On the picture Steven van Hoostraten’s The Hague Institute for Global Justice last CEO.
The Hague Institute for Global Justice will cease to exist. During the past seven years, the institute contributed to the positioning of The Hague as the City of Peace and Justice. For the years to come, however, the financial basis to continue independently is insufficient. Ongoing projects are now transferred to other institutes.
“The institute has met its public task – research, reports and conferences – in recent years. The goal, however, was to be more than a research group only. Unfortunately, there is no solid financial foundation to achieve this in the future “, says Dick Benschop, chairman of the Supervisory Board. “The Supervisory Board is proud of the significant work that has been carried out over the past seven years and its significance for the international position of The Hague. We are grateful to everyone who contributed to this,in cooperation with the institute”.
TheTHIGJ was founded in 2010 by the municipality of The Hague and knowledge institutions united in the ‘Hague Academic Coalition’. Since the foundation, many projects have been carried out in collaboration with many national and international partners. For example, THIGJ developed the so-called ‘The Hague Approach’, a handbook outlining six unique principles aimed at guiding the international community to perform more effectively in sustainable peacebuilding.
In addition, the knowledge platform for Security and International Law was transferred to THIGJ. The institute also organized conferences on decision-making in the era of genocide (Rwanda and Screbrenica). THIGJ received international recognition, expressed in high-level participation in the Distinguished Speaker Series and other events. Its high standing was also accentuated in donations the institute used for financing international projects.
Ongoing projects, including in Qatar and Ethiopia, will be transferred to partners with whom THIGJ already cooperated. The foundation itself will be dissolved. Anton Nijssen, who has been closely involved with the institute for many years, will oversee the final (financial) settlements. When dissolving a foundation, it is customary that this task falls on a (former) director or board member.
