Event overview
Goldsmiths Law and the Knowing Our Rights project celebrate 70 years of the ECHR, discussing the past, present and future of the Convention, in the UK and beyond.
On 4 November 1950, the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) was signed in Rome, thus becoming the first instrument to give effect and binding force to rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the first treaty to establish an international court to ensure that the States Parties fulfilled their undertakings.
On 4 November 2020, the department of Law at Goldsmiths University of London, and the Knowing Our Rights project, will be celebrating the ECHR's seminal 70th anniversary. A wide range of human rights scholars, NGO experts and politicians, will come together to look into the past, present and future of the Convention, stressing the need for constant vigilance, especially at a time when human rights are faced with a host of rising threats: populism, nationalism-driven isolationism, modern technology, inequality, economic crisis, a global pandemic.
The programme of the symposium includes four key panels, and audience participants are welcome to join at any time:
10 am: Welcome and introductions : Prof Dimitrios Giannoulopoulos, Goldsmiths University of London; founder and director Britain in Europe thinktank and Knowing Our Rights project
10.10: The past 70 years – how the ECHR has positively transformed the lives of individuals and communities in the UK and abroad
Baroness Sarah Ludford, Liberal Democrat Lords spokesperson (on Exiting the European Union) ; Prof Paul Johnson, University of York; Dr Kirsty Hughes, University of Cambridge; Dr Dimitrios Kagiaros, Durham University ; Jago Russell, chief executive, Fair Trials; Dr Ruvi Ziegler, University of Reading ; Dr Yvonne Daly, Dublin City University ; Dr Conor O’Mahony, University College Cork
12.00: The present – what the ECHR can do for us, why it is under attack, how we can defend it
Wera Hobhouse MP, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Justice and Women & Equalities, Shadow Leader of the House ; Prof Colm O’Cinneide, UCL ; Prof Kanstantsin Dzehtsiarou, University of Liverpool ; Alex Dean, Senior Editor, Prospect Magazine ; Prof Francesca Klug OBE, LSE , in conversation with Jonathan Cooper OBE, Doughty Street Chambers
14.00: Looking into the future: law, technology, populism, a European identity, human rights beyond Europe
Griff Ferris, legal and policy officer, Fair Trials ; Michael Olatokun, Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law ; Roger Casale, secretary general and chief executive, New Europeans; Dr Jan Petrov, Masaryk University ; Dr Fatima Ahdash, Goldsmiths University of London ; Dr Mai Taha, Goldsmiths University of London
15.15: The view from the Council of Europe
Clare Ovey, Head of Department of Execution of Judgments, Council of Europe
15:45: Conclusions and the way forward
Prof Dimitrios Giannoulopoulos, Goldsmiths University of London
Goldsmiths Law symposium on 70 years of the European Convention on Human Rights: A Celebration
Dates & times
| Date | Time | Add to calendar |
|---|---|---|
| 4 Nov 2020 | 10:00am - 4:00pm |
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