On the picture Mr. Pablo Fajardo Mendoza. Text and pictures by Liudmyla Palamar. Hague Talks has already become an integral part of the public sphere of The Hague. One of a number of reasons behind such success is relevance of the organized discussions. For instance, The Hague Talks on whether ecocide should be classified as a 5^th international crime against peace was undoubtedly relevant this week, when the 14th Assembly of State Parties to the International Criminal Court took place in The Hague. Ecocide is a relatively new term that means destruction of the natural environment, especially when willfully done. There are still discussions on what type or scale an environmental crime has to be in order to be classified as ecocide. However, there is something almost all environmental activists and experts completely agree with – ecocide is a serious crime one cannot get away with. Speakers, who were invited for The Hague Talks on ecocide, definitely share this opinion and were pleased to discuss it with the general public of The Hague.

  The evening talks were opened with an inspiring speech of Humberto Piaguaje, Chief of Ecuador’s Secoya indigenous tribe, who explained how deeply indigenous people are connected with jungles and how deeply they suffer, because other are exploiting the nature. Pablo Fajardo Mendoza, Attorney and recipient of the Goldman Prize and CNN Heroes Award, and Daniela Palacios, international dispute resolution lawyer, made the audience familiar with legal aspects of the topic as well as provided a set of arguments why it is time to add ecocide to the list of crimes against peace and, thus, empower ICC to have jurisdiction over it. A final speaker’s Michael Baumgartner from Greenpeace Switzerland creative performance was followed with a Q&A session. One can find it unreasonable that environmental crimes have become a subject of such intense discussions in legal field recently, because laws on this matter already exist and nothing has changed since they were developed. However, according to the Wednesday talks’ speakers, the shameful reality is that the existing laws work in favor of big corporations, who pay affordable fines for polluting environment, but do not stop doing it. As Michael Baumgartner stated, it is the reason why ecocide has to be classified as criminal offense to enable courts to prosecute individuals for committing crimes against environment. So, every CEO would think twice whether to make a business decision that can cause destruction of the environment.  

Attentats à Paris: remarques concernant la résolution 2249 du Conseil de Sécurité des Nations Unies. Par Nicolas Boeglin (*).

By Elizabeth Naumczyk . The 3rd World Conference of Women’s Shelters was held 3rd-6th November 2015 in The Hague, The Netherlands. The Conference Centre World Forum was the venue where 1,000 participants form 115 countries converged to unite, “connect and act” with the ultimate goal to address how to work towards eliminating violence against women and girls, which is a human rights violation. This is a top priority of the United Nations work endorsed by the Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in the Sustainable Development Goals of 2030 adopted by the 193 member states of the UN during the annual General Assembly (25 September 2015). Goal 5 is about Achieving gender equality and empower all women and girls and includes 5.2 eliminating all forms of violence against all women and girls in public and private spheres, including trafficking and sexual and other types of exploitation. The programme covered 5 plenary sessions: Economic independence of women survivors Sustainable financing and advocacy Transboundary violence against women, international exchange and cooperation Continents: What is going on? Strengthening global and regional networks Innovative approaches to eliminating violence against women and to supporting survivors For a photo album on the 3rd World Conference on Women Shelters, please click here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/137448118@N06/albums Moderated by Jacobine Geel and Audith Hunkar the attendees heard inspiring keynote speakers as Queen Maxima of the Netherlands, Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, Hina Jilani (Pakistani women’s rights activist & lawyer) and Dr Mugweke (The man who mends women). Queen Maxima spoke at the first plenary session emphasizing the value of economic independence in rebuilding independent lives for survivors of violence. Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Mary of Denmark spoke at the 4th plenary session. Through The Mary Foundation she works to help women and children who are victims of violence. Interspersed throughout the programme were the voices, not of victims, but survivors of domestic violence and child abuse who courageously reiterated their personal stories to send a message that women need to speak out if change is to occur. It highlighted that it is a global issue affecting not only victims, but families and communities and results in social, economic and productivity costs. It is also a crime against humanity during armed conflict when rape is used as a weapon of war or for human trafficking. Judge Joyce Aluoch, First Vice-President of the International Criminal Court spoke on video about the availability of redress in The Rome Statute. We heard the moving stories of Iffat Gill (Founder & CEO ChunriChoupall), Linor Abargil (Brave Miss World), Rosie Batty’s story on film from Australia, Therese Evers (author and Teacher policing sexual violence at Police Academy. Nijmegen Area, Netherlands), Emma Murphy from Dublin, Ireland, attended who drew attention to her plight by posting a video on Facebook, Ashley Judd (actor, author, activist and humanitarian) All these women overcame their circumstances and built on their negative experience to become role models working for a positive outcome in assisting other women to gain strength and overcome their situation. Women together is power. The Veiled Monologues directed by Adelheid Roosen provided a powerful theatrical performance as did the films Hidden Violence and Then What which also included the story of Hameeda Lukke’s abuse as a child and the shocking film Singing in the Dark by Matthieu Goedhart illustrating the cycle of abuse within a family of several generations. Women need opportunities to rebuild their lives. Education and paid work is vital to make women independent and stronger. The Rabobank Foundation and Uber talked about their impact on economic empowerment of women. In Nepal widows are ostracized and 80% have no education and have to depend on their family. This issue is not expressed in any human rights declaration. Youth need to be taught about the importance of healthy equal relationships and all throughout the Conference it was reiterated that men need to be involved in the solution with stronger representation. Australia is also leading in this field as explained by Michaelia Cash, Minister for Women, Minister for Employment, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Public Service.   A national understanding arose after the death of Luke Batty mobilizing the Australian Government to introduce a national plan to reduce violence against women. This resulted in a national phone line, a mobile app DAISY which includes a quick exit button, recognition in all States of domestic violence orders and the White Ribbon campaign to engage community, including men. Australia also leads with creating a safe workplace. Trade unions were on board to pave the way for industrial legislation to include paid domestic violence leave and the protection of women’s jobs. The Netherlands Police are working in innovative ways with women shelters to assist survivors in their protection, recovery and investigations and organisations such as CoMensha works with the government to make improvements. The increasing use of the internet as a tool to perpetrate violence against women and girls is a growing concern. Social media can be used as a tool for good to campaign against violence. By learning how to control the setting of apps it can work against perpetrators who use this medium to harass women. Apps can be used in creative ways, such as to document evidence. Resources can be found on the U.S. National Network to End Domestic Violence www.nnedv.org   Safety in mind has been behind the UBER app for riders and driver-partners. A Data Count was presented to Crown Princess Mary of Denmark which highlighted the work of shelters visible. In the Call to Action handed by the Chair Bandana Rana to Martin van Rijn, State Secretary for Health, Welfare and Sports, the Global Network of Women’s Shelters calls upon all of us to increase our efforts. While many countries have made considerable progress in introducing legislation and institutionalizing policy frameworks implementation, monitoring and accountability are weak, slow or lacking according to the former former UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, Rashida Manjoo. We need an internationally standalone binding Convention and much needed funding could be redirected from military spending. “Hold perpetrators to account and to provide services to assist perpetrators to transform their behaviour and become peer educators” are some of the key recommendations. The Dutch Government and five different ministries as well as The Municipality of The Hague, helped to make this Conference possible supported by public and corporate sponsors. The location of the headquarters of the Global Network for Women’s Shelters has recently been established in The Hague. You can watch the highlights of the 3rd world conference of women’s shelters here: Violence against women is still widespread and is perhaps the greatest crime against humanity of all time. During the conference we contribute to the elimination of this violence by learning from each other, sharing new insights and field-testing them, and reinforcing the position of women’s shelters and the national and international networks around them. Let’s Act and Unite is the message of 3rd World Conference of Women’s Shelters

