The Olympia World Affairs Council is offering another in their series of informative programs on Thursday, September 17. Takao Inukai, Professor, College of Foreign Studies, Reitaku University, Japan will speak on “The Japanese Election”.

For only the second time in postwar history Japan’s voters rejected the ruling Liberal Democratic Party on August 30 in a landslide victory for the opposition Democrats, resulting in considerable speculation about the possible effects on the relationship between the U.S. and Japan. We are fortunate in having as our opening speaker for the 2009 – 2010 year Takao Inukai, who has the background and expertise to address this topic. For the current academic year he is a Visiting Researcher at St. Martin’s University, which is co-sponsoring this event.

Thursday, September 17
7:30 PM
Olympia Center, Room 101
222 Columbia St NW, Olympia

Free and open to the public.

Upcoming Topics:

October 15, 2009 Professor Peter Dorman, Evergreen State College, will discuss the subject of International Child Labor.

November 19, 2009 Julie Boltz , of the American Friendship Foundation, will speak about her experiences in Building Schools in Afghanistan.

December 10, 2009 Retired Justice Robert Utter and Betty Utter will inform us about The Rural Development Institute and The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.

January 21, 2010 Professor David Price, St. Martins University, will discuss Anthropology, Intelligence & War.

For more information on the Olympia World Affairs Council, visit their web site at http://www.olympiawac.org/

The Olympia World Affairs Council speaker’s series continues on Thursday, May 21st with Jack F. Nevin, District Court Judge and Chief Judge U.S. Army Court of Criminal Appeals.

Thursday, May 21
7:30 PM
Olympia Center, Room 101

TOPIC: “Dictatorship to Democracy”

Jack Nevin has helped emerging democracies throughout the world create effective justice systems to sustain and support a representative form of government. He has worked in this capacity in such diverse regions as the former Soviet Union, Kosovo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, El Salvador and Argentina. His background in the US Army as a Brigadier General and his legal experience as Chief Judge of the US Army Court of Criminal Appeals has well prepared him for this demanding role.

He is currently a District Court Judge in Tacoma, Washington, but his responsibilities are amazing in their breadth. Judge Nevin has lectured on human rights in the African country of Malawi, has served as Presiding Judge for the Detention Review Commission in Kosovo and has helped the government of El Salvador in establishing the first victim assistance program. More recently he has focused his effort in the areas of post-conflict governance. He has been involved in judicial training and the development of a new criminal code in Bosnia-Herzegovina and the former Soviet Union; he has lectured in Argentina on the development of public disclosure legislation; and most recently he has contributed to a long-term project on reconstruction of the Iraqi court system.

Prior to his appointment to the Washington State bench, Judge Nevin’s practice focused on prosecution of organized criminal groups, including investigation of public corruption. In 2002 he was chosen Washington State Judge of the Year by the Washington State Trial Lawyers Association.

Judge Nevin has taught on the undergraduate and graduate level for twenty-four years. He currently serves as an Adjunct Professor of Trial Advocacy at the Seattle University School of Law. He is a graduate of Washington State University and holds both MBA and JD degrees from Gonzaga University.

The Olympia World Affairs Council is non-profit and non-partisan, dedicated to providing a forum for many world voices and person-to-person discussions. It does not endorse positions or take specific stands on issues. For more information, see their web site at http://www.olympiawac.org/