David Morrison Lecture in International Development

The David Morrison Lecture in International Development brings globally distinguished scholars, who are renowned for the impact that their intellectual and applied work has had on international development studies, to Trent University to address members of the Trent and Peterborough communities. 

The rise of counter-terrorism and the fall of human rights

Fionnuala Ní Aoláin

Regents Professor and Robina Professor of Law, Public Policy and Society, University of Minnesota Law School

 

  • calendar iconWednesday, October 9, 2024
  • time icon
  • 7:30 p.m.
  • location iconThe Venue, 286 George St N, Peterborough, ON K9J 3H2

Lecture Abstract 

This lecture will address the consolidation and expansion of counter-terrorism norms and institutions since 9/11. The rise of counter-terrorism has enabled the consolidation of autocracy, sustained democratic backsliding and undermined the capacity of civil society to function across the globe.  The impact on human rights has been extensive and highly detrimental to the most vulnerable individuals and groups across the world. Drawing on the work of Professor Ni Aolain as United Nations Special Rapporteur on Counter-Terrorism and Human Rights since her 2017 appointment, the lecture will reflect on the hard choices that must be made nationally and globally to reverse these trends.


About Fionnuala Ní Aoláin

Fionnuala Ní AoláinProfessor Fionnuala Ní Aoláin is concurrently Regents Professor and Robina Professor of Law, Public Policy and Society at the University of Minnesota Law School and Professor of Law at the Queens University, Belfast, Northern Ireland.  Professor Ní Aoláin is the recipient of numerous academic awards and honors including the Leverhulme Fellowship, British Academy Awards, Fulbright scholarship, the Alon Prize, the Robert Schumann Scholarship, a European Commission award, and the Lawlor fellowship. She is an elected fellow of the Royal Irish Academy.  She has published extensively in the fields of emergency powers, counterterrorism and human rights, conflict regulation, transitional justice and sex-based violence in times of war. Her book Law in Times of Crisis (CUP 2006) was awarded the American Society of International Law’s preeminent prize in 2007 - the Certificate of Merit for creative scholarship. Her published work has been extensively recognized for its path-breaking contributions and its rigor. Professor Ní Aoláin was United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Protection and Promotion of Human Rights while Countering Terrorism (2017- 2023).  She was elected to the International Commission of Jurists in 2023. She was appointed K.C (Hons) in 2004 by King Charles III.

For more information, contact alumni@trentu.ca.