Conference
The third NCHS Research Network Annual Meeting was held from 2 to 3 December 2021 at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) and online.
This year the overarching theme for the meeting was “Humanitarian Protection 20 Years into the ‘Global War on Terror'”.
Twenty years after 9/11 and the US-led intervention in Afghanistan, what has come to be referred to as the “Global War on Terror” has drastically affected the paradigm of humanitarian protection. In the wake of the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021, humanitarian actors, more than ever, find themselves having to navigate sanctions, counterterrorism frameworks, regime changes, politicisation, and criminalisation.
The two-day NCHS Annual Meeting provided for many productive discussions about the the implications of counterterrorism measures and the possible ways forward for humanitarian actors in dealing with the challenges of providing protection in this environment.
Please see the full event program here. Recordings of individual panel discussions are available below.
Welcome and NCHS Annual Lecture by Professor Faisal Devji, St. Antony’s College, “The Anti-Politics of Humanity”
Roundtable 1: “Humanitarian Negotiations Amidst Counter-Terrorism Restrictions: Legal and Diplomatic Dimensions”
With panelists Sultan Barakat (Centre for Conflict and Humanitarian Studies, Doha) and Emanuela Gillard (Oxford Institute for Ethics, Law and Armed Conflict). Chaired by Antonio De Lauri (CMI).
Roundtable 2 (Practitioner’s Panel): “Consequences of the ‘Global War on Terror’ for Norwegian Humanitarian Efforts”
With panelists Trude Falch (Norwegian People’s Aid), Ida Haugen-Poljac (Norwegian Red Cross), Linda Bukasen (Save the Children Norway), Trygve Thorson (Doctors Without Borders, MSF Norway) and Carl P. Salicath (Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs). Chaired by Kristoffer Lidén (PRIO).
Roundtable 3: “Humanitarian Protection in Conflict: Navigating Counter-Terrorism and Authoritarian Regimes”
With panelists Júlia Palik (PRIO), Morten Bøås (Norwegian Institute of International Affairs, NUPI) and Elling N. Tjønneland (CMI). Chaired by John Karlsrud (NUPI).
