University of Canterbury Library

🛠We're getting a new lift in Macmillan Brown Library 😀but that means our old lift will be out of action from Monday 22 June. Access to MB Library and Level 2 of Te Ao Mārama will be via stairs only until the end of July. 😞 If this impacts you, please contact us as we will find other ways to help you access Library resources. Also, expect some construction noise in the Library 🛠 (we have free ear plugs!🎧)

Thanks Christchurch Archaeology Project for highlighting one of our architectural drawings collections!

Archives for Justice - Collection Highlight 2: Harold Evans papers.

Harold Evans was a Christchurch district court judge who served as deputy to Justice Northcroft during the Tokyo War Crimes Trials. On his visit to Japan to attend the trials, Evans saw the destruction caused by nuclear weapons and the effect it had on the Japanese people. This experienced would help shape his antinuclear stance.
An 100-page open letter from Evans to the Prime Ministers of Australia and New Zealand in 1986 was the Christchurch root for the eventual global movement “The World Court Project.” The purpose of the project was to get the International Court of Justice (World Court) to give an advisory opinion on the legality or otherwise of nuclear weaponry in international law. The project campaign garnered the support of many international organisations, worldwide 4 million people signed declarations of public conscience against nuclear weapons. In 1996 the World Court would finally give the opinion that use of nuclear weapons is generally illegal and that states are obligated to conclude negotiations leading to nuclear disarmament.
The Harold Evans papers, in the Macmillan Brown Library Archives, contain a range of material relating to the Tokyo War Crimes Trials and The World Court Project including the many open letters he wrote to garner support for the antinuclear cause. Visit kohika.canterbury.ac.nz, search FD28 and then “browse this collection” to view the materials that we hold.
Image credits: MB1559, ref 62195. MB373, ref. 37398.

: Rights, Memory & Future.
Collection Highlight 1: IMTFE Tokyo War Crimes Collection.
The International Military Tribunal for the Far East (IMTFE), most commonly known as the Tokyo War Crimes Trial (29 April 1946 to 12 November 1948), was one of the most important trials of the twentieth century. The IMTFE was charged with bringing the highest levels of Japanese war criminals to trial following World War Two.
In 1949, New Zealand Representative on the Tribunal, Justice Northcroft (image 2) kindly donated his nearly complete set of trial documents to the University of Canterbury. This collection is now one of the most complete sets of IMTFE documents in the world. It contains almost 380 volumes and nearly 110,000 pages. Evidence can be found therein for examinations of virtually any topic regarding Asia in the first half of the twentieth century.
The collection has been inscribed on the UNESCO Memory of the World Asia Pacific documentary heritage register, which highlights significant documentary heritage in the Asia Pacific region.
https://unescomow.nz/inscription/tokyo-war-crimes
Image credits: 1. Judges of the Tribunal: MB1549, ref. 25982, Justice Northcroft: MB1549, ref. 25979. International Council on Archives - ICA

The 8th -12th of June is International Archives Week and the theme for 2026 is ForJustice: Rights, Memory & Futures. This reflects the fact that “archives are not passive storage spaces. They help shape accountability, preserve memory, support rights, and influence the futures we build” (International Council on Archives).

The Macmillan Brown Library Archives hold many collections which resonate with the theme of justice as it is relevant to New Zealand and the Pacific and we will be highlighting some of these this week. To explore what we hold and request items, visit: https://kohika.canterbury.ac.nz/ International Council on Archives - ICA