The country, a major stakeholder in the promotion of global peace, would benefit from the 78th session of the International Institute of Law at Nalsar University of Law, Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu said here on Sunday. The week-long session would create greater awareness on the importance of the international law and encourage young lawyers and students to develop an aptitude for it, he added.
It’s the first time that India is hosting this global legal meeting. The International Institute of Law or Institute De Droit International was founded in 1873 in the Ghent Town Hall in Belgium by 11 international lawyers. It was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1904 for its efforts to promote settlement of disputes among States through peaceful means.
The institute selects 132 lawyers from different countries to act independently towards international legal measures.
Speaking at the inaugural of the event, Mr. Naidu said, “India attaches huge importance to the implementation of international statutes and the rule of law. It is a firm believer in the promotion of peace and justice globally,” he added.
Mr. Naidu also reminded the august gathering of international lawyers and their Indian counterparts that India was a signatory to many important international treaties, protocols and agreements. As India was a promoter of global peace, it believes in settlement of disputes through negotiations on the basis of international laws and the U.N. charter, Mr. Naidu asserted. Speaking of India’s commitment to ‘dharma’, he said Manusmriti has said that law protects those who protect and defend the law.
He asserted that India and Asia have been well-versed in the international law. “We owe to Dr. Krishna Rao and other leading international law stalwarts from Asia, Africa and the Latin America who forged a united front in promoting the foundational principles of the international law relating to colonialism and apartheid as crimes, prohibition of the use of force, the principle of permanent sovereignty of States over their natural resources, the principles governing the friendly relations between States and reservation of outer space exclusively for peaceful purposes, among others,” Mr. Naidu said, adding India has made considerable efforts in combating international terrorism. In the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, the country has promised to suppress international terrorism.
He reminded the global audience that India today was one of the largest economies that had a young and educated work force. “It represents a mature parliamentary democracy with a highly independent judiciary and fourth estate.”
Some of the topics for discussion and deliberation at the 78th session would be judicial review of the decisions of the U.N. Security Council, the legal issues concerning international migration, provisional measures in connection with the private international law and international investment disputes.
The meeting was also attended by Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan, Acting Chief Justice of the Hyderabad High Court Justice Ramesh Ranganathan, Minister for Law A. Indrakaran Reddy, Vice-Chancellor Faizan Mustafa and President of International Institute of Law P.S. Rao.
