Illegal Use of Force and Human Rights Violations

The UN Human Rights Committee in its General Comment No. 36 on the right to life richly elaborated the connection between illegal use of force and the violation of the right to life: States engaged in aggression resulting in deprivation of life violate ipso facto the right to life; States that fail to take all reasonable measures to settle international disputes by peaceful means also fail to ensure the right to life; States should take appropriate measures to address the general conditions in society that may give rise to direct threats to life and efforts to avert the risks of armed conflict, and to strengthen international peace and security, are among the most important safeguards of the right to life. With illegal use and threat of force in international relations on the rise, this webinar critically explores the relationship between the law against the use of force (jus contra bellum) and international human rights law. Moving from abstract to concrete, the webinar brings together human rights lawyers in states subject to illegal use of force to discuss its human rights implications on the ground. Panelists: Pouria Askary, Allameh Tabataba'i University Katayoun Hosseinnejad, Independent Researcher and Consultant (IHRL, IHL) Francisco Forrest Martin, Former Ariel F. Sallows Professor of Human Rights, College of Law, University of Saskatchewan, Canada Daniil Ukhorskiy, Legal Action Worldwide Zera Kozlyieva, Truth Hounds Moderator: Ka Lok Yip, College of Law, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar Sponsored by the Human Rights Interest Group.