The Hague Institute for Global Justice, or simply The Hague Institute, is an international
think tank
A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governmenta ...
based in
The Hague
The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...
,
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
. It was established in 2011 by a consortium of partners including the Municipality of The Hague, an academic coalition of Hague-based organizations and with support from the
Dutch government
The politics of the Netherlands take place within the framework of a parliamentary representative democracy, a constitutional monarchy, and a decentralised unitary state.''Civil service systems in Western Europe'' edited by A. J. G. M. Bekk ...
. Its current president is Jordanian businesswoman Sohair Salam Saber.
According to the institute, it "aims to contribute to, and further strengthen, the global framework for preventing and resolving conflict and promoting international peace."
History
The Hague Institute was supported by an Advisory Council who served as a "strategic sounding board" for the president of the institute. Former
U.S. Secretary of State
The United States secretary of state is a member of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States and the head of the U.S. Department of State. The office holder is one of the highest ranking members of the president's Ca ...
Madeleine Albright
Madeleine Jana Korbel Albright (born Marie Jana Korbelová; May 15, 1937 – March 23, 2022) was an American diplomat and political scientist who served as the 64th United States secretary of state from 1997 to 2001. A member of the Democratic ...
served as chair of the Advisory Council.
In late spring 2012, former Dutch State Secretary for European Affairs and International Cooperation
Ben Knapen
Hubertus Petrus Maria "Ben" Knapen (born 6 January 1951) is a Dutch historian and politician serving as Minister of Foreign Affairs since 24 September 2021 to 10 January 2022. A member of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), he previously was S ...
launched Knowledge Platform Security & Rule of Law, which consisted of a network of experts and practitioners, and focused on building "security and rule of law" in developing countries. The Hague Institute served as the primary facilitator for the platform's partners, including the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs ( nl, link=no, Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken; BZ) is the Netherlands' ministry responsible for foreign relations, foreign policy, international development, international trade, diaspora and matters dealing w ...
.
![Hague Institute Flag](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/52/Hague_Institute_Flag.jpg)
In June 2014, the institute, in cooperation with the
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) is the United States' official memorial to the Holocaust. Adjacent to the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the USHMM provides for the documentation, study, and interpretation of Holocaust hi ...
in Washington, D.C. and the National Security Archive at
George Washington University
, mottoeng = "God is Our Trust"
, established =
, type = Private federally chartered research university
, academic_affiliations =
, endowment = $2.8 billion (2022)
, preside ...
, convened 35 officials and eyewitnesses for a multi-day conference on the
Rwanda Genocide
The Rwandan genocide occurred between 7 April and 15 July 1994 during the Rwandan Civil War. During this period of around 100 days, members of the Tutsi minority ethnic group, as well as some moderate Hutu and Twa, were killed by armed Hutu ...
. The event was based on the "critical oral history" approach. Participants included
Ibrahim Gambari
Ibrahim Agboola Gambari, (born 24 November 1944), is a Nigerian academic and diplomat who is currently serving as Chief of Staff to the President of Nigeria.
Early life and education
Ibrahim Agboola Gambari was born on 24 November 1944 in Ilo ...
,
Henry Kwami Anyidoho, Lord
David Hannay,
Prudence Bushnell,
Michael N. Barnett and Lieutenant-General
Roméo Dallaire
Roméo Antonius Dallaire (born June 25, 1946) is a Canadian humanitarian, author, retired senator and Canadian Forces lieutenant-general. Dallaire served as force commander of UNAMIR, the ill-fated United Nations peacekeeping force for Rwanda ...
.
Professor Nico Schrijver, academic director of the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies at
Leiden University
Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; nl, Universiteit Leiden) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. The university was founded as a Protestant university in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince o ...
, served as the institute's first dean between January and August 2011. Professor
Willem van Genugten, served as interim dean of the institute from September 2011 to December 2012. He was succeeded as the Institutes's first president,
Abiodun Williams , the former senior vice president of the Center for Conflict Management at the
United States Institute of Peace
The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) is an American Federal government of the United States, federal institution tasked with promoting conflict resolution and prevention worldwide. It provides research, analysis, and training to individual ...
(USIP) in
Washington, D.C
)
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, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
. on January 1, 2013. In an article by Dutch magazine ''
De Groene Amsterdammer
''De Groene Amsterdammer'' is an independent Dutch weekly news magazine published in Amsterdam and distributed throughout the Netherlands. It is conventionally considered to be one of the four major weeklies, alongside '' HP/De Tijd'', ''Vrij Nede ...
'' published on 4 April 2018, sources told the magazine that Williams insisted that the position of "international dean" had to be restyled as "president", in addition to a very high financial compensation package in order to lend him greater authority and benefits.
The Dutch government granted up to
€
The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists ...
20 million in subsidies for the institute.
A ccording to a reconstruction by Dutch newspaper ''
De Volkskrant
''de Volkskrant'' (; ''The People's Paper'') is a Dutch daily morning newspaper. Founded in 1919, it has a nationwide circulation of about 250,000.
Formerly a leading centre-left Catholic broadsheet, ''de Volkskrant'' today is a medium-sized c ...
'', Williams spent thousands of euros on expensive lunches at the nearby Carlton Ambassador hotel and first class flights since "cattle class" was not good enough for him.
A senior researcher quoted in the article indicates that there were many clashes between employees and Williams, who distanced himself from staff whenever he felt challenged: "
t was
T, or t, is the twentieth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''tee'' (pronounced ), plural ''tees''. It is deri ...
as if it was beneath his dignity to talk to me directly. There was a culture clash. We academics are egalitarian, but he was very focused on hierarchy and quickly felt criticized."
The topic was raised in the Dutch parliament where several political parties posed questions to the Dutch Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate,
Eric Wiebes
Eric Derk Wiebes (born 12 March 1963) is a resigned Dutch politician who served as Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy in the Third Rutte cabinet since 26 October 2017 until 15 January 2021. He is a member of the People's Party for ...
. Willem Moorlag from the Dutch socialist party
PvdA asked the minister whether there was any judicial ground to recover the lost funds from Williams and the supervisory board. The right-wing
Forum voor Democratie (FvD) asked the minister why no action was undertaken against Williams when it was already clear after several months that he didn't fulfill his role as fundraiser. Jan Paternotte from the social liberal
D66 asked the minister how it was possible that the Institute still received subsidies after a critical report by
Price Waterhouse Coopers
PricewaterhouseCoopers is an international professional services brand of firms, operating as partnerships under the PwC brand. It is the second-largest professional services network in the world and is considered one of the Big Four accounting ...
exposed the financial mismanagement.
Bankruptcy and revival
In April 2018, The Hague Institute for Global Justice closed down after becoming insolvent. The institute was declared bankrupt in May 2018.
In July 2018, following talks between the Institute and Sohair Salam Saber, a Jordanian businesswoman and philanthropist, a declaration of intent to continue the legacy of The institute was announced. In September 2018, Saber purchased the institute.
On 29 January 2019, at
Nieuwspoort
The Nieuwspoort (English: News gate) is a society catering to Dutch politicians, lobbyists and journalists so they can informally meet. It's also a place where press conferences from politicians (most notably the Prime Minister of the Netherlands' ...
at the Dutch parliamentary building, Saber was announced as the institute's second president, with previous experience working with various governments worldwide on issues such as public policy, innovation and development.
During the event, lawyer Mahmoud Abuwasel was also announced as vice president of the institute.
![Sohair Salam Saber](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/Sohair_Salam_Saber.jpg)
In January 2019, Sohair Salam Saber was announced as the second president of the institute, with Mahmoud Abuwasel named as vice president.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Hague Institute for Global Justice
Organizations established in 2011
Social sciences organizations
Organisations based in The Hague
Legal research institutes
Research institutes in the Netherlands
2011 establishments in the Netherlands
Research institutes established in 2011
Think tanks established in 2011