The editors are pleased to publish this 18th volume of the New Zealand Yearbook of International Law covering the year 2020.
It is the volume where, with deep regrets, we mark the news of the passing of Prof James Crawford. As the editors of the Yearbook, we would like to acknowledge the enormous contributions he made to the development of international law. As Sir Kenneth Keith expressed it in the Leiden Journal of International Law, ‘a mighty Totara has fallen’, indeed. The statement by Professor Karen Scott, President of the Australian and New Zealand Society of International Law, is included in the Yearbook to mark this sad event.
It is no understatement to say that 2020 was an exceptional year. With the Covid-19 pandemic gripping much of the world, New Zealand was lucky to get by with a strict, but relatively short period in lockdown in 2020 (although harsher lockdowns would affect some parts of the country in 2021). Although individual freedoms were restricted less than in most comparable states, the impact on international activity has been immense. Export industries, notably tourism, have been severely damaged. The stories of New Zealanders kept from family due to quarantine rules have been heart-rending. Damage to global supply chains is felt in all aspects of the country’s daily life.
The university sector, where many Yearbook contributors and reviewers work, has been through a massive structural change. The pandemic caused a sudden paradigm shift in the way tertiary education is provided, driving a sudden, reactive move to distance education. This has challenged institutions and academics alike to change their practices, and it has dramatically altered workloads. This is a trend that can be seen in other sectors, too, which have undergone similarly challenging shifts to accommodate the physical distancing requirements of the fight against Covid. These changes go some way to explaining why this volume of the Yearbook is a little shorter than usual.
International law has not been immune to the pandemic. The impact of the pandemic on the international legal system will be felt for many years, if not decades. This edition of the Yearbook begins to reflect that with Foster’s article on disease outbreak disclosure and trade in goods.
Trade is at the heart of the discussions in Kelly’s article on Brexit, the portmanteau for Britain’s exit from the European Union. This event became final on 31 January 2020 and has had a huge impact on the UK’s status in global affairs. Kelly takes a look at this significant change in European law from a New Zealand perspective.
In keeping with the Yearbook’s commitment to covering issues that affect the Pacific region, Richardson’s article examines the implementation of the international humanitarian law of sexual violence by Pacific states in their municipal laws.
The Year in Review section focuses inwardly and outwardly on New Zealand and its role in contemporary international law during 2020. It covers international human rights law, Indigenous peoples’ rights under international law, international economic law, international environmental law, law of the sea and fisheries, and the Antarctic treaty system. The commentators provide a brief overview and commentary on New Zealand’s practice and developments with respect to each of these areas of international law during 2020. The Year in Review continues with a comprehensive report on New Zealand state conduct with respect to Treaty Action and Implementation in New Zealand for the 2020 period.
The views of the authors throughout are naturally their own.
The Editors wish to extend their gratitude to the Advisory Board, the experts who continue to provide annual contributions to the Year in Review, the authors contributing to this volume, and other academics, practitioners and government officials from New Zealand and globally who continue to support the development of this publication. A particular thank-you goes to members of the Advisory Board and others taking the time to review contributions.
We would like to thank a number of individuals without whom the publication of this Volume would not have been feasible. We would particularly like to thank our Editorial Assistants, Abdul Hasib Suenu and Edward Ryde, for their valuable contributions and hard work in producing the Yearbook.
James Mehigan
Editor
Christian Riffel
Associate Editor