Moragoda International Law Trust donates law book to KDU

Saturday, 26 July 2014 04:46 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

A presentation to the General Sir John Kotelawela Defense University of 26 cartons of valuable books, on numerous aspects of International Law was made by Milinda Moragoda, on behalf of his father Dr. Moragodage Christopher Walter Pinto recently. These books constituted a part of his extensive personal library. Earlier, he had gifted a part to the Faculty of Law, University of Colombo. Representing the Trust member of the Advisory Committee Milinda Moragoda handed over the book to the Vice Chancellor Major General Milinda Peiris at the function held at Senate Hall with the participation of Directors, Administrative Heads and Academic Staff Members of the Faculty of Law. Dr. Pinto has set up a trust by the name of the Moragoda International Law Trust which has sponsored the Moragoda

Endowment professorship in international law at the General Sir John Kotelawela Defense University. The first professorial session will be conducted later this year at the University by Professor Tony Gill, Professor of Military Law, University of Amsterdam and the Netherlands Defense Academy and the Associate professor of public international law at Utrecht University. This series of lectures will be continued in the future. The gift of International Law books is part of Dr. Pinto’s support to the Defense University in building a world class department of international law. Dr. Pinto obtained his LLB degree from the then University of Ceylon (Peradeniya). Thereafter he read International law at Magdalene College Cambridge. He is an Attorney at law and a Barrister of the Inner Temple England. During a distinguished career, he had served as a legal officer both at the International Atomic Energy Agency Vienna and at the World Bank. He then headed the Legal division of the Ministry of External Affairs Sri Lanka and was thereafter appointed as Sri Lanka’s ambassador to the Federal Republic of Germany and the Republic of Austria. He represented Sri Lanka at the UN Sea-bed committee to the third UN conference on the Law of the sea and acted as Chairman of the delegation during the period 1980 – 1981. He was accorded the signal honour of being appointed as chairman of the conference’s negotiating group of the whole on the International regime for the sea bed beyond national jurisdiction. He is an acknowledged expert on the law of the sea. Dr. Pinto was elected by the vote of the countries represented at the UN as a member of the prestigious International Law Commission. Later, he was appointed as the Chairman of the Commission, a signal distinction. Thereafter, he was appointed as the Secretary General of the Iran – US Claims Tribunal, another very complex and sensitive assignment. He discharged his responsibilities with distinction from 1982 – 2011. Dr. Pinto has also presided at difficult and complicated arbitrations – for example on a maritime issue between Singapore and Malaysia. Currently he is arbitrating over a dispute in regard to fishing between Denmark and the European Union. He has assisted the government of Sri Lanka on many important issues, notably on the Kachchativu dispute with India and issues in regard to the continental shelf in relation to the law of the sea. Representing the Moragoda International Law Trust member of the Advisory Committee Milinda Moragoda handed over the book to the Vice Chancellor Major General Milinda Peiris. M.D.D. Pieris, Bernad Goonetilleke, Nandana Devage, Brigadier L.D.M. Gunasekara Deputy vice Chancellor Defence and Administration, Susirith Mendis, Deputy Vice Chancellor Academic - Professor, Dr. Prathiba Mahanamahewa Dean Faculty Of Law, directors, administrative heads and academic staff members of the Faculty of Law also participated at the event.