Party Week

One of the privileges of the PRIO Director is to get invited to interesting events and interesting places. This week has been a particularly hectic week on the social front.

On Monday night, I went to Bergen to attend the CMI annual lecture. Albie Sachs (pictured left), lawyer, ANC activist, and for 15 years the head of the Constitutional Court of South Africa, gave a magnificent lecture – a rare manifestation of the lived experience of reflecting on law and society, and the bearing of responsibility for decisions with profound implications in people’s lives. I also got to see CMI’s new, wonderful premises at the University Campus, talk to a number of old friends there, listen to Gunnar Sørbø’s goodbye speech as director, and to discuss common concerns with the new director, Ottar Mæstad (who takes over on 1 April). I am certain that the close CMI-PRIO collaboration – on research, information and administration – will continue and gain further strength.

The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters invited to its annul lecture in the social sciences and the humanities on Tuesday night. This year’s lecture was given by Yash Ghai, a constitutional scholar who has been engaged as an adviser in a number of constitution-making processes, including the one in post-2001 Afghanistan. Ghai gave an interesting exposition of his thinking about the role – and the limits – of constitution-making. Constitutions in and of themselves can do little, concluded Ghai, placing his hope for political change in strong civil society movements, the successes of which could be codified by the lawmakers. The Academy presented an interesting lecture, an interesting audience to hang out with, and a very good meal.

Friday is the day when the Institute for Social Research (ISF) celebrates its 60th Anniversary. (This means, unfortunately, that I shall miss going to Trondheim to celebrate Ragnhild’s viva at NTNU, but I am confident that she will entertain a strong PRIO group.) PRIO is the only true offspring of ISF, and not only do we need to be there, but I have also been able to penetrate a heavy fortification against speeches, precisely with the argument of child celebrating mother: I have been allowed a short greeting. ISF is where PRIO was born, some 51 years back, and it is also an institute with which we have much in common today – as academically oriented institutes with a strong engagement in policy and public debate. More than that, ISF gets to appoint one of the members of the PRIO board (currently Jan Paul Brekke), and in addition we are privileged with having another ISF-representative, chair Bernt Aardal, filling one of the RCN appointed seats. We enjoyed the hospitality and help of ISF when celebrating our anniversary last year. Tomorrow, a short booklet on ISF’s early decades will be presented, from which I expect to learn even more about PRIO’s childhood.