COLOPHON

Founder and Editor in Chief: - Gemma Torras Vives Editorial Team: - The External Affairs Committee: - Vincent Beyer - Zlatka Dimitrova - Christina Hitrova - Jean-Aim Musangamfura - Gemma Torras Vives Lay out Editors: - Ricard Rojas - Sepehr Bastami Authors: - Irina Muoz - Renata Landolt - Aleks Semerciyan - Zlatka Dimitrova - Christina Hitrova The Nexus Flashback Editor: - Jamie Brown Advertisements: - Jean-Aim Musangamfura

Dear Nexus Members and Law students: The External Affairs Committee is glad to present you the second edition of the Nexus Magazine. Now, we are planning to publish one edition each season. It does not only concern the Student Association of Nexus but also the discipline of law itself. This Special Edition of The Nexus Magazine covers a wide range of topics. Firstly, It will share with you the exchange experiences from different perspectives, as well as provide advice for future applications and internships. Lastly, you will be presented with an entertaining series of memorable moments of the previous year with Nexus Student Association. As we expressed in the first edition, we pretend this magazine to be an agora of discussion and a sanctuary of knowledge where every student has the opportunity to raise his voice and participate in the development of the Law community. On these papers, we are determined to build a tower of knowledge by obtaining and practicing communication skills, problem-solving, creative thinking, career development, influence and organizational skills and leadership. To build such tower is an ambitious objective that can only be achieved by an active and motivated participation by all the readers. We expect you to enjoy it; to collaborate; to criticize it; to provide us new ideas and approaches; to work with us! This is a project of and for all students. We are delighted to open you the doors to the agora of the Law faculty.

The Committee of External Affairs independently obtained and organized the content of this magazine and is responsible for the publication of the Nexus Magazine.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Colophon EDITORS NOTE HELP DESK THE STUDENT ROOM 2 5 6 7

- INTERNATIONAL VIDEOCONFERENCE HELSINKI

POST YOUR OPINION

- LETTER TO THE MUNICIPALITY OF GRONINGEN

EXCHANGE PROGRAM - GONE ABROAD GOING ABROAD MY EXPERIENCE

- ROADMAP TO SUCCESS

10 14 15

THE NEXUS FLASHBACK ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

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16 29

The Editors Note,

For students and future scholars of International and European Law, it is difficult to overstate the value of knowing French as it is one of the the main languages in the field of International and European Law. If the university somehow finds a way to incorporate an extensive French language course into its curriculum for the law students, it will amount to an even more complete and richer program of International and European Law, and open more doors for its graduates in their professional careers. Aside from their impact on future career prospects, French courses will allow the LLB and LLM students to participate more comfortably in academic competitions such as the European Law Moot Court and have a better chance of competing at the national levels, proudly representing the University of Groningens Law program. Irrespective of the year of studies, whether first, second, or third, students of Law know full well the value of knowing French. However, the opportunity to take French language courses, as a part of the law curriculum, has not presented itself. The solution for this issue has roots in far deeper places than we may be able to reach directly. However, where presented with an opportunity to take action, we ought not to hesitate. Speaking to faculty members for more information as well as even directly to the always-friendly staff of the University can perhaps open doors we have not been aware of. Perhaps one day soon we will see such changes implemented, which would enrich the quality of this unique, interdisciplinary program. Meilleurs voeux, Gemma Torras Vives Editor in Chief The Nexus Magazine

HELP DESK
By Christina Hitrova

How do I start a complaint procedure in the University of Groningen?

The University of Groningen has different possibilities for complaints concerning a wide range
of problems. The system is very easily presented in the Study and Information Guide for LLB and LLM Programmes. In the 2011-2012 edition, you can find it on page 127. These guides can be picked up at the International Office and at the beginning of an academic year, there will be a guide with your name on it! When you want to complain, you must be aware first of all of some of the Unviersitys regulations, as well as of the Student Statute. It is available at http://www.rug.nl/studenten/regelingen/ studentenstatuut/index and offers much information about your legal rights and responsibilities as a student. This is one of the most important documents for students, especially if you want to be able to protect your rights fully. Depending on the field you want to compain in, there are different regulations applicable, however a few minutes on Google should prove to be enough to find the necessary information from documents such as the Regulations for the Protection of Academic Integrity University of Groningen or the Complaints Regulation concerning Harassment, Sexual Harassment, Aggression, Violence and Discrimination University of Groningen 2009. Although at first you may be confused as to what to do and who to turn to, you can always turn to the Study and Information Guide, the website of the University and of course, the helpful ladies from the International Office. Hopefully, there will be very few occasions of you needing such help, but if you do, there are difinitely people who are there to support you.

Is there a possibility to sign up for minors?

