At the National Biannual Criminology Conference "Prevention and (In)Jus-
tice”, held on 5 October
2023 at the Faculty of Law, University of Ljubljana, we celebrated the 90th birthday of Dr Alenka
Šelih, academician, professor emer- ita, and long-time director and researcher at the
Institute of Criminology at the Faculty of Law in Ljubljana. To celebrate this significant occasion,
we inau- gurated "Alenka
Šelih Lectures”, which
were delivered by academician Profes- sor Dr Frieder Dünkel from the
University of Greifswald, along with Justice Mag Renate Winter, who served as a
judge of several international criminal courts. The paper highlights Acad. Alenka Šelih’s efforts to champion the cause of
scientific reasoning over the loud voices of influencers and opinion lead- ers,
and the like. Far too often these latter individuals are silent whisperers to
public sentiment and legislators while scientifically grounded voices remain
overheard. The paper draws attention to the efforts of Acad. Alenka Šelih to
join the forces of researchers from Central and Eastern Europe in having their
own voice in the international scientific fora. The paper places her interna-
tional engagements at the forefront of her achievements since her expertise in crime policy, criminal
law and the broader field of criminology, as well as her
excellent knowledge of several foreign languages, led to her first appearances
abroad in the 1970s and left a remarkable legacy on the development of juve-
nile justice within the framework of the Council of Europe and the UN.
Key words: Alenka Šelih,
Faculty of Law, University of Ljubljana, criminal
law, "to have your own voice”, National Criminology Conference,
celebration.