On the picture the hall of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).
By Antonia Barthel, Lyudmila Palamar, Carlotta Duken.
The Hague has earned its reputation as the City of Peace and Justice through the multitude of international organizations located in the city. Yet, few people have had the chance to take a look behind the scenes and talk to people involved in the every day life of these institutions.
Within the context of the Just Peace Festival, celebrating the UN-declared International Day of Peace, this year’s The Hague International Open took place on Sunday, September 25th.
After prior registration, many international organizations invited people to learn more about their role in defending justice, peace and human rights. Guided tours, access to exhibitions and facilities of the organizations allowed people to get an insight into the working of these institutions.
This year again a plethora of organizations participated in the International Open Day:
•Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)
•The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY)
•The Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals (MICT)
•The International Criminal Court (ICC)
•Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH)
•The International Court of Justice (ICJ)
•The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA)
•Peace Palace Library
•Europe House – European Commission (EC) and European Parliament
•OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities (OSCE-HCNM)
•Eurojust
•UNICEF
•The International Development Law Organization
The International Criminal Court (ICC) opened its doors to approximately 700 visitors. Since it was established in 2002, the ICC has been taking part in the open day, allowing visitors a once in a lifetime peek into the workings of the ICC.
The ICC, governed by the Rome Statute, is the first permanent, treaty based, international criminal court established to help end impunity for the perpetrators of the most serious crimes to the international community. In 2015, the ICC moved into the building designed by the Danish firm Schmidt Hammer Lassen who won the international competition in 2010.
The Building reflects the transparent work of the ICC and is designed to fit perfectly within the landscape. Security measures are incorporated in the structure of the building. Dunes were created to hide the outside walls protecting the building on the one hand and creating a structure that includes the building in the nature and its surrounding.
In addition to a tour of the ICC, visitors could enjoy an exhibition about the establishment of the ICC as well as the art donated to the ICC by member countries such as a beautiful mosaic from Tunisia or a Korean drum.
With the first conference being held in 1893, the The Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH) presents one of the oldest institutions in The Hague. Its mission is to work on the progressive unification of the rules of private international law and to resolve differences between countries’ distinct legal systems.
Today, the HCCH counts 81 members and 145 non-member states who form part of the Conference and have signed several Conventions. The countries meet every four years in a plenary session. Besides the permanent bureau in The Hague, there are regional offices in Hong Kong and Argentina.
For the open day, the Attaché, Thomas John, introduced HCCH to the visitors in a short presentation, explained its historical origin and current workings. Subsequently, questions could be asked by visitors and the presentation was followed by a welcoming get-together with drinks, snacks and a life jazz band in the foyer of HCCH.
This year the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) took the International Open Day beyond geographical borders and commenced the annual event with its first ever virtual tour.
OPCW Spokesperson Deepti Choubey, guided social media users around the organization’s headquarters, emphasized the relevance of the OPCW’s mission and invited people from all over the world to participate in the Open Day next year. The informative tour was streamed live, however it can be still viewed on the official Facebook page of the organization.
Throughout the day more than 700 people visited the Headquarters of the OPCW, in The Hague, to learn about the Nobel Prize winning organization and participate in a broad range of activities, including engaging presentations, demonstrations of real inspectors’ equipment and Mini Film Festival.
Some breath-taking documentaries from the FIRES series were screened during the film festival, which became one of the highlights of this year’s programme.
Visitors of the Open Day were also invited to contribute to the mission of the OPCW by raising global awareness about the relevance of the threat of chemical weapons. More than 100 people shared theirs statements on social media and became OPCW Chemical Heroes.
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Photography by Carlotta Duken.