Signing up for minors is forbidden for LLB students officially. If you would like to take an extra course, however, you need to turn to the International Office of the Faculty, in which you want to take the course and ask them if that would be possible. From then on, follow their instructions and sign up on ProgressWWW. Dont forget you can check all the courses the University of Groningen offers online at http://www.rug.nl/ocasys/ to choose something you are interested in. Of course, you could also ask about registering for minors when you are researching extra courses, however officially, it is not allowed.

INTERNATIONAL VIDEOCONFERENCE HELSINKI

By S. Renata Landolt

his year the English department in coordination with the University of Helsinki set up a video conference to debate on the topic of Self-determination for the Afrikaner people. There were two groups from either University, and RUG was the opposition party. Our group (group B) immediately set to work after a briefing on the details with Mr. Grollman. We divided ourselves into sub groups, each focusing on different areas of research case law, internal selfdetermination and statistics for instance, and later we presented our research to the group. We not only researched for information in support of our arguments but also those which would hinder us. We tried to think like the enemy and anticipate their arguments and made sure that we had a strong counter argument. Additionally, before the actual debate an introduction session was set up for us to get to know the Helsinki team. We exchanged legal terms the Helsinki team providing us with Finnish terms and we would provide it in our native language for example aisanajaja which means lawyer and translates to abogado in Spanish. Moreover, we had a question and answer sessions where enquiries were made on the different educational systems and each individuals plans for the future; a lot of the Finnish students wanted to be criminal lawyers! After the introduction, We had a week to prepare the final details we used our time wisely and came up with the idea of experts, this individual or sub group would be responsible for arguments in the specific field. This allocation therefore made it easier for our chairperson, Irina, to decide on the speaker for the group. As the debate day approached we were neither nervous nor overly confident, I would say everyone was excited that this day had finally arrived! Both sides gave their opening statements; Madleen, who did a very good job, gave ours. The arguments in favour of self-determination for the Afrikaners brought forward by the Helsinki team mostly revolved around internal-self-determination. This was the expert area for Gemma and myself, additionally Maybelline aided our arguments with the historical aspects. Elizabeth provided the case law which supports our argument against self-determination and Jamie, Madleen and Sepher provided for the statistical evidence with regards to the political and social situation. Finally, as this was a legal debate our legal experts Sepher, Vincent and Jeremias for the failures of the UNPO, aided in linking all the arguments together. The debate was very lively with both sides defending their statement passionately. However, once the debate came to a closing as customary closing statements were given, ours by Jamie who did it with such emotion that he should be nominated an academy award for it. The result for the debate, is to be decided by the audience so please visit these links: Group 1: http://qtvideo.service.rug.nl/rechten3/rgaex00105/vc_300312_01.mov http://qtvideo.service. rug.nl/rechten3/rgaex00105/vc_300312_02.mov Group 2: http://qtvideo.service.rug.nl/rechten3/rgaex00105/vc_240412.mov We hope you enjoy watching the debate as much as we enjoyed participating in it. If the opportunity to participate in this event or a similar event arises I would recommend to sign up as my friends and I found this to not only be debate training but also a fun and social activity.

POST YOUR OPINION!

Open letter to the Municipality of Groningen

By Irina Muoz

(NOTE: The following text is a reaction to recent developments in the city of Groningen. It should not be interpreted literally!)

Dear Sir or Madam,

If I could make only one proposal to the municipality of Groningen, I would like to suggest the relocation of families. Why? Well, it is pretty obvious: There are too many of them! Wherever you look, there are just masses of families. What do they all want in this town? I mean, where do all those happy jogging dads with their strollers come from? They certainly pose a serious danger to the traffic in Groningen. Many residents are already complaining that the quality of living in their neighborhoods is drastically decreasing due to the exuberant settling of families. It seems that nowadays families do not only live individually, but that sometimes they even live together as couples with one, two or even more children in ONE HOUSE! Personally, I could not believe my eyes when I first learned about this abnormal situation. How can it possibly be legal that they all share one house together? The consequences are quite shocking: Children make noise, sometimes they even laugh and spread good mood. Moreover, they play weird games in gardens and vandalize the city with chalk. When I leave my house, I wish to find the street grey and not colorful. Colors should be illegal, as should laughter and games. Additionally, studies show that families sometimes even make friends with neighboring families. Apart from the consequential increase in noise pollution, there is a high risk that those relationships can lead to the formation of potentially dangerous criminal groups. That must be prevented under all circumstances. Inferring from these very unpleasant facts about families, I have come to the conclusion that all families in Groningen must be the same and are a serious nuisance to other residents. There is only one solution to the dramatic situation: We have to stop the alarming concentration of families in this town.

POST YOUR OPINION!

