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A bi-weekly audio series and podcast service, hosted by Committee on Conscience Project Director Bridget Conley-Zilkic, that brings you the voices of human rights defenders, experts, advocates, and government officials. Vital voices addressing one of humanity's most vital issues. The opinions expressed in these interviews do not necessarily represent those of the Museum.
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5/03/07
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 Acting on a request by the Chief Prosecutor, a judge of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague has issued arrest warrants for two Sudanese -- a high-ranking government official who handled the "Darfur Security Desk" in the Interior Ministry in 2003-2004 and a top Janjaweed leader. They are charged with crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur.
Theoretically, the Sudanese government is required to arrest and hand over the two by virtue of UN Security Council Resolution 1593. Uh, right. Not surprisingly, Khartoum wasted no time in shooting the bird at the ICC, or whatever the Sudanese equivalent of that gesture is. The Justice Minister told the Associated Press:Our position is very, very clear: The ICC cannot assume any jurisdiction to judge any Sudanese outside the country. . . . Whatever the ICC does is totally unrealistic, illegal and repugnant to any form of international law. So the Security Council could take some coercive action -- sanctions or the like -- to pressure Khartoum to cooperate. Sound unlikely? If so, it will be up to the 104 members of the ICC itself, which includes 38 European nations and 29 African ones, to make Khartoum feel some heat. If Khartoum succeeds in defying the ICC, on the other hand, it will affirm impunity and seriously undermine the ICC's legitimacy.
(Photo © abardwell.)
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3/29/07
3/08/07
2/27/07
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ICC Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo named two suspects for crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur, asking the Court to issue arrest warrants for Ahmed Muhammed Harun and Ali Mohammed Ali Abd-al-Rahman (aka Ali Kushayb). Ali Kushayb is a leader of the so-called janjaweed militia from West Darfur. But Harun is the bigger fish -- in 2003-2004 he was minister of state at the Interior Ministry with responsibility for the "Darfur Security Desk." By naming Ahmed Harun, Moreno-Ocampo has identified a figure who is senior enough to implicate the Sudanese government at a policymaking level, but not so senior as to suggest that the chain of responsibility ends with him. And though the case presented today focuses on attacks against a few specified villages, those attacks are placed in the context of a broader strategy of human destruction: As is described below the Armed Forces and Militia/Janjaweed did not target any rebel presence within these particular towns and villages. Rather, they attacked these towns and villages based on the rationale that the tens of thousands of civilian residents in and near these towns and villages were supporters of the rebel militia. This strategy became the justification for the mass murder, summary execution, and mass rape of civilians who were known not to be participants in any armed conflict. Application of the strategy also called for, and achieved the forced displacement of entire villages and communities. The immediate next step will be for a three judge panel to review the evidence and, if they are persuaded a reasonable case has been made, issue the requested arrest warrants (or summon the defendants to appear). Then responsibility will shift to the UN Security Council as well as the 104 members of the ICC (including all European countries and many African ones) to pressure Khartoum to surrender the suspects. And that will be a pivotal moment for the ICC -- if its member countries do not have the political will to enforce these arrest warrants, the institution may be doomed to oblivion in spite of the chief prosecutor's best efforts.
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2/26/07
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On Tuesday, ICC Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo will submit evidence to the court on individuals he believes should be charged with crimes against humanity and war crimes relating to Darfur. He will brief the press beginning 2 pm Hague time, which I believe is 8 am in the eastern United States. The briefing will be webcast. What to look for: How far up the Sudanese government chain of command does his evidence go? Keep in mind that his investigation has been undertaken with no access to Darfur and very limited access (last I heard, 2 interviews) in Khartoum.
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2/22/07
12/21/06
12/18/06
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The one cloud on Khartoum's horizon, and it may be a haboob, is the investigation by the International Criminal Court. Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo informed the UN Security Council last week that he was planning to present evidence to the court by February. I talked to him on Monday and we will be posting the interview this Thursday. He obviously could not go into too much detail, but he made it sound as though he has been able to gather evidence of "the system" responsible for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Darfur in 2003-2004. I took this to mean that the individuals he will go after -- i.e., those most responsible for serious crimes -- will not be low level functionaries. He also will continue investigating crimes committed since 2004 and believes that he has jurisdiction as well over crimes committed on the territory of Chad and the Central African Republic, both of which are parties to the ICC statute. (Chad is actually the newest party, with its membership becoming effective on January 1.)
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11/25/06
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 On Thursday (Thanksgiving in America), Luis Moreno Ocampo (pictured), chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), updated ICC member nations on the status of his investigations, which include Darfur. Money quote: In relation to our work in Darfur, I would like to inform you that my Office is completing the investigation necessary to support the first application naming individuals and alleged crimes. We selected the incