Wang Tieya (; 6 July 1913 – 12 January 2003) was an eminent Chinese jurist and former Judge of the

International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) was a body of the United Nations that was established to prosecute the war crimes that had been committed during the Yugoslav Wars and to try their perpetrators. The tribunal ...

. Wang Tieya was educated at

Fudan University Fudan University () is a national public research university in Shanghai, China. Fudan is a member of the C9 League, Project 985, Project 211, and the Double First Class University identified by the Ministry of Education of China. It is als ...

Tsinghua University Tsinghua University (; abbreviation, abbr. THU) is a National university, national Public university, public research university in Beijing, China. The university is funded by the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China, Minis ...

and the

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 millio ...

. Following the

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

victory in 1949, Wang Tieya became one of the leading authorities on

international law International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...

in the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

, along with Li Haopei, one of his classmates in London. Wang was legal advisor to the PRC delegation to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

in 1950 and the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea in 1979. Wang Tieya had an illustrious academic career, commencing as Professor of International Law at the National Wuhan University (1940-1942) and

National Central University National Central University (NCU, ; Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: ''Kwet-li̍p Chung-yong Thài-ho̍k'', Wade–Giles: ''Kuo2 Li4 Chung Yang Ta4 Hsüeh2'' or ''中大'', ''Chung-ta'') is a public research university with long-standing traditions based in Taiwa ...

(1942-1946). In 1946, he relocated to Beijing University, where he remained until 1997. During that time, he was Chairman of the Political Science Department (1947-1952), and Head of the Section on International Law at the Faculty of Law (1956-1983). In 1983 Wang became the founding Director of the International Law Institute of Beijing University. Following the

Open Door Policy The Open Door Policy () is the United States diplomatic policy established in the late 19th and early 20th century that called for a system of equal trade and investment and to guarantee the territorial integrity of Qing China. The policy wa ...

in China, Wang Tieya was feted abroad. He was a visiting scholar at

Columbia Law School Columbia Law School (Columbia Law or CLS) is the law school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university in New York City. Columbia Law is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world and has always ranked i ...

(1980-1989), visiting professor at

The Hague Academy of International Law The Hague Academy of International Law (french: Académie de droit international de La Haye) is a center for high-level education in both public and private international law housed in the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands. Courses are taugh ...

(1984), and also taught at the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...

(1988), and the

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public land-grant research university system in the U.S. state of California. The system is composed of the campuses at Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, Merced, Riverside, San Diego, San Francisco, ...

(1989). Wang became a member of the

Permanent Court of Arbitration The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) is a non-UN intergovernmental organization located in The Hague, Netherlands. Unlike a judicial court in the traditional sense, the PCA provides services of arbitral tribunal to resolve disputes that arise ...

. He was also a member and then honorary member of l’Institut de Droit International and a fellow of the

World Academy of Art and Science The World Academy of Art and Science (WAAS), founded in 1960, is an international non-governmental scientific organization and global network of more than 800 scientists, artists, and scholars in more than 90 countries. It serves as a forum for s ...

. For many years he was involved in the ''Chinese Yearbook of International Law'', and also oversaw the publication of the

English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the is ...

''Chinese Journal of International Law'' in 2002. Wang was elected in 1997 as a Judge of the

. In March 2000, he resigned for reasons of ill-health. After almost 20 months of hospitalisation, Wang died in a hospital in Beijing on 12 January 2003. His funeral was held five days later at

Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery The Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery () is Beijing's main resting place for the highest-ranking revolutionary heroes, high government officials and, in recent years, individuals deemed of major importance due to their contributions to society. In ...

, a venue normally reserved for state officials. He was survived by his wife and three daughters. Upon learning of the death of Judge Wang Tieya, the President of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, Judge

Claude Jorda Claude Jorda (born 16 February 1938, in Bône, Algeria) is a French jurist and former Judge at the International Criminal Court The International Criminal Court (ICC or ICCt) is an intergovernmental organization and international tribunal seat ...

, expressed his "great sadness at the loss of a distinguished colleague who will be remembered as a learned lawyer and a wise Judge. He was also a dedicated colleague and a gentle man who brought to the bench his great experience in the field of international law".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wang, Tieya 1913 births 2003 deaths Chinese jurists Alumni of the London School of Economics The Hague Academy of International Law people Academic staff of Peking University Fudan University alumni Tsinghua University alumni International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia judges Members of the Permanent Court of Arbitration Hong Kong Basic Law Drafting Committee members Academic staff of China University of Political Science and Law Chinese judges of United Nations courts and tribunals Chinese judges of international courts and tribunals