UK Woomera Manual launch
On 12 March, RUMLAE Director Professor Dale Stephens CSM FAAL attended a launch event for the Woomera Manual (Oxford University Press, 2024) at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) located in central London.
The event was jointly coordinated by The University of Adelaide and the University of Exeter, two of the four academic institutions that led the research and drafting of the Manual - along with The University of Nebraska and UNSW – Canberra. The launch took the form of a panel discussion regarding the Manual, its origins, its methodology and its content. Participating on the Panel was Co-editor of the Manual, Prof Dale Stephens, as well as core experts of the project, namely Prof Kubo Mačák (University of Exeter – who served as the moderator for the discussion), Dr Heather Harrison-Dinniss (Swedish Defence University), Wing Commander Kieran Tinkler (Royal Air Force) as well as independent International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) representative, Dr Wen Zhou. The event was expertly chaired by University of Exeter Prof Frances Tammer.
Pictured (from left to right): Wing Commander Kieran Tinkler, Dr Heather Harrison Dinniss, Prof Dale Stephens, Dr Wen Zhou, Professor Kubo Mačák and Professor Frances Tammer.
There was a full audience at RUSI, including a number of Adelaide Law School alumni located in the UK; members of Government, the military and academic institutions; OUP representatives; and the regional director of the Office of Agent General of South Australia (UK & Europe), Mr Stephen Camporeale. During the Q & A, there was energetic discussion on numerous issues regarding the choice of topics and the manner of verification of content, the State consultation process that was facilitated by the Netherlands Govt in The Hague, the intersection between space law and IHL/Use of Force, and consideration of topics not included in the Manual and the reason for such non-inclusion.
The event was also highlighted in a recent University of Exeter post celebrating the launch. This UK launch followed similar launches in Canberra, Washington DC and New York in late 2024. The Manual continues to be popular and has already been re-printed by the publisher after the original print run sold out.
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