On 30 November in the Hague, the Centre for International Law Research and Policy (CILRAP) granted Gunnar M. Ekeløve-Slydal the 2024 M.C. Bassiouni Justice Award. At the same event, he launched his new book Norm Efficacy and Justification in International Criminal Law, a collection of essays that examines the efficacy and justification of international criminal law norms.
The 2024 M.C. Bassiouni Justice Award was granted in recognition of “(a) his insightful writings that reflect a holistic understanding of international criminal and human rights law and practice, drawing on more than 30 years of extensive engagement with victims in numerous countries, his advocacy vis-à-vis public authorities and international organisations, and his philosophical training; (b) his enduring commitment to public education and dissemination of knowledge on international human rights and criminal law, through his participation in public discourse and nourishing of diverse voices in the Nordic Journal of Human Rights, one of the oldest journals in its field; (c) his collaborative and prudent leadership of the Coalition for International Criminal Justice (CICJ), whose statements have become a leading source of policy advice on criminal justice for core international crimes; (d) his leadership role in multi-year documentation of serious human rights violations that may amount to core international crimes, meticulously implementing specialised software in partnership with innovative technology experts (notably I-DOC); and (e) his courtesy and modesty, regardless of position, and his courage as evidenced by his writings criticising former judges of the International Criminal Court and the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia as well as his own country’s treatment of the Sámi minority in Norway.”
‘I would like to congratulate Gunnar M. Ekeløve-Slydal on receiving the M.C. Bassiouni Justice Award for his long-standing and professional commitment to human rights. His thoroughness and dedicated efforts continue to be crucial to the Norwegian Helsinki Committee,’ said Secretary General Berit Lindeman.