Therefore, I demand an immediate administrative action for the even distribution of families over the city. My suggestion is that only a maximum of 15% of houses per street may be inhabited by families. Landlords should be required to buy licenses in order to be able to rent their houses to families. All families who live in a house without a license can then be legally deported, irrespective of their personal circumstances. As has already been established, all families are the same; therefore, there is no need to consider each case individually. The principle of non-discrimination is over-rated anyway. One might argue that the children who are now part of those families are the doctors and lawyers of tomorrow. Of course, we do not want to get rid of them completely. After all, families kind of contribute to the economic prosperity of the city. Thus, a housing project for families should be started to provide unaffordable accommodation for families by 2020. There, families could live among themselves, because that is how society ought to be: each social group should live separated from the rest of the groups in society. Students should live among students, the elderly among elderly people and families among families. This way, everybody would live happily and potential conflicts would be prevented. Lastly, I would like to express my utmost gratefulness that a similar policy as described above has already been implemented in relation to students. If the same is applied to families, then a total of 30% of the houses in each street will be inhabited and the rest will be empty. That will indeed be a brilliant solution. At least until the children become doctors and lawyers. Then they are welcome to join the community again. Maybe. I would like to congratulate you on your success so far and hope that you are going to consider my proposal. Yours sincerely,

Irina M. (a student without license)

EXCHANGE PROGRAM-PROCEDURE
By Christina Hitrova

All LLB students are required to spend 1 semester or 1 year abroad, except if they can get
an exemption. Most of the students do that in the 1st semester of their 3rd year, however there are flexible possibilities. The application for exchange happens in the 2nd semester of the 2nd year, with the deadline for applications for universities outside of Europe being around 1st of February and the one for universities within Europe being 1st March. The procedure for applying is specified in a booklet available outside of the International Office and online at http:// www.rug.nl/rechten/informatievoor/foreign/llb/studerenbuitenland/index. There are universities avaiable all over the world, however the universities in the USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand are generally reserved for LLM students. Moreover, if you would like to go to South or Central America, to Italy, Spain or Portugal, you will need to show that you speak the native language or at the very least, that you have started learning it. After you have been accepted to your university of choice, you need to choose your courses and get them approved both by your host university and by the Exchange Office here. If the courses are not approved, you will not be able to receive the credits from it. There is no need to wrry about that, however, as the wonderful ladies working at the International and Exchange Offices are all very nice and helpful and will explain to you everything you need to do when the time comes. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask!Leaving all these procedures aside, dont forget that the exchange program is intended to help you learn more about a different culture, a different language and a different country while teaching you to work in a truly international envuronment, something that most of us have already done, but nevertheless, an exciting and unique time!

Buenos Aires (Photograph by Fritz Samuel Bhm)

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GONE ABROAD By Zlatka Dimitrova

Interview with Fritz Samuel Bhm

I clearly had the most impressive and fascinating 6 months of my life in Buenos Aires

1. How did you decide to go on exchange in Argentina? What were your motives to do so? Already during my first year I had a look at the exchange folder at the International Office, playing with the thought to pass my exchange outside of Europe. My general plan has always been to get as far away as possible and improve my language skills. When Johannes Loefstrand kept telling me about how great his time in Buenos Aires was, I made the decision to apply for Universidad Austral. Indeed, I was not only eager to improve my Spanish but also had great interest to get an insight into the South American approach towards International Law and Politics. And well, lets be honest, the fact that the semester ends in the second week of November in Argentina, which allows you to travel two more months around the continent was also a little motivation to apply for Bs. As. 2. What were your expectations and fears? I had never been to South America before, consequently all my informations and expectations were based on the books I read and Johannes stories. I expected Buenos Aires to be huge and breath-taking, the meat to be fantastic and the first weeks in Spanish-taught lectures a challenge. Further, I expected to travel as much as possible and improve my Spanish. I would not say, that I did have any fears, but beyond doubt there were risks I was aware of beforehand. May it be small issues, such as the inflation of the Argentinean pesos, changing the rent of my room from month to month, or the notorious smog on hot days. At the same time I was also aware that crime is still an issue in Buenos Aires.

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GONE ABROAD

- INTERVIEW WITH Fritz Samuel Bhm 4. Where does the main difference between a semester in Groningen (where you have spent 2 years of your life) and a semester abroad lie? The academic requirements in Argentina seemed higher to most of us, compared to the University of Groningen. On one side it was of course more difficult to study and write essays in a foreign language. On the other side, the exam procedures at Austral were really different from the Netherlands. After a midterm, multiple-choice exam, there is a final oral exam, in which the student has to draw two numbers out of a lottery bowl. According to the numbers, the student receives two topic areas. From those the teacher spontaneously creates questions.

3. What happened in fact? Did the exchange experience live up to your expectations or not? If it did, how? I clearly had the most impressive and fascinating 6 months of my life in Buenos Aires. The city is indeed breath-taking, because of its charm but also because of the smog and chaos. The academic level at Universidad Austral was higher than I expected and it was a joy to listen to some of the best professors I had in a long time. In fact I ended up doing an interesting set of courses which gave me a good insight into the way Argentinean lawyers see f.e. European Law and Politics.

5. Tell me 2 reasons in favour and against the idea of an exchange programme. Clearly, for students of international law an exchange period is a must in my believe. Firstly, one experiences a new University, with different teachers and most of all a different approaches towards international affairs and law. Secondly, an exchange period is a fantastic possibility to improve a foreign language, a skill Further I had the chance to do atypical courses which is truly important if one aims for an internasuch as Latin American Sociology and Sports tional career. Last but not least, a semester abroad law or Argentinean Football law, as it should is an unforgettable personal experience. All those better be called. The first weeks in advanced Spanish-taught courses such as Economic Integra- fantastic moments I lived through, the adventurous tion law were not that easy, but with the help of my journeys and foremost the great friends I made will heartwarming local classmates I made it to get into let me never forget my 6 months in Argentina. An Legal Spanish and in the end round off all courses exchange semester, and I know it sounds cheesy, broadens your horizon and changes your view on successfully. many things. I used my time and travelled extensively during Of course there may always be personal reasons and after the semester. I made it to see a lot in Argentinia, Uruguay, Bolivia, Peru, Chile and Brazil. not to go on exchange, but aside those I can hardly Unfortunately, also my last expectation came true. come up with any. Maybe if one cant live without Frikandel and Bitterballen, an exchange outside Buenos Aires is a very dangerous city. As nearly Europe will be tricky. I couldnt find neither one of all my classmates I did not make it to leave the them in Argentinean supermarkets. country without getting robbed.

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GONE ABROAD

- INTERVIEW WITH Fritz Samuel Bhm

6. What kind of problems did you encounter during your stay in Argentina? Generally, I didnt really encounter any problems; there were just a couple of things I had to get used to. Life has a different rhythm in South America and it took me some weeks to get acquainted to it. Whether it were the two hours of bus journey I needed every day to go to university or the 3 months of neverending bureaucracy for getting my visa. No matter what happened, I took things as they came. I really became a patient person in South America. 7. What is the best thing that a law student can do when going about for an exchange? Take courses which are related to national politics or law, hang around with locals and talk with them about their views on current affairs.

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GOING ABROAD
By Zlatka Dimitrova

- An

Interview with Patricia Agoncillo

Z: Patricia, introduce your self briefly. P: My name is Patricia Agoncillo, I am a second-year law student at the age of 23. Z: Next semester you are going to spend in Canada, since you have been accepted to MacGill University for exchange. Why did you choose to study there? P: For me, I have always been looking towards going back to Canada and pursue a Master degree at McGill, so that I have the option going back if I wanted to. It is easier to find work in Canada with a degree obtained at a Canadian university. McGill has a very good reputation in Canada, it is one of the best if not the best one. I also have family there, and I want to study French, because it is obligatory if one wants to work for the Canadian government. Z: I heard that if one wants to apply for an exchange program outside Europe, it should be sent earlier P: That is true, although I applied for my chosen universities, both for outside and within Europe, all at once. Z: How does your list of choices look like? P: My first choice was McGill, the second one Edinburgh, because it is common law, then University of Surrey and lastly Copenhagen (although there is only one place there, there are numerous masters courses offered in the field of international law, which is really interesting). Z: What do you expect when you go on exchange? P: I personally want to go to McGill, because in this area there are numerous possibilities to work and volunteer in the field I would like to one day, especially non-governmental organizations. Of course, the level of education is intimidating, since it will be very competitive, but I hope that this will only help me improve myself. And last but not least I want to improve my French skills. Z: What are the requirements which should be fulfilled in order to apply for exchange? P: It is not just grades, definitely. They are looking for your CV and how much experience you have work, extracurricular activities, and also, I think, was a big factor the fact that I already have experience at a Canadian university; I have finished three years of Political Science. So I think when applying for an exchange abroad to a Canadian university, it helps if have had a previous degree. When you write your personal statement, you should mention your motivation and intention for going there.

Z: So are they generally looking for students with a previous degree? P: In Canada, one must obtain another bachelor degree prior to applying to law school. Competition to Canadian law schools are rigorous and usually take in students with at least four years of a bachelors degree and have obtained work and/or volunteer experience. The Canadian law students that come here on exchange have these kinds of qualifications. Therefore, I think that the exchange office prefers to send students with similar credentials; to have a prior degree, or at least some kind of substantial work, study, or volunteer experience relating to the country and/ or university of their choice. Its not always the case, but it certainly helps to have a previous degree. Z: I understand that one should describe their intention to study there, to contribute P: They look for something more; for example, a personal connection with the school, the country or the language. Extracurricular activities should be related to your interests and if going there for exchange is of your particular interest, you must prove so. For instance, I am part of the Student Platform with the Centre for Canadian Studies here in Groningen, and I also wrote in my letter of motivation that I want to study there with intentions to work in Montreal one day. I guess there should be more personal connection with the school, something more than just grades and dedication, because others may also have them. You have to set yourself apart. It also played a huge role that I am Canadian and I also want to take courses there after graduation. Z: You mentioned extracurricular activities. What are you engaged in outside school? P: In the past, I had an internship through a Canadian university, last year I was a member of Nexus Committee of External Affairs and this year I am more involved with the Canadian Student Platform. They are looking for a balanced student; one who is not concerned only about studies and grades. Showing a long list of extracurricular activities also shows you are able to manage your time and that you have discipline. It shows a degree of responsibility. Z: Patricia, thank you for the interview! You proved that you possess all qualities to be a mature, independent student. I wish you an exciting and challenging first semester at McGill University! P: Thank you very much! I am excited and at the same time intimidated, because it is a huge step in my academic career, but I look forward to it passionately. Z: Good luck!

