On 31 May, the ICJ organized a parallel event at the Human Rights Council on “The Role of Judges and Lawyers in Times of Crisis”.
The panel comprised the Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers Gabriela Knaul, Carlos Ayala (former Chairman of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights) and Gerritjan van Oven (President, Judges for Judges); ICJ Legal & Policy Director Ian Seiderman moderated the discussion. The speakers addressed the special role to be played by judges and lawyers in times of crisis, as last line of defense against the exercise of arbitrary power by political, military and other actors. The meeting also marked the publication of the Legal Commentary to the ICJ Geneva Declaration on Upholding the Rule of Law and the Role of Judges and Lawyers in Times of Crisis.
Role of judges and lawyers-event-2011 (full text, PDF)