Symposium on Forty Years of International Law, 1965 -2005

With a small symposium on Forty Years of International Law in the Great Hall of Justice of the Peace Palace the T.M.C. Asser Institute celebrated its 40^th anniversary on Thursday, September 28^th 2006. The venue was both appropriate and symbolic as the Institute’s founding meeting was held 40 years ago in the Small Hall of Justice of this very same Peace Palace. Not only the International Court of Justice, the principal user of the Great Hall of Justice, had very kindly given permission to use this impressive hall for the anniversary celebrations, but also the President of the International Court of Justice, Her Excellency Judge Rosalyn Higgins, was so kind as to deliver the keynote speech.
After a brief introductory welcome address by Professor Michiel Scheltema, President of the Board of Governors of the institute, Judge Higgins elaborated on important developments in International Public Law during the past 40 years. In her interesting and balanced lecture - which captured the interest of an audience of over 200 persons, consisting of representatives from universities, embassies and international organizations based in The Hague and almost the entire staff of the Asser Institute - she did not dread to evade such currently ‘hot and sensitive’ topics like ‘the use-of-force’. 
After that Dr. Hans van Loon, Secretary General of the Hague Conference on Private International Law spoke on 40 years of International Private Law, followed by professor Jaap de Zwaan - former member of the Board of Governors of the Asser Institute and currently director of Clingendael Institute for International Relations and professor of European Law at Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam - who gave a speech about 40 years of EU-law. These two scholars as well, displayed their capability to combine a historical synopsis with the major developments in international law and clearly show the relations to the various disciplines of the Asser Instituut.
With a brief but firm speech in which he elucidated on the role and position of the Asser Institute, especially as an interuniversity institute in The Hague, Frans Nelissen rounded off the part of the afternoon which was dedicated to content.  The symposium itself was closed by a brief and solemn ceremony in which the Mayor of The Hague, Mr. Wim Deetman, presented the Asser Medal of Honor to Dr. Sybolt Noorda, former president of the Executive Board of the Universiteit van Amsterdam to which university the Asser Institute is affiliated. Dr. Noorda merited the reward of the medal for his support of the Asser Institute, among other things as a member of the Board of Governors of the institute. 
The afternoon ended with a lively reception, attended by many former employees of the institute. Amongst them was Dr. Bert Voskuil, founder and first director of the Institute and also a holder of the Asser Medal of Honor. This pleasant gathering was musically immersed by the sounds of Jan de Jongh’s string quartet, who secured themselves a visually and acoustically beautiful spot at the bottom of the stairs of the Peace Palace.
As such it has been a very successful 40^th Anniversary. The contributions of the speakers are to be published in print shortly.