3. ----------------------------------------------~-------
CONTENTS
Statement of Purpose
Opening Remarks
Larry Ekin, President, Pax International
3 Internally Displaced Persons, Peace and Security and the Evolution of Sovereignty
Dr: Henry Perritt, Dean, Chicago-Kent College of Law, Illinois Institute ofTechnology
7 Overview and Magnitude of the Problem of Displaced People
Dr: Marc Sommers
13 Enhancing Human Rights and Legal Protection
Professor Douglas Cassell, Northwestern University School of Law
21 Reconciling State Sovereignty and Protections for the Internally Displaced
Dr: Bartram Brown, Professor Of Law, Chicago-Kent College of Law
31 The Case for an International Convention on Displaced People
Dr: Luke T Lee, Chairman, International Law Association Committee on'Internally
Displaced Persons
37 Biographical Notes
40 In Memoriam Jack Corbett
4. OPENING REMARI(S
by Larry Ekin, Pax International
When we began deliberations that led to the
establishment of Pax International, one of the
people participating in our discussion was
Dr. Luke Lee, a Pax International Board
member and former advisor to the United
States Department of State on refugees and
internally displaced persons. Dr. Lee brought to
our attention the simple fact that the world's
internally displaced person population had
come to outnumber the world's refugee
population. That disturbing fact astounded us;
we considered ourselves both interested and
informed people about international affairs,
but none of us understood the magnitude
of the lOP problem.
At that time, we identified a series of issues
that we believed should claim the time and
attention of organizations focusing on
international peace. This included issues
such as child soldiers, conflict diamonds,
landmines, and others. We then conducted
research to identify whether or not US
based organizations were engaged in
advocacy or public education regarding
that issue. Our purpose was twofold: I)
we intended to inform ourselves about
who was doing what; 2) we believed that
in forming a new organization we should
seek to avoid duplicating others' efforts.
Our research verified the fact that very few
people and organizations were discussing the
looming crisis of internally displaced persons.
We believed that we could playa role in
generating awareness and encouraging the
development of a network of people and
organizations to begin more systematically
addressing this issue. Still,we wanted to
test our perceptions further; so I came to
Chicago to expand our circle of discussion.
Our exploration in Chicago led us to Bart
Brown and Lydia Lazar who agreed with
us that very few people understood the
magnitude of the problem and that we
.should attempt to engage others.
From the outset, we determined that the
scope and complexity of internally
displaced persons represented a challenge
that needs to be addressed from a multi-
disciplinary framework.Thus, while we
eventually convened our roundtable meeting
in a law school, and we gave emphasis to
human rights considerations. We did not
want our discussion to be conducted only
among and for lawyers.
As we began contacting people to participate
in our discussion, the most common
response we heard was, "Well, I am very
interested in the topic, but I really don't
know much about it:' My answer was,
"That's precisely the point!" Consequently,
to the extent that our Chicago meeting
engaged new people in thinking and dis-
cussion, we consider it a success.
Happily. we believe it did more than that. We
believe that the material that our presenters
offered represented such quality that it should
be collected and published in the hope and
expectation that this material will likewise
engage new people in focusing their attention
on this tragically growing problem.
5. IN MEMORIAM
JACI( CORBETT
November 27, 1920 - March 18, 2003
Dr. J. Elliott Corbett, one of the nation's
most innovative social activists, a tenacious
but low-key witness for peace, international
reconciliation, and small-scale economic
development, passed away March 18, 2003.
He founded Pax International.
Jack Corbett became best known as the
co-founder of the Pax World Fund, the
nation's first socially responsible investment
fund. Corbett and Luther Tyson, two United
Methodist ministers devised the Pax World
Fund during the Vietnam War years.
As he recounted the story, a letter from an
Ohio woman proved the impetus for their
decision. She asked their advice on investing
in a fund that did not profit from the war or
weapons manufacturing. Intrigued, Corbett
and Tyson spent fruitless days searching for
such a fund. Finding none, they decided to
launch their own. And, while they waited
I3 years for the management company to
realize a profit, there are now more than
50 funds currently promoting themselves
as socially responsible funds.
Remarkably, this was only one of several
noteworthy achievements.
In 1968, the assassination of his seminary
classmate, Dr. Martin Luther King,Jr.,provided
the impetus for Jack to create an ad-hoc
religious coalition to lobby the US Congress
for strengthened gun control legislation. He
convinced American hero Astronaut John
Glenn to serve as national spokesperson
for the effort. Over time, this organization
evolved into the Coalition to Stop Gun
Violence, the nation's largest anti-gun
violence coalition and Corbett remained
an active board member until his death.
(See www.csgv.org)
During World War, II,Corbett turned down
an officer's commission to become a
conscientious objector. His civilian alternative
service included time in Oregon as a
"smoke jumper." He came back East and
spent time working in the violent ward of
a mental hospital. He also volunteered for
an army medical experiment and was
infected with yellow jaundice.
Jack Corbett is survived by his wife, Sarah
Anne, his three children, four grandchildren
- and a multitude of friends. We miss him,
but will always remember his upbeat nature,
lifelong curiosity. and love of learning. We
respect and emulate his unwavering
commitment to internationaal peace and
soccial justice.
