Papers are now being sought for the volume to pay tribute to a colleague and mentor, William A. Schabas, whose lengthy title reflects Bill’s many areas of expertise: Public International Law, International Criminal Law & International Human Rights Law: A Critical Evaluation of the Scholarship of Professor William Schabas. Anyone wishing to be considered for publication should submit — either to Kathleen.Cavanaugh@nuigalway.ie or to J.Castellino@mdx.ac.uk — a 500-word abstract. It should outline the general thrust of the proposed contribution and also highlight the aspect of Schabas scholarship that would be engaged. Abstracts must be submitted no later than October 1, 2011.
It is expected to be published by Cambridge University Press in late 2012/early 2013.
The principal coordinators of the project are Dr. Kathleen Cavanaugh, Senior Lecturer at the Irish Centre for Human Rights, National University of Ireland, Galway, which Bill founded and, in little more than a decade, established as a pivotal human rights thinktank, and Dr. Joshua Castellino, Professor of Law and the Head of Law Department at Middlesex University in London. They write:
Over the last half a century the discourse of public international law has been enlivened by a growing emphasis on international human rights law, spawning robust debate and discussion, and also the creation of an imperfect system of accountability for crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide. In the last two decades in particular, the scholarship and activism of Professor William Schabas has had a significant impact on the growth and direction of the normative frameworks around these subjects. In addition through his own engagement in different theatres, Professor Schabas has also contributed to the spread of implementation models worldwide, and has supervised a growing number of successful doctoral contributions that have further enhanced the quality of the debate. His sterling role on the Sierra Leone Truth Commission is but one manifestation that that his contribution has spread well beyond the realms of the classroom: recognition that is also reflected in the bestowal of the Order of Canada upon him for his contribution to human rights.
(His most recent honor: an honorary doctorate from Northwestern, incidentally my alma mater, at a ceremony that also honored comedian Stephen Colbert.) For the volume, which will mark Bill’s 60th birthday, they welcome essays of 8,000 to 10,000 words, in English or French, from scholars, practitioners, judges, and others. Contributions should critically engage with, assess, and discuss the impact of Bill’s extensive body of publications. The coordinators explain:
‘We seek this in the belief that the best testament to a scholar is a critical engagement with their work.’
Given the many issues and interests reflected in Bill’s writings, a range of topics is likely to be included in the volume. Examples:
? Genocide
? War crimes
? Crimes against humanity
? Creation and functioning of the International Criminal Court
? Capital punishment
? Reservations to treaties
? Jus cogens norms
? Minority rights
? Religion and human rights
? Truth commissions
? Reparative justice
? Literature and human rights
Anyone wishing to be considered for publication should submit — either to Cavanaugh at Kathleen.Cavanaugh@nuigalway.ie or to Castellino at J.Castellino@mdx.ac.uk — a 500-word abstract. It should outline the general thrust of the proposed contribution and also highlight the aspect of Schabas scholarship that would be engaged.
Abstracts must be submitted no later than October 1, 2011.
Vetting the submitted abstracts will be a panel of editors that includes yours truly and many other professors, including Andrew Clapham (Geneva), Françoise Hampson (Essex), Douglas Cassel (Notre Dame), Dinah Shelton (George Washington), Christine Chinkin (London School of Economics), David Scheffer (Northwestern), David Wippman (Minnesota), David Kretzmer (Hebrew University), Emmanuel Decaux (Panthéon-Assas), and Alain Pellet (Paris Ouest).
Authors of selected abstracts will be notified by mid-December 2011, and full papers must be completed by the strict deadline date of May 1, 2012.
Please contact Cavanaugh or Castellino at the above e-mail addresses for more information on this well-deserved tribute project.
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