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my experience
A Human Resources Advise The Roadmap to success
By Aleks Semerciyan

here are plenty of law students worldwide and everyone of them will be present once in the highly competitive legal job market of traditional lawyers, legal counsels, legal experts, legal civil servants and judges. But for all these positions the same goes: you have to first succeed in the application process to get such a job. According to my experience you have two issues in this procedure: first yourself and second all other applicants. In this article I will focus only on the first issue, the second is well known: good academic record, work experience, team player, fluent languages, international experience and more. The very first step of getting a job or an internship is one of a com- prehensive and structured research approach. What are you looking for? Which legal area you want to tackle? Who offers such positions? Do you fulfill the very necessary requirements - special degrees, bar exam, sometimes nationality and language skills? Remember that often deadlines for applications, even for internships, are several months up to one year before the first working day! You can apply for a job offer or initiate it, but in both cases your cover letter must be excellent. How did you find the company/organization? Why do you want to work there? Why they could profit from you and should therefore hire you? Support them with a short, clear and well-structured Curriculum Vitae and keep in mind that a professional job recruiter spends only a few seconds on your application due to the huge load of applications she/he gets. Imagine you are a product and you have to convince the job recruiter to buy you! After submitting the whole application, preferable send via Email, you will have to wait. Sometimes companies notify you of the receipt of your application, but if you have not received an answer, you can approach them after some time, but such a request should not be too early! Depending on the position and the company/organization, you should wait at least several weeks. If you have passed the first round and created interest in the recruiter, the job interview is obviously the second step. Traditionally a personal conversation, but nowadays sometimes conducted already via Skype. Many applicants fear this second step, but there is no need for any concerns. In my opinion there are three things you should have always in mind in such a case: be prepared, keep the Business Etiquette and be yourself. It starts already that you have to there always several minutes earlier. One who comes unreasonably late, is mostly out of the competition. Prepare answers for the typical job interview questions, like: Why do you want to work for us? What do you think makes us different to our branch competitors? Why would we profit from you? Where do you see yourself in 5/10 years? What are your weaknesses? Therefore you have to make background research beforehand and also thoughts about yourself. Prepare also some questions, which are showing interest and curiosity. Additionally the Business Etiquette must be performed, therefore besides an adequate formal outfit, your professional behavior is very important to make an impression. Never fall into the word of your interview partner, be careful how you formulate your answers and keep topics like politics or religion out of the talk! The most important thing during conducting Business Etiquette is to be yourself, natural and be not too tense! I wish you all the best for your future applications!

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NEXUS
2011/12
16

Special End of Year Edition!

By: Jamie Brown, Dane Carlson, Ruaridh MacFarlane, Roumi Kamenova, and Pekko Vuori

Welcome all, young and old, bold and beautiful, bright and brilliant, welcome silly and serious people,
welcome people of all places and all times! Welcome, indeed! This is a special little section of the Nexus magazine devoted to the highlights of this years frivolities and festivities and to the people who made them happen! We shall be looking back on the year with rose-tinted spectacles, reminding ourselves of the laughs and triumphs enjoyed by many along the way. Thus, we shall have a look at some of the events you may have missed, some of the ones you made it to and some of the ones you have happily forgotten in the mists of time. There were plenty of events this year organised exclusively by Nexus and other members of the International and European Law community. A strong diversity of options existed to try to give our fellow students the opportunity to learn something new, try a new skill, practice being socially awesome or just share some whimsical laughs and amusements. Organisations such as Nexus exist to help give opportunities and to be open and welcoming to the needs and desires of others. Not all of these things succeeded as planned, as is natural, but, as a young programme and young organisation, the theme of the year has been progress and development and we can only hope that the upward-trending satisfaction of members and colleagues continues!

This special edition is dedicated to all LLBers! We salute you.