The Hague, 6 November 2015 – The 3rd World Conference of Women’s Shelters was held 3rd-6th November 2015 in The Hague, The Netherlands. With 1,000 participants from 115 countries and inspiring keynote speakers as Queen Maxima of the Netherlands, Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, Hina Jilani, Dr. Mugweke and Ashley Judd it was a fruitful meeting with an ambitious outcome. All attendees from advocates and activists to care workers in the field are ready to put an end to violence against women and children.

“Let’s do this together! Let’s Unite, Connect and Act to reach the all-important goal and end violence against women!” This was the outcome of four days of intensive working and talking together, while building bridges and strengthening bonds. At the conference, over 1,000 visitors from over 100 countries shared knowledge and translated agreements into targeted actions. The conference sent out a pledge to all people to think about how we can contribute – as individuals, as communities, as governments, as businesses, as religious institutions. Violence against women has a profound effect on the victims themselves, but it affects families and communities also, resulting in enormous social, economic and productivity costs. It really is a matter that touches us all. Special attention was paid to the vulnerable position of women and girls in armed conflict. It is of the utmost importance to protect women and girls from rape as weapon of war. The post trauma effects of strangulation are wide ranging and not understood by society. In the Call to Action handed by the chair Bandana Rana to Martin van Rijn, State Secretary for Health, Welfare and Sports, the Global Network of Women’s Shelters calls upon all sectors of society to act to prevent impunity from accountability. Conventions and legislation needs to be ratified, implemented and their effectiveness monitored. Paper victories are not enough we all need to be advocates for change to happen. This could range from actively penalizing child marriages by governments to taking a stand against sexual harassment at the workplace by businesses. Violence against women and girls is a human rights violation and has been proclaimed a top priority of the United Nation’s, which is endorsed at the highest level by Secretary–General Ban Ki-moon. The UN aims at gender equality by 2030. An ambitious plan, but as far as all attendees of the 3rd World Conference of Women’s Shelters are concerned, it is as realistic as it is necessary. At the moment still one in every three women faces violence because of their gender at least once in their lives. You can watch the highlights of the 3rd world conference of women’s shelters here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T14di-qaCIU Pictures by the WCWS.  

By Barend ter Haar.   In a famous experiment young children were left in a room with a marshmallow on the table. They were told that they were allowed to eat it, but if they could withstand the temptation for fifteen minutes, they would receive a second marshmallow. The children that were able to withstand the temptation of instant gratification proved to be more successful in later life. The Dutch government is now conducting a comparable experiment with Dutch Parliament by proposing tax reductions to an amount of five billion euro. This proposal is not the consequence of an unexpected budget surplus. On the contrary, the budget deficit is still there, so the tax reductions will make the deficit even larger. Of course, there are circumstances that can justify an increase of the budget deficit. One of them would be to fight a recession. However, the economic recession has come to a halt in the Netherlands, so stimulating the economy by lowering taxes would be procyclical rather than countercyclical. Another reason for a temporary increase of the deficit would be to facilitate a fundamental reform of the tax system. But that is not the case. A third reason would be to repair previous mistakes. In order to lower the budget deficit the Dutch government has for example drastically economized on diplomacy, international cooperation, defence and security in the expectation – or hope – that the Netherlands could do with less diplomacy, less international cooperation, less defence and less security. However, events have proven the government wrong. Unexpected problems, such as climate change and growing numbers of refugees trying to reach Europe, would be a fourth reason. (Leaving aside the question why the underlying problems received so little attention before.) Finally, a growing deficit might be justified to support people who threaten to collapse under the poverty line. However, none of these arguments apply. The main effect of the proposed tax reduction will be that middle and higher incomes will have more money to spend, money that the government will provide by borrowing more. Clearly, few people will complain about lower taxes, but the question is whether the proposed tax reduction will also serve their interests in the longer run. On 18 November of the Second Chamber of Parliament proved unable to withstand the temptation of instant gratification and failed the marshmallow test. In December the First Chamber will have a chance to prove it is wiser.

Text and pictures by Henry Arvidsson / www.diplomatphoto.com Leo van der Velde knew his passion at age six and he is still living it. He grew up in the era when reporters wore suits and hats. When we first meet on Binnenhof a cool autumn morning he is smartly dressed in a pair of jeans, polished brown wingtips, a tweed jacket with a tie and ready for the day. He smiles easily and is at the top of his game with no plans to retire, ever. However the road was neither straight nor easy. Growing up in a much bombed out The Hague after the Second World War he saw his birthplace in ruins and his friend’s mothers forced to make ends meet as prostitutes. Their son’s, Leo’s friends, later became owners of the brothels. He chronicled these times in his 1999 book “Hoeren and snoeren”(Whores and moustaches”) one of five he have written so far. To escape the devastation he took a job as deck steward with the Holland America line. Before his eighteenth birthday he had circled the globe twice and taken a liking to the US a love affair still going on today. Talking about love, his girlfriend of fifteen one day gave him an ultimatum to choose between the sea or her. It was an offer he could not refuse and they are still married today and remain in the “Hofstad”. The life back on shore in the sixties was a bit like the “West Side Story” with gang brawls and disputes over territory. However Leo does not like to dwell on the past or in nostalgia but shares the story of how he and his gang of eight with knuckles alone put fear in the eyes of a hundred man strong gang which tried to make inroads on Leo’s turf in the center of The Hague. Not either a big fan of football he was told that the way into his wife’s family was to join her father for the weekly Sunday game. These afternoon games eventually made a Feyenoord fan out of a true Hagenaar. One day he saw an advertisement for journalists in the paper. As he preferred writing over speaking he saw his chance to fulfill his dream. All dressed up in a suit and tie he asked his dad for the crowning hat. However his dad had none to lend so young Leo headed for the interview without. As he walked into a newsroom of 140 journalists and heard the smatter of typewriters he knew he was in the right place. His good grades from school meant nothing to the editor of the newspaper who gave him four days to come up with a story or be out of by week’s end. Leo spent four nights at City Hall listening to not all that exciting council meetings but delivered the article on time and has done so ever since. Over the years he has always been a real newspaper man and the “go to guy” who would run down the stair at four in the morning any day of the week to get the story. He writes for the whole of The Hague and says about a favorite event Parkpop that if people reading his story says “we were there and he knows exactly how we feel” he have succeeded. During his lifetime the city and it’s population has changed both in character and size. From an almost all white society in the sixties immigration of color and cultures has added much to the city over the decades. He likes the influence and impact of International Organisations on the local economy but don’t think that many expats integrate well as the “worlds are so different” but do not see it as a big problem. The changing skyline with added high rises is not to his liking but he acknowledges that it is a sign of the times. Today he has his own page “Bij ons in Den Haag” (“with us in The Hague”) which appears several times a week in AD Haagsche Courant. Filled with what happens around town and insights into the city’s movers and shakers it is well read. It’s influence is such that it is even translated at embassies and enjoyed by the broader diplomatic community. If you have never seen Leo out and about he is perfectly happy with that as he prefers to blend in and be the “fly on the wall”. Better yet he may be the perfect Ooievaar (White Stork – the city symbol of The Hague) who often times see life as it is on the ground and sometimes take a bird’s eye view of the city that is his and our home. Pictures www.diplomatphoto.com