Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the United States and Permanent Representative to the Organization of American States, Sir Ronald Sanders, will be the opening speaker at the United Nations launch of the Report of the Independent International Panel on Arbitrary Detention in State-to-State Relations, at UN Headquarters, New York, on Tuesday, 28 October 2025.
The event, held during International Law Week is co-hosted by Antigua and Barbuda and Canada, with Australia, Denmark, Germany, and the Netherlands as co-sponsors.
The Panel’s Report is the first comprehensive legal study of arbitrary detention in state-to-state relations—the seizure of foreign nationals by a State to pressure another State. The practice violates international law, erodes trust between States. The Report sets out legal analysis and concrete recommendations to strengthen prevention, protection, and accountability.
Sir Ronald Sanders will underscore Antigua and Barbuda’s early endorsement of the _Declaration Against Arbitrary Detention in State-to-State Relations_ and the particular vulnerabilities of small states with limited consular networks. He will emphasize that “the seizure of people to bend the will of States is not diplomacy; it is coercion in daylight.”
Other contributors include Dr. Marja Lehto, Vice-Chair of the Panel; Dr. Jean-Michel Arrighi, Secretary for Legal Affairs, Organization of American States; Dr. Elina Šteinerte, Vice Chair of NPMs, UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture; and Dr. Alice Jill Edwards, UN Special Rapporteur on Torture.
The event will be streamed live on UN WebTV: