Organised by the Bonavero Institute of Human Rights (Oxford) and the Academy for European Human Rights Protection (Cologne)
30 April – 1 May 2025 at the Bonavero Institute of Human Rights, Oxford University
Organised by the Bonavero Institute of Human Rights (Oxford) and the Academy for European Human Rights Protection (Cologne):
The proliferation of memory laws and policies in Central and Eastern Europe has instigated a contemporary culture war in this part of Europe, a clash concerning the meaning of the past for present European identities. In the project MEMOCRACY, an international research group composed of teams from the Academy of European Human Rights Protection (Cologne), the Polish Academy of Sciences (Warsaw), the Asser Institute (The Hague) and the University of Copenhagen, took a transdisciplinary approach to this democratic dilemma and the legal and political challenges it poses. In view of the results, it is promising to ask similar questions in relation to other parts of Europe, and even to extend them to problems of "memory and law" worldwide. The focus will be on the different approaches ranging from benign neglect to authoritarian prohibition. Besides, the workshop will deal with the context behind memory legislation and memory in international relations.
The agenda is listed below:
| 30 April | |
| Part I: Identification of different legal ‘memory models’ | |
9:30-11:00
| Panel 1: ‘Prohibitive’ Approaches: Prohibiting Certain Statements about the Past Maike Middeler, Helmut-Schmidt-Universität of Hamburg: Non-Criminal Prohibitive Measures in Current German Memory Politics Andrii Nekoliak, TMC Asser Institute, The Hague and University of Cologne: What Explains Punishment in Historical Memory-related Court Cases? The Case of Ukraine since 2022 Moderation: Paula Rhein-Fischer |
11:15-12:45
| Panel 2: ‘Memory Work’ Approach: Dealing with the Past through Other (Legal) Techniques Kate O’Regan, Bonavero Institute: Grappling with the enduring politics of constitutional transition: Speech, Truth and Reconciliation in South Africa Michael Riepl, University of Cologne: This land is your land, this land is my land – the 'Western Azerbaijan' campaign as an example for state-driven memory politics. Cathérine Van de Graaf, University of Cologne and Ghent University: Belgium and obligatory memory sites visites as rehabilitation measure Moderation: Ivo Gruev |
14:00-15:30
| Panel 3: Criminal Denial Bans versus General Hate Speech Legislation Koen Lemmens, KU Leuven, Criminal Denial Bans: Legitimacy and Challenges Gavin Phillipson, University of Bristol: Criminalising Hate Speech: Pitfalls, Divisions and the Challenges of the Digital Age Moderation: Kate O’Regan |
| Part II: Memory models in context | |
16:00-17:30
| Panel 4: Memory Models in Context
Aleksandra Gliszczyńska-Grabias, Polish Academy of Sciences: Self-exculpatory approach towards history and memory as a distinguishing feature of populist rule Jasmin Wachau, University of Erfurt: Memory Laws and “Competitive Victimhood”: An Analysis of the German Institutionalization of Remembrance Paula Rhein-Fischer, University of Cologne: Memory-based National State Identity as Justification to Deviate from EU and International law Moderation: Angelika Nußberger |
| 1 May | |
9:30-11:00
| Panel 5: Right to historical truth Angelika Nußberger, University of Cologne, History in Law – From the right to truth to the protection against lies Flávia Oliveira Ribeiro, University of Cologne: The Right to Truth in Transitional Justice: Perspectives from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights Joseph Finnerty, University of Cologne: The Struggle for Self-Determination in Northern Ireland and French Algeria Moderation: Andrii Nekoliak |
| 11:15-12:45 | Panel 6: Memory and International Relations Maria Mälksoo, University of Copenhagen: Russian accountability as the problem of future international order Anna Stepanskaja, University of Cologne: Memory Laws and the importance of ‘the enemy’ Ivo Gruev, University of Cologne: History as a Hostage in EU Accession: The Memory Conflict between Bulgaria and North Macedonia Moderation: Joseph Finnerty |