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And Now For a Word from Our President:

As you may have noticed, there is a difference regarding the Yearbook this year! Namely, that its not a print version, but a special edition of the magazine coupled with materials that the Yearbook Committee has worked on over the past year. Unfortunately, we were unable to produce a print version of the yearbook for various reasons, so weve decided to go with a more environmentally friendly and 100% free digital format instead! This year, like those before, has certainly been one to remember. Nexus Student Association has grown in size and ambition with more members and activities than ever before. We have had numerous memorable events from the ICTY lecture to the Rwanda Memorial, along with our regular association events like debating, course tutorials and the ever-exciting borrels. My warm thanks to all the Active Members who put in hard work, time and energy through the year! I hope all the Active Members enjoyed the experience of helping create and shape events for other students as much as the people who attended them! I would also like to thank all the individual members of the association for the support and participation in assocation activities throughout the year and helping to push the association forward. I truly hope we can keep the Nexus feeling going as we continue to grow and evolve into the future! Finally, I would like to extend a warm welcome to the newly elected General Board for the academic year 2012/13. Under the stewardship of Sepehr Bastami as our new President and the very capable team of Ana Iacob, Renata Landolt and Maybelline Massey, our best wishes go to them as they get ready to face the challenges of the year to come! Good luck to you all! The following serves as a memento for us all and I hope you enjoy and cherish this special edition as much as I do! Let us reminisce together on what has passed! Yours sincerely, Allan Ochiel President 2011/12

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Short Notes on a Year Gone By

What the Hell Have We Learned?

What can one really say about an entire year that cannot be better thought by the person listening? A lot of things really happen in a whole year and its almost impossible to summarise it in a few words of wise and shrewd analysis for everyone to agree upon. All that is certain is that we all had a very different year. Some of us found great success where expected, others found success in new fields in ways they could never have seen. Many of us learned our limits when it came to finding that crucial balance between work, sleep and play. Some of us found new hobbies, new muses, new inspirations, while others changed and evolved in different directions. Some of us discovered that certain things simply werent right for them - hell, some of us even discovered the law isnt right for them at all! But we all learned something this year, so maybe it was worth it.

But whats clear is that there was also a hell of a lot of fun had this year! The drunken madness of the Netherlands has rubbed off on many of the internationals and clearly corrupted the innocent minds of our fellow students. Rampaging around the city, delighting in the smell of body odour and emptying the contents of ones stomach upon an unsuspecting city street are all part of the student experience in Groningen. The bars of Peperstraat, their clientele with their slick-backed hair and v-neck shirts, occasionally get a heavy dose of ten, twenty or thirty international students invading their sweaty little establishment, lured by the promise of cheap biertjes and discount shots. Gossip and stories of nights-gone-right and nights-gone-wrong can dominate Monday discussions as we discover who got lucky, who didnt and who might have gotten arrested or woken up without their trousers. Perhaps tragically, perhaps not, Nexus events only occasionally culminated in such high hedonism as we are by all means a more restrained sort, more inclined to intellectual pontificati... ha... nevermind - we partied and it was awesome.

Best Night Ever (so far this week)

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RepaRations

at the

iCC

r. Swarts lecture was introduced by fellow student Liz McCawley and focused on a topic that is gaining international interest: paying reparations in front of the International Criminal Court (ICC). She began by giving a background on international legal obligations to pay reparations, focusing on areas such as Latin America and Germany in regards to paying reparations. She continued by specifically addressing the ICC mandate and how it pays reparations to satisfy the victims in this regard. Being South African, Dr. Swart introduced us to the South African debate on the payment of reparations after apartheid, hoping that it would add to our understanding of her research. Reparations is a complex issue and is especially difficult to formulate a coherent approach in the context of international criminal law where few payments may suffice for the crime committed. According to Dr. Swart, reparations arent a dream anymore, in fact, it is already, in some sense, real and concrete. The Trust Fund for Victims has already had a significant impact on the lives of victims of conflict. To illustrate the nature of committed crimes and why victims should receive reparations, Dr. Swart read out a disturbing and moving story about a woman from Sierra Leone who had been held hostage and tortured. She carried on by describing the incredible support and reconstructive facial surgery the woman had received from the Trust Fund for Victims. This was one of the many examples given that emphasized the importance of the ICC and the payment of reparations to victims of conflict. One of Dr. Swart larger points was that reparations should be individualized and reparation awards should not be limited to collective measures such as services and infrastructure. Mia Swart is an Assistant Professor in Public International Law and Global Justice at the Grotius Centre for International

The ICC hoisting a flag in honour of their 10th Anniversary celebrations. We were honoured to have Dr. Swart here this year and we await patiently the chance to hear more about the exciting and developing field of international criminal law!

Legal Studies. Her research interests include transitional justice, international criminal law and comparative constitutional law. She is currently focusing on apartheid reparations. Professor Swart studied law at the University of Cape Town (LLB) and obtained an LLM from Humboldt University (Berlin) in 1999.

