Call for Papers: Asian Yearbook of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law (Brill Nijhoff) Vol. 11 Symposium on The Global Arms Race and Armed Conflict - Human Rights Beyond the Battlefield

The Editors of the Asian Yearbook of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, published by Brill Nijhoff, invite submissions to an online symposium on 'The Global Arms Race and Armed Conflict: Human Rights Beyond the Battlefield', to be held on Friday, 27 November 2026. The event has been made possible in partnership with Hasselt University.

Amid rising military expenditure and renewed geopolitical rivalry, the call notes that the global arms race raises concerns about the diversion of resources away from the realisation of socio-economic rights. At the same time, contemporary armed conflicts increasingly undermine the enjoyment of human rights beyond the battlefield by disrupting access to food, energy, medicines and other essential goods and services. The symposium seeks to explore these broader human rights implications of militarization and warfare in an increasingly interconnected world.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:

• Military expenditure, socio-economic rights and the right to development
• Food security, energy security, public health and access to essential goods beyond the battlefield
• Economic disruption, blockades, sanctions and other indirect or transboundary human rights consequences of armed conflict
• Legal, policy and institutional responses to the human rights consequences of militarization and armed conflict

The Editors encourage submissions from scholars and practitioners from diverse disciplines and geographical regions. The call sets no restriction by nationality, institution or career stage, so researchers, academics and practitioners based in India may submit on the same footing as anyone else.

Abstracts of no more than 250 words together with a bio of 100 words must be submitted by 15 September 2026 to the General Editor of the Yearbook, Prof. Dr. Matthias Vanhullebusch, at matthias.vanhullebusch@uhasselt.be. The call does not prescribe a separate form; submission is by email.

Selected papers of 8,000 to 15,000 words will be considered for publication in a special issue in Volume 11 of the Yearbook. The deadline for full papers is 31 January 2027.

The Asian Yearbook of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law (ISSN 2452-0578) is published with Brill Nijhoff as an independent, peer-reviewed publication that adds an Asian perspective to global human rights and humanitarian scholarship. Per the publisher's call, it is indexed in Scopus, HeinOnline, ProQuest, WorldCat and VABB-SHW.

The symposium is held online on 27 November 2026. The call states no registration, submission or publication fee.