“The Nobel Peace Prize for 2026 goes to a person who with exceptional courage and integrity has led the way towards a more comprehensive global legal order. This year’s laureate has been instrumental in ensuring that war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide are prosecuted. Navi Pillay’s commitment to universal legal principles and her firm moral compass are constants in a long career. Born into a family of Indian Tamil origin under apartheid in Durban, South Africa, Pillay became a lawyer and legal pioneer, confronting deep structural discrimination, segregation and exclusion. A common thread runs from her early work defending Nelson Mandela and others who stood up against apartheid to her service as a judge in some of the key international court cases of our time.”
“This year’s laureate has significantly enlarged the scope and impact of international law. She has served as a judge on the High Court in South Africa, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and the International Criminal Court. She was the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and, until recently, she chaired the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Today Navi Pillay is a judge on the International Court of Justice in the case where Myanmar stands accused of genocide.”
“At a time of existential challenges – including more wars and conflicts than the world has seen in a long time – international law is no longer just a supplement to peace and security. It is an absolute necessity. And yet, the system of international law is under tremendous pressure, and its institutions are under attack. We see a shift towards power politics at the expense of legal frameworks and global respect for law and justice. Whenever might overtakes right, it undermines stability, trust and peaceful co-existence. In awarding this year’s Nobel Peace Prize, the Norwegian Nobel Committee wants to remind the world that the rule of law – national and international – underpins the system we have set up to ensure peace and resolve conflicts non-violently. Peace requires justice.”
“Navi Pillay is one of the great defenders of international legal principles in our time. Her distinguished career reminds us of the need to support, fortify and expand the global rule of law. Navi Pillay’s commitment to justice and human dignity is a source of hope and inspiration to all who seek to bring about a more peaceful world.”
Archive for the Travel Category
Navanethem “Navi” Pillay, 2026 Nobel Peace Prize
Posted in Kids, Travel with tags apartheid, Durban, Gaza war, genocide, Human Rights, International Court of Justice, International Criminal Court, Israeli government, Navi Pillay, Nelson Mandela, Nobel Peace Prize, Norwegian Nobel Committee, Occupied Palestinian Territory, South Africa, UN, UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, war crimes on October 11, 2026 by xi'anVive les Nations unies ! Merci
Posted in Books, Kids, pictures, Travel with tags Africa, AI, Azerbaidjan, China, climate change, colonialism, COVID-19, cybersecurity, EU, France, French colonial empire, French government, Gaza, genocide, imperialism, international humanitarian law, Israel, Lebanon, Palestine, Paris Agreement, Russian invasion, Russian sanctions, social networks, Trump 2.0, Ukraine, UN, United Nations, USA, Victor Orban, war crimes, WHO on October 5, 2026 by xi'an
On his last year of the French Presidency, Emmanuel Macron delivered a marathon speech at the UN General Assembly (which he could attend, contrary to the Palestinian delegation). Here it is, verbatim, and en français. The principles stated therein are commendable and aligned with the fundamentals of a progressive, multilateralist, integral democracy. Unfortunately, the EU and even more France on its own are mostly unable to make progress on the directions highlighted in this discourse… (It does not help that the French government caved in on Russian sanctions a few days earlier to free hostages in Azerbaïdjan. Or that a stress test published the previous day shoes France is poorly protected against reactionary, illiberal drifts à la Trump or à la Orban.)
Depuis ce matin, ici se succèdent les discours qui disent l’état du monde. Et j’ai peur de manquer d’originalité en le décrivant. Chacun décrit en effet le retour de l’impérialisme, de l’arrogance, du retour à la force sans règle ni retenue. Un monde au fond de concentration du pouvoir où quelques-uns pensent qu’on peut battre en brèche l’ordre international pour élargir ses frontières, où d’autres pensent qu’on peut fouler au pied la souveraineté des peuples pour en disposer soi-même, et où quelques-uns pensent pouvoir décider de l’avenir de la planète, qu’il s’agisse du climat ou de l’intelligence artificielle. Au fond, la question qui nous est posée de manière très simple consiste à savoir si nous voulons vivre dans cet état de nature, avec une forme de retour de la loi de la jungle ou dans une société internationale civilisée. Notre devoir, plus que jamais, est de nous tenir droit aux côtés des Nations unies pour décider précisément ensemble de l’intérêt commun, c’est-à-dire du côté de ceux qui veulent choisir librement leur destin, leurs alliances, leurs modèles de développement, leur avenir, du côté de ceux qui refusent que leur souveraineté soit confisquée par la force injuste ou par la peur, et du côté de l’espoir. C’est la raison d’être de notre organisation, cette maison commune qui réunit les peuples libres, égaux, qui est fondée sur l’égalité souveraine de chacun de ses membres. C’est notre charte qui empêche que la puissance des uns leur permette de décider pour les autres. C’est elle surtout qui nous oblige à faire ensemble la démonstration de notre engagement et de notre capacité d’agir utilement.
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semi-marathon d’Argentan [30th year]
Posted in pictures, Running, Travel with tags Argentan, Argentan half-marathon, bocage, Caen, countryside, Courir en Normandie, forêt de Gouffern, half-marathon, Insee Paris Club, M6M, Orne, road race on October 3, 2026 by xi'an
neurips unconference [ELLIS]
Posted in Statistics, Travel, University life with tags ELLIS, ELLIS unconference, Europe, France, machine learning, NeurIPS, NeurIPS 2026, Paris, poster, satellite workshop on October 2, 2026 by xi'an
[Reposting:] The ELLIS UnConference is an annual community gathering, bringing together the European machine learning community to foster exchange, collaboration, and scientific discussion. Following several successful editions in Copenhagen, Spain, Germany and France, the event returns this year as a one-day gathering kicking off the NeurIPS satellite in Paris. Join us for a day of community building, scientific exchange, and the opportunity to present a paper recently accepted at a top machine learning venue. Registration for the event and for the poster session takes place through a single form.
Monte Carlo Methods in Stockholm 2026
Posted in Statistics, Travel, University life with tags KTH, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Markov chain Monte Carlo, MCMC, Monte Carlo Statistical Methods, Stockholm, Sweden, Swedish e-Science Research Centre, theoretical foundations, workshop on September 29, 2026 by xi'an
