leading constitutional law journal, The National Journal of Constitutional Law, which is now in its 26th year of publication. He is the author or co-editor of eleven books in his areas of expertise. His most recent book published in February 2014 with a second edition due in late 2022 is titled ‘Global Governance, Human Rights and International Law. Combating the Tragic Flaw’ published by Routledge. Professor Mendes has been the President of the International Commission of Jurists, Canadian Section since 2014. He was awarded the Order of Ontario and the Law Society of Ontario medal for his work in international human rights in Canada and around the world. He is a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.
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Due to the current public health emergency, the PIL Discussion Group series for 2021-2022 continues to be held online. RSVP is necessary for each event. A link to the Registration Form will be available on the relevant event page prior to each event. Please complete this form to register your attendance and, prior to the event, you will be sent a Zoom link to join the discussion. Please note that if you complete the form after the deadline of noon on the preceding Wednesday, you may not receive the link to join.

The Public International Law Discussion Group at the University of Oxford is a key focal point for PIL@Oxford and hosts regular speaker events. Topics involve contemporary and challenging issues in international law. Speakers include distinguished international law practitioners, academics, and legal advisers from around the world.

PIL Discussion Group Convenors: Xiaotian Yu and Natasha Holcroft-Emmess

The Discussion Group's meetings are part of the programme of the British Branch of the International Law Association and are supported by the Law Faculty and Oxford University Press.

For this event, the speaker will commence at 1:pm UK Time and speak for around forty minutes, allowing about twenty-five minutes for questions and discussion. The meeting should conclude before 2:15pm UK Time.

Practitioners, academics and students from within and outside the University of Oxford are all welcome.