As a supranational norm that guarantees the sovereignty of weaker nations, protects human rights, and restrains indiscriminate violence between states, the role of international law is becoming increasingly important in the modern world. However, it has also been criticized for historically aligning with powerful nations and the elite, thus concealing an unequal international order behind the rhetoric of universalism. In today's world, where international exchanges are rapidly deepening, reflection on the possibilities and limitations of international law is not only the task of experts and senior officials, but a responsibility of all humanity.

Building on the interdisciplinary communication developed by the Society for the History of International Law, this conference, organized by the Department of History at Seoul National University, is designed to reexamine fundamental issues related to international law through discussions among experts in law, political science, diplomacy, and history. We hope that through this event, students and researchers from various intellectual backgrounds will develop a deeper interest in international law and participate in interdisciplinary inquiry.

Host: Department of History, Seoul National University
Organized by: Society for the History of International Law, Next-Generation Scholars of International Legal History

Date: Friday, May 9, 10:30 AM – 6:00 PM
Venue: Room 302, Building 4, Gwanak Campus, Seoul National University

10:30 - 12:15 Junior Scholars Panel: Modern Historical Reflections on Sovereignty
Chair: Eojin Kim (Department of Political Science and International Relations, SNU)

• Hyekang Yoo (Department of History, SNU): International Organizations and Sovereign Equality: The League of Nations and the Italy-Ethiopia War

• Seyoung Oh (School of Law, SNU): The Relationship Between International Law and Sovereignty Through the Status of Forces Agreement: A Case Study of Japan

• Jinsol Park (Department of Political Science and International Relations, SNU): Legal Disputes and the Reconfiguration of Legitimacy in the Age of Highly Educated Migrants: A Case Study of the Daegu Mosque Conflict

Light lunch and refreshments will be provided for pre-registered participants.

12:30 - 2:00 Keynote Lecture: The Evolution of Emergency Laws in Britain and the British Empire: From the Revolutionary Period to the First Red Scare

Christopher Roberts (Chinese University of Hong Kong)

2:15 - 4:00 Between the Logic of Power and Norms: The Russia-Ukraine War and the International Community
Chair: Sijin Oh (School of Law, Kangwon National University)

• Kyungduk Roh (Department of History, SNU): Russian Provocations in the 20th Century and the Ukraine War: Continuities and Discontinuities

• Hoon Cho (KIOST): A Study on the Concept of "Lawfare" in International Law: Applying the UK's Response to Russia in the Context of the Ukraine War

• Yucheol Lee (Institute for Peace and Unification Studies, SNU): Authoritarian International Law and the Tension of Transcendent Norms: Focusing on the Ukraine War

4:15 - 6:00 International Society and Human Rights: Is Legal Protection Beyond Borders Possible?
Chair: Byungkeun Kang (School of Law, Korea University)

• Sangrok Lee (National Institute of Korean History): Jimmy Carter, Park Chung-hee, and the Democratization Movement in Korea: The Dynamics of International Politics Surrounding Human Rights in the Late 1970s

• Yoomin Won (School of Law, SNU): Martial Law and International Human Rights Law

• Jiwoo Song (Department of Political Science and International Relations, SNU): International Human Rights and Critiques of Human Rights

Please pre-register via the Google Form below:
https://forms.gle/xcadpWd81mR93kiRA

If you wish to receive a certificate of participation, please indicate it in the registration form, check in at the venue by 10:30 AM on the day of the event, and collect your certificate from the desk after the conclusion of the event at 6:00 PM.