PROFESSOR MICHAEL SCHMITT 2006 LECTURE NOW PUBLISHED
International Humanitarian Law and Contemporary Armed Conflict: Can the Law Survive? Public Lecture - 13 September 2006 at 6pm

The 2006 Sir Ninian Stephen Visiting Scholar Lecture was presented at the Melbourne Law School on 13 September by Professor Michael N. Schmitt, Professor of International Law and Director of the Program in Advanced Security Studies at the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. In his lecture, entitled' International Humanitarian Law and Contemporary Armed Conflict: Can the Law Survive?', Professor Schmitt considered how the changing nature of warfare is affecting the content, application and interpretation of the Law of Armed Conflict and International Humanitarian Law, with particular reference to the use of technology in armed conflict.

The text of Professor Schmitt’s lecture has now been published in the latest edition of the Melbourne Journal of International Law.

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Second Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) Regional Workshop
6-7 March 2006

The Second Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) Regional Workshop, co-hosted by the Australian Department of Defence and the Indonesian Department of Foreign Affairs under the auspices of the Asia Pacific Centre for Military Law (APCML), was held in Bali, Indonesia on 6-7 March 2006. This was a follow up to the First BWC Regional Workshop held at the University of Melbourne Law School in February 2005. The Workshops provide a regional forum for discussion of effective national implementation of the 1975 Biological Weapons Convention.

Thirty seven participants attended the Second Workshop, with representatives from Indonesia, Australia, Cambodia, the Lao People's Democratic Republic, Malaysia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Thailand, and Viet Nam. The Australian delegation included representatives from the APCML (Dr Bob Mathews, LTCOL Geoff Cameron CSC, Treasa Dunworth and Sarah Finnin), the Department of Defence, Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO), and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT).

The objectives of the Second Workshop were to promote regional awareness of and engagement in the BWC; to discuss the importance of bio-security; to examine national mechanisms for maintenance of the security and oversight of pathogenic micro-organisms and toxins; to facilitate the establishment of a forum for networking with a view to developing partnerships in enhancing bio-security and bio-safety; and to provide a forum for sharing of information.

The Workshop was officially opened by H.E. Mr. M. Slamet Hidayat, Director-General for Multilateral Affairs of the Department of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, and Dr Bob Mathews, Head of NBC Arms Control, Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO), Australia. H.E. Mr. M. Slamet Hidayat remarked that the Workshop enabled the officials and scientists from participating countries to acquire a better understanding of the importance of implementation of the BWC. Similarly, Dr Bob Mathews stressed that the Workshop was a very important step for sharing experience among the participants in the implementation of the BWC with the objective of developing a range of implementation tools.

The APCML is currently preparing the second (2006) volume of the Workshops proceedings.

Select for further information on the BWC workshop

Select to visit the Biological Weapons Convention website

Contact details:

University Node Cathy Hutton Administrator Asia-Pacific Centre for Military Law Law School The University of Melbourne VIC 3010 AUSTRALIA Tel: + 61 3 8344 4775 Fax: + 61 3 8344 0054 Email: law-apcml@unimelb.edu.au

Military Node Ian Martin Administrator Asia-Pacific Centre for Military Law Building 100 Randwick Barracks Avoca Street RANDWICK NSW 2031 AUSTRALIA Tel: + 61 2 9349 0628 Fax: +61 2 9349 0757 Email: mlc.admin@defence.gov.au