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shoRt tRips taken this YeaR

Frozen and pierced by the end, the new Active Members braved ice, rain, and rainy ice on Schiermonikoog as the first test of their resolve. Teambuilding, committee work and all sorts of strange and unusual activities ensued as the new members got to know each other better in a soggy farmhouse with only the natural heat of others to keep warm!

Second and third year students were offered the chance to visit the Duisenberg School of Finance in Amsterdam totally free of charge. It was a great opportunity to see what sort of courses were available for approximately 26,000 in annual tuition fees at one of Europeans top master-level finishing schools.

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Hello, Hannah! How are you today? Could you first start by telling us where you went on your exchange? I went to Ghent, in Belgium. However, my first choice was Leuven, also in Belgium. But that didnt work because they only taught Master courses, which I wasnt allowed to take. In fact, Ghent wasnt on my choice list at all but thanks to the International Office, a program was found in Ghent that was similar to the one I wanted to go to. What made you want to go to Belgium? I took Dutch courses the year before and took the Staat-exam so that I could study in Dutch. I felt that since there was a possibility for me to work in this region, it might be smart for me to learn the technical and legal terms in Dutch as well as English. Now that the exchange experience is over, would you still choose to go to Belgium or would you rather choose another exchange destination? I have to admit that my initial idea and goal to improve my Dutch didnt exactly work as I hoped it would. I enrolled mostly in English-taught courses instead, but I did enroll in one course taught entirely in Dutch. Although it was challenging, it was extremely beneficial for the development of my legal Dutch. So how many Master courses did you follow? Well, I took five Master courses and one Bachelor course, which was the one taught in Dutch. This translated into a lot of classes, roughly twenty-eight hours a week. But I have to say that it was my own choice to dedicate most of my time that way, you can also opt to take only five courses, which would translate into fewer hours of class. However, I chose my courses according to my own interests rather than following the recommended guide. How hard was it to find an apartment/room in Ghent? I lived together with my boyfriend and we were quite lucky with our apartment. It was pretty annoying to find a room through the university in the

An

Interview

WITH

Hannah

W idemann
Student Residence, which a friend of mine did. It was frustrating because they were very disorganized despite the newly-built residences meant for exchange students such as us. They even forgot to send the confirmation to the students, which led to even more confusion when the exchange students arrived in Ghent. However we managed to get our room through alternative means. There are people living in Ghent that contact the Housing Office and let them know that their room is going to be available for a certain period of time, the Housing Office then passes on the contact details to exchange students looking for temporary housing. I dont know anybody who went on exchange and wasnt able to find a place. Were the courses in Ghent what you expected them to be? Was there a particular motivation that led to your decision to go to Ghent? I just really like Belgium, despite what all Dutch people say. Although speaking Dutch in Belgium

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Hannah is a former First Year Representative and President of Nexus Student Association and still helps out the Board as one of the key people on the Board of Mentors which supervises and advises the General Board in their duties. She is one of the key people invovled with getting the organisation to where it is today! isnt as useful as I thought, considering the fact that people mainly speak French. I still managed to communicate with my passable high-school French and in Belgium, theyre very enthusiastic when exchange students speak French and they encourage them to get better. There was no real particular motivation that explains my decision to attend Ghents university for six months, I guess because its university was equally ranked with Leuven, so I didnt really see a difference. What courses did you follow in Ghent? European International Labor and Employment Law, International European Biodiversity Law, International European Environmental Law, EU External Relations, Human Rights, and the Dutch Bachelor-course, Verbintenissenrecht (the Belgian Law of Obligations).

What advice would you give to future exchange students based on your experience? Basically, make sure that you double-check everything in the information guide with regards to the courses that interest you and the language the courses are taught in. There are often cases where students could have taken a course but they simply didnt know that they were eligible. Also try to rely on your exchange coordinator in your host university. I found that my exchange coordinator in Ghent helped much more than the International Office in Groningen.

- As interviewed by Roumi Kamenova

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silvia DasColi Guest leCtuRe iCtY

Dr. Silvia DAscoli, a graduate from the Universit degli Studi di Teramo, began her career as an intern at Amnesty International in London. Her PhD thesis Sentencing in International Criminal Law was awarded the annual prize for being the best PhD in the entire faculty at the European University Institute in Florence and she currently works as a Legal Officer in the Office of the Prosecutor, Trial Division in the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY). In her lecture, Dr. Silvia DAscoli discussed her career with the ICTY and the current state of International Criminal Law, while explaining the inception, structure, and functions of the ICTY. DAscoli described her work in the Trial Division as a dynamic and busy enterprise, considering the speed of the trials and the amount of evidence used throughout the proceedings. The Office of the Prosecutor, where she now works, is charged with the investigation of crimes, the gathering of evidence, and carrying out the individual prosecutions. The inspiration to write her PhD thesis Sentencing in International Criminal Law stemmed from an internship at the ICTY and the fascinating but surprising realization that International Criminal Law was essentially under construction leaving many aspects unregulated and/or undeveloped, some areas lacking even the basic legal principles and guidelines. The ICTY is an ad hoc tribunal located in The Hague, the Netherlands, and was established to prosecute serious crimes committed during the wars in the former Yugoslavia. It was established by the U.N. Security Council to have jurisdiction over four separate areas of crime committed in the territory of the former Yugoslavia since 1991: grave breaches of the Geneva Convention, violations of the laws or customs of war, genocide, and crimes against humanity.

on the

Victoria Pelishatska, one of the organisers of the ICTY lecture.

