The conference is hosted by the United Nations (UN) and as a result the campus (or "Blue Zone") is now classified as UN territory, falling under the jurisdiction of international law. The UN is ultimately in charge of security in the Blue Zone (with UN officers patrolling the event) and our usual local laws are temporarily displaced by international law. The delegates and officials taking part in the conference will have "diplomatic immunity" protecting their freedom of expression. The Blue Zone only extends to the conference campus itself and beyond that the "Green Zone" falls under the usual domestic laws and policing.

While the thought of part of our country being governed by international law may seem quite strange, it is in fact something that we, as Scottish family lawyers, actually deal with daily when it comes to matters of child abduction and the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspect of Child Abduction (known as the "Hague Convention"). As a signatory the Hague Convention our courts adhere to the internationally agreed rules and implement returning children who have been removed from their country of habitual residence where their country of origin is signatory to the convention. As a team we are regularly involved in applications under the Hague Convention, and we operate under the international rules of the convention.

Diplomatic immunity does only extend to a very small and specific square footage and once delegates cross into the Green zone they are back in the west where local domestic law applies. Any extended discussions or actions beyond the boundary of the Blue Zone fall under our usual laws and restrictions. Time will tell and perhaps for some, the grass isn't always greener in the Greenzone.