William Schabas

William Schabas (2017)

William Anthony Schabas (born November 19, 1950 in Cleveland ) is an Irish - Canadian professor of international law and an internationally recognized expert on human rights .

family

Schabas was born in Cleveland, Ohio . His father, Ezra Schabas is a well-known Canadian musician and taught at the University of Toronto , among others . His mother, Ann Fairley, is from Canada. She was the dean of the library and information science faculty at Toronto University. Schaba's maternal grandparents were the painter Barker Fairley and the author Margaret Fairley . The paternal grandparents came from Galicia . There were Holocaust victims on the father's side in the family . Schabas is married to Penelope Soteriou, a Cypriot . He has two children with her and is a grandfather five times.

education

At the age of two, Schabas moved with his parents to Toronto, where his father accepted the position of director of The Royal Conservatory of Music . He received his education at the North Toronto Collegiate Institute in Toronto until 1968. This was followed by a study of history at the University of Toronto, which he graduated in 1972 with a Bachelor of Arts . He completed his postgraduate studies for a Master of Arts , also in history, specializing in international relations , in 1973 with a thesis on Anglo-Soviet relations between 1917 and 1934. During his doctoral studies at the University of Toronto, he was involved in the Students for a Democratic Society and was banned from university operations for four years in 1974 for violating human rights because he forcibly prevented a professor from giving a lecture. In 1983 he earned a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Montreal , where he was awarded the title of Master of Laws in 1990 with a thesis on the application of human rights in Canadian courts . 1992 Schabas was also at the University of Montreal for doctor of law doctorate . His dissertation dealt with international law issues relating to the abolition of the death penalty .

Professional background

Work as a journalist

After completing his history studies, Schabas initially worked as a tutor at his alma mater for a year from 1973 . At the same time he started work as a freelance journalist . He has written articles for Saturday Night , The New Scientist, and The Globe and Mail , among others . From 1975 to 1978 he was co-editor of the Canadian Mining Journal. In 1978 he took over the Canadian branch of the largest trade magazine in the paper industry, '' Pulp and Paper ''. Between 1981 and 1989 he was a correspondent for a news and press agency in Quebec .

Academic activity

Schabas began teaching as early as 1978, initially as a lecturer in history at Vanier College in Montreal. In 1983 he returned to the law school of Montreal University as a tutor. A year later, he completed a legal clerkship in a Montreal law firm and was admitted to the Quebec Bar Association in 1985 . In 1991 he received a reputation as a professor at the Law Faculty of the Université du Québec à Montréal . There he gave lectures on human rights and criminal law . Between 1994 and 1998 he headed the law department. In addition to his work as a professor, he was a member of the Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse from 1993 to 1996 and worked as a political advisor for the International Center for Human Rights and Democratic Development in 1995 and 1996 . In 1998 he spent a year as a Senior Fellow at the United States Institute of Peace . In 2000 Schabas moved to Ireland , where he accepted a professorship for human rights at the National University of Ireland, Galway . At the same time he took over the management of the Irish Center for Human Rights. When he there in 2011 emeritus was, he joined in 2012 as a professor of international criminal law and human rights at the University of Leiden . At the same time he has held a professorship for international law at Middlesex University since 2010 .

Activities in the field of international law

Schabas was also practically active in the field of international law. From 2002 to 2004 he was a member of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission for Sierra Leone . In addition, he has appeared several times as a lawyer before the International Court of Justice , the European Court of Human Rights , the International Criminal Court and the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights .

He became known to the wider international public through his appointment as chairman of a commission to investigate human rights violations during Israel's Operation Protective Edge in the Gaza Strip in 2014. In addition to him, the three-person commission included Doudou Diène and Mary McGowan Davis . His appointment was criticized by Canada's Foreign Secretary at the time, John Russell Baird, as well as by the non-governmental organization UN Watch . The background to this criticism were statements by Schabas, which suggested that he lacked the independence necessary for the work of the commission. Schabas contradicted the allegations made. The Israeli government, through its Ambassador to the United Nations Ron Prosor , strongly condemned Shaba's appointment. After allegations from the Israeli side that Schabas had provided legal advice to the Palestine Liberation Organization in 2012 for a fee of $ 1,300 , he resigned from the commission in February 2015 because of a possible conflict of interest.

