THE 5TH ANNUAL SUMMER INSTITUTE IN
INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW AND HUMAN RIGHTS

“Business and Human Rights”

Monday, July 16 – Thursday, July 26, 2012
Singapore

Organized by the:
Asian International Justice Initiative,
a collaboration between
the UC Berkeley War Crimes Studies Center and the East-West Center
in partnership with:
Singapore Management University School of Law,
the University of Zurich Competence Center for Human Rights,
the International Institute for Child Rights and Development,
and the Human Rights Resource Centre.

OVERVIEW
The Summer Institute in International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and Human Rights is a regionally based workshop held in partnership with organizations in Southeast Asia to consider key IHL and human rights issues, past and present, facing the region. Established in 2008, the Summer Institute is designed for participants working across a broad range of fields and disciplines and is best suited to those working within the Asia Pacific region, whose work has an Asia Pacific focus, or who wish to engage in comparative analysis regarding the application of IHL and human rights instruments as they apply in historical and political context of the region. The fifth annual Summer Institute will be held in Singapore, once again. This year’s course will focus on the topic of business and human rights. In keeping with the rationale behind the establishment of the Summer Institute, the curriculum will focus primarily on case studies from Asia-Pacific countries, while encouraging comparative exploration with other regions of the world.The aim of the course is to provide participants with skills and knowledge that will:

1. enhance their performance in law and human rights-related fields (be it as judges, lawyers, government officials, NGO workers, or business professionals working in CSR or related fields) as well as supporters and observers of those working in those fields (as academics, monitors, journalists and human rights educators);
2. promote skills-development that will enhance the effectiveness of reporting, analysis, investigation, and prosecution of human rights violations. These skills will also contribute to;
3. enable them to assess the human rights impact of different business practices and legal governance frameworks from a broad range of perspectives; and
4. assist participants to contribute more meaningfully to ongoing debates over corporate social responsibility, international regulatory frameworks, and the role of multinational enterprises as powerful international non-state actors

In this regard, the Summer Institute has a practice-oriented focus: rather than providing participants with a ‘textbook’ course on human rights, it engages them to think about both the practical and theoretical application of the discipline to concrete cases in the Asia Pacific region. The Summer Institute faculty includes distinguished practitioners and experts from the region and beyond. The program aims to develop both the legal and political knowledge of the participants, and also the practical skills necessary for people whose work concerns the nexus between business and human rights. Unlike similar short courses offered in Europe and North America, the Summer Institute focuses primarily on the Asia Pacific region, using case studies and examples from across the ASEAN countries as its starting point for discussion and debate.

WHO SHOULD APPLY
The Summer Institute is aimed at professionals and practitioners working throughout a broad range of fields dealing with the legal, political, or business context. This would include advocates in human rights or peace, corporate social responsibility advocates, humanitarian workers, legal officers, advanced (graduate-level) students, academics, government officials, members of international or regional organizations, and journalists. Given the focus of our 2012 course, individuals working in the private sector are, of course, especially encouraged to apply to join this year’s class. Although the course is open to participants internationally, individuals who show a strong interest in business and human rights as it pertains to the Asia Pacific region and those living within ASEAN countries are particularly encouraged to apply. In 2012, we anticipate making 30 places available for this course.

FACULTY
The following is a partial tentative list of SI 2012 Faculty. We will continue adding to our faculty roster as confirmations come in from the various invited scholars, practitioners and dignitaries. Check our website for the most updated list of faculty members (http://www.eastwestcenter.org/summerinstitute)

• Professor David Cohen, University of California, Berkeley and Director, War Crimes Studies Center and the Asian International Justice Initiative
• Professor Christine Kaufmann, University of Zurich, Faculty of Law and Director, Competence Centre for Human Rights
• Marzuki Darusman, Chair, Human Rights Resource Centre for ASEAN
• Assistant Professor Mahdev Mohan, Singapore Management University, School of Law
• Dr. Philip Cook, University of Victoria, Executive Director, International Institute for Child Rights and Development

