Bachelor Student Prize Winner

Eighteen students completed their bachelor's degree in 2021 with a thesis that was labelled ‘excellent’ by their faculty. Here you will find a short introduction to these excellent theses in the form of an "elevator pitch" from each student, plus a video in which the supervisor briefly addresses the lucky winner.

Mark Steijns

  Faculty of Law | Bachelor Dutch Law

"De Papieren Tijger van het Bezettingsrecht. Een onderzoek naar de praktische naleving van artikel 43 Landoorlogreglement tijdens bezettingen in het verleden, het heden en de toekomst."

Mark's elevator pitch
“Is a 100-year-old treaty still sufficient to prevent military occupation forces from disregarding rules of law?” To shield civilians against the violence and destruction of armed conflicts, world leaders of 1907 agreed to the Hague Regulations Respecting the Laws and Customs of War on Land. A treaty on waging war. One of the provisions in this treaty is article 43, which prohibits an occupying power from altering the legislation of the occupied nation. However, research indicates that military occupations and rules of law do not merge well. Important examples are Nazi Germany as the occupying force of the Netherlands in 1940 and the United States during the occupation of Iraq in 2003. Both subjected their occupied territories to substantial illegal reforms. But, if article 43 cannot provide sufficient protection, why do we still rely on this 100-year-old provision and – more importantly – is it possible to increase its effectiveness?