On 31 May, Associate Professor of History and American Studies Nabil Al-Tikriti was invited to speak on the topic of migration at the international Estoril Conference, which was held on 29-31 May at the Estoril Congress Center outside of Lisbon, Portugal. The panel abstract was as follows:

“In times of migratory crises there is a higher risk of disrespecting human rights. This is particularly threatening for societies’ most vulnerable persons which include migrants, especially illegal migrants. In this context, one must recall the human rights that claim protection, namely in what regards especially vulnerable persons such as women and children.

What threats to the respect of human rights of illegal migrants may be at stake? Who are the actors in charge of enforcing such rights? How can global cooperation be enforced to tackle transnational criminal networks? Who is accountable for human rights violations under these circumstances? Are States bound to a duty to protect refugees even outside their own sovereign territory?”

The panel consisted of:

Eduardo Cabrita (Minister in the Cabinet of the Prime Minister; Portugal)
Ashwani Kumar (Former Minister of Law and Justice; India)
Maria da Conceição (Founder, Maria Cristina Foundation; Bangladesh)
Nabil Al-Tikriti (Associate Professor University of Mary Washington, Vice-President of Médecins sans Frontières; USA)

Host
Arie Kacowicz (Professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem; Israel)

In his speech, Prof. Al-Tikriti argued that when the law itself is unjust, it is incumbent on those determined to protect human rights to take action. Leveraging his affiliation with MSF / Doctors Without Borders, Dr. Al-Tikriti helped arrange an MSF exhibit on refugees at the conference, and coordinated his speech with Michaël Neuman, Research Director at MSF’s CRASH office in Paris, France.  Other featured speakers in the course of the Estoril Conference included Madeline Albright, Edward Snowden, Bernard Kouchner, Nigel Farage, and several other notable figures.

The Estoril Conference Program: http://www.estorilconferences.com/en/content/schedule.

The Estoril Conference Twitter Feed: https://twitter.com/EstorilConf.

Prof. Al-Tikriti’s Estoril Biography: http://www.estorilconferences.com/en/content/nabil-al-tikriti

Following the conference, in his capacity as MSF USA’s 2016-17 Vice President, Prof. Al-Tikriti participated in MSF’s Operational Center Brussels Gathering on 2-3 June, and the Operational Center Paris General Assembly on 10-11 June.