Legal positions

death penalty

Schabas dealt with legal questions of the death penalty very early on. In numerous publications on this subject as well as in his work as chairman of an advisory body for the United Nations, he advocates the worldwide abolition of the death penalty.

genocide

Regarding the definition of genocide , Schabas takes the view that the term has not changed in the years since its introduction. In his opinion, the terms genocide and crimes against humanity are often mixed up in scientific discussions . In his opinion, the term genocide should be defined narrowly, so that, in his opinion, only the genocide of the Armenians and the Holocaust and genocide in Rwanda meet the requirements of the legal definition in more recent times . On the other hand, according to Schabas, the Srebrenica massacre does not constitute genocide in the legal sense.

Middle East conflict

In the Middle East conflict , Schabas has repeatedly represented positions critical of Israel. This is how he described Israel's prime minister in 2011 as a threat to the state of Israel. In 2012 he expressed understanding for Iran's nuclear program and described it as understandable for Iran to build nuclear weapons for the purpose of self-defense . When he testified before the Russell Tribunal on Palestine , he was convinced that Israel could succeed in proving violations of international law.

On February 2, 2015, Shabaz resigned as chief UN investigator into possible war crimes in the Gaza Strip after it became known that he had been untruthful about his ties to the PLO. When Schabas took office, he stated that he had "no official, professional, personal or financial connection" that could unilaterally influence his investigations, even though he had received a fee from the PLO in the past.

honors and awards

Schabas accepted numerous invitations as a visiting professor . So he taught to perform among others at All Souls College of Oxford University , at the University Panthéon-Assas in Paris , the American University and Wuhan University . He has also received numerous honorary doctorates , including from Dalhousie University , Case Western Reserve University and Northwestern University . On February 17, 2006, he was inducted into the Order of Canada . Since 2007 he has also been a member of the Royal Irish Academy .

Publications (selection)

Schabas has written numerous books and over 300 articles.

• The International Criminal Court: a commentary on the Rome Statute . Oxford University Press, Oxford 2016.
• The European Convention for Human Rights: a commentary . Oxford University Press, Oxford 2015.
• Defining Genocide . In: Aristotle Constantinides , Nikos Zaikos (ed.): The diversity of international law . Nijhoff, Leiden 2009, p. 535.

Web links

• Detailed curriculum vitae on the Middlesex University homepage

Individual evidence

1. ^ Nathan Guttman, "8 Things You Didn't Know About The UN War Crimes Commission," The Forward Aug. 15, 2015.
2. ^ "Former Head of Inquiry Into Gaza War Says He Faced Pressure and Threats," by Marlise Simons, New York Times , February 11, 2015
3. ↑ Full text of the CAUT Bulletin September 1974 (Volume 23, Number 1) ". Retrieved on December 12, 2016 . 
4. ^ ^{A b c} William Schabas, head of UN Gaza commission, dismisses anti-Israel charge. CBC Canada, accessed August 11, 2014 . 
5. ↑ International Protection of Human Rights and Politics: An Inescapable Reality: Interview with Professor William Schabas. (PDF) Intellectum.org, accessed December 10, 2016 .  : 'I believe that pretending the prosecution of Sudan is not political is a mistake too. Of course it is political. Why are we going after the president of Sudan for Darfur and not the president of Israel for Gaza? Because of politics. '
6. ↑ Yitzhak Benhorin, 'Head of UN Gaza inquiry commission called to try Netanyahu at ICC,' Ynet August 12, 2014
7. ^ Prosor: Having Schabas Lead UN Gaza Probe Akin to ISIS Hosting Religious Tolerance Event. In: The Jerusalem Post - JPost.com. Retrieved December 10, 2016 . 
8. ^ Yonah Jeremy Bob, "Schabas resignation may save Israelis at ICC," The Jerusalem Post , Feb. 4, 2015.
9. ^ William Schabas, "Genocide in International Law: A Discussion with William Schabas," United States Holocaust Memorial Museum March 4, 2004.
10. ^ William Schabas: Genocide in International Law: The Crime of Crimes . Cambridge University Press , 2000, ISBN 0-521-78790-4 ( amazon.com [accessed December 10, 2016]).
11. ↑ Who is Prof. William Schabas? Genocide Denier Heads Gaza sample. In: Bosniak & Jewish Solidarity. Archived from the original on November 1, 2014 ; accessed on December 10, 2016 . 
12. ↑ Irwin Cotler: The fatal flaws of the Schabas Inquiry. In: The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved December 12, 2016 . 
13. ↑ Schabas: 'Twist Things' to Get Israel in the Dock. In: Arutz Sheva. Retrieved December 12, 2016 . 
14. ^ Newsletter of the Embassy of the State of Israel of February 5, 2015