One of the points that DAscoli points out with special emphasis was that there is no current established body of international principles regarding the determination of sentences, which has given international judges a wide degree of discretion. She argues that such a wide level of discretion can lead to inconsistent sentencing and allow similar cases to be sentenced differently. Instead, Silvia DAscoli argues for a more coherent sentencing policy, ensuring proportionality and relative uniformity, resulting in more objective fairness with regards to international sentencing. After only two short hours, Dr. Silvia DAscoli opened the floor to the audience for questions and remarks, leaving just enough time for her to catch her train. Her lecture attracted a room full of law students and we wanted to thank her for taking time out of her busy schedule to talk to us about her work with the ICTY and explain the development and growth of International Criminal Law.

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how

to

iCe skate like

law stuDent

Those who cant skate, fall. And those who fall, trip others. This years attempt at ice skating was hilarious and ridiculous in equal measure. A lot of first-time skaters and a few more experienced skaters meant that thankfully no bones were broken and no one lost a finger to an ice skate (though we were pretty close at times). In fact, most people managed to stay on their feet long enough to skate a round at least once, no matter how ungraceful. Initially, there were shared moments of uncertainty where people made sure that their friends were equally awkward ice on the ice as they themselves were. Slowly but surely, people braved the ice and elegantly began to get into the ryhthm next to everybody else who seemed to be going much faster than any of us. Granted, nobody will be winning medals anytime soon, save perhaps our resident Finnish person, Antti, who looks so comfortable on the ice youre sure that any minute hell start trying to break through and find some fish underneath. The most frequently asked questions were: How do I turn?, How do I stop?! and other basic questions of movement. Have you fallen yet? came up frequently among those trying to console themselves after their falls, eager to know if anyone else suffered a similar fate... which many of us happily did!

Sebastian

Antti

Renata

Theresa

Isabella

Elizabeth

Roumi

Dane

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Nexus & Vintres

The University of Groningen has a Dutch equivalent of the English LLB programme available for the Dutch students which has its own student association called Vintres, a well-respected group with almost 22 years of history behind them. On Tuesday April the 3rd, the members of the Nexus and Vintres were finally introduced to one another as they came together for a debate and social evening. The two associations had to combine their efforts and work together in a British Parliamentary-style debate with the controversial topic: This House Believes Homosexual Rights are Not Human Rights. The proposition and opposition teams were mixed with representatives of both associations, which helped the members get to know one another better and this facilitated their teamwork in coming up with strong arguments. Nexus members had the natural advantage of studying purely in English and thus had a bit of an upperhand in the whole event, but several of the Vintres members had superb rhetorical skills and balanced it all out rather nicely. The debate was long and heated, and neither side managed to win since both the proposition and opposition team displayed strong, educated and passionate arguments in defence of their side, along

with a healthy dose of bad jokes and hilarious mistakes to keep it exciting. Nexus was represented by many members, including passive and active, first, second and third year students. Our very own General Board Member Jamie was the Honourable Chairman, while the remainder of the members were engaging in the debate against one another. The event was wrapped up later than expected as a result of the enthusiastic battle and everyones enthusiasm to put their ideas forward. Once the debate ended, all the members of both of the associations were welcomed to kick back and relax at the bar Bubbles where Nexus borrels are held regularly. Both Vintres and Nexus members were eagerly looking forward to a second round of debating since this event was such a success. Not only did the students get to make new acquaintances, but they also got a chance to put their knowledge to the test and develop (or show off) their debating skills. In essence, this is what Nexus aims to achieve and we can only hope to work with Vintres again for mutual gain!

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Enjoy Your Semester Abroad! Success with Your Next Academic Semester! Good Luck in Your Post-Graduate Adventures! Best Wishes to All Nexus Members and LLB students past and present!

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

On behalf of The Nexus Magazine we would like to thank the Authors, Irina Muoz, Renata Landolt, and Aleks Semerciyan. It is also the duty of The Nexus Magazine to extend our gratitude to the interviewees, Fritz Samuel Bhm, and Patricia Agoncillo. Also, our special thanks go to all our friends who contributed their time, energy, and creativity to put together this years Nexus Flashback. The editorial team also acknowledges the contribution of its members, as well as other Nexus Members who contributed to the completion of this edition during their finals and through their summer vacations. The Nexus Magazine

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