STRUCTURE OF THE COURSE
The 2012 Summer Institute will take place during nine sessions, over a two-week period, all hosted by the Singapore Management University School of Law, in Singapore. Participants will have assigned reading for each session, and will benefit from close contact with an esteemed faculty of scholars, practitioners, and dignitaries from Southeast Asia and beyond. The following is a brief synopsis of the lectures and guided discussions that will take place on each day of the course. Further information on the course content, including a more detailed draft course outline and the complete faculty roster, will be posted on the Summer Institute 2012 webpage shortly. Prospective participants should continue to check our website for updates later in the spring: http://www.eastwestcenter.org/summerinstitute. Specific inquiries may be sent via email to: summerinstitute@eastwestcenter.org.

COURSE SYNOPSIS
Over the last 20 years, human rights advocates have shined a spotlight on human rights conditions in a wide range of transnational industries including oil and mining; the manufacturing of apparel and, footwear; the agricultural production of coffee, tea, and other goods for global markets; and the pharmaceutical and other high technology sectors.

Today, business and human rights has emerged as a distinct field within the broader corporate responsibility movement. In response to growing pressure to address human rights issues, transnational companies have undertaken human rights initiatives that seek to manage human rights risks and, in some cases, promote human rights as a source of competitive advantage in the marketplace. Human rights are now a concern of business, management and their advisers.

The mid-June 2011 endorsement by the United Nations Human Rights Council (‘UNHRC’) of a new set of Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights has been welcomed as the leading global standard for corporations to respect human rights. The Guiding Principles (‘GPs’) are the culmination of a six year UN-commissioned study by Harvard University’s Professor John Ruggie, which concludes that companies should carry out human rights due diligence to identify, prevent, mitigate and account for how they address their adverse human rights impacts. The GPs reinforce the state duty to protect against human rights abuses by third parties, including business; the corporate responsibility to respect human rights; and greater access by victims to effective remedy, both judicial and non-judicial.

The 2012 Summer Institute on Business & Human Rights at SMU School of Law will examine the challenges and opportunities that arise for business managers, governments and civil society at the intersection of business operations and efforts to promote international human rights. As the draft agenda currently stands, we plan to cover the following specific topics during the nine days of the course beginning on Monday, July 16:

Day 1   Setting the Stage-Frameworks for Business and Human Rights

Day 2   State Duty to Protect and Corporate Responsibility to Respect

Day 3   New 2011 OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises

Day 4   Monitoring Business-related Harm & Supporting Victims

Day 5    Implementing Human Rights in Business Practice – Due Diligence

Day 6    Business in Conflict Zones

Day 7    Children’s Rights & Business Principles

Day 8    Special Issues in ASEAN

Day 9    Moving Ahead-Consideration of the recent AICHR Study on Corporate Social Responsibility,
and the Human Rights Resource Centre’s Study on Business and Human Rights

Drawing on our faculty’s real-world and scholarly expertise and industry case-studies, the Summer Institute will expose participants to new ways of addressing business dilemmas and engage them in a thorough discussion on potential best practices to address human rights risks imposed on ASEAN countries by business activities. The Summer Institute will continue its tradition of bringing together participants from the public and the private sector and encourage them to look at the human rights and business linkage from a new, holistic perspective that does not follow traditional patterns of state regulations.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE AND DEADLINES
Those who wish to join this year’s Summer Institute must submit an application (Word version) and a letter of recommendation (Word version) from one referee.

The deadline for receipt of application materials is 31 May 2012. Applicants are encouraged to apply early, and will have the greatest chance of receiving one of a limited number of scholarships (assuming their application complies with scholarship conditions and fund availability) if they do so.

Recommendations are due the same day as the application deadline. They may be sent electronically, but they must be received no later than 31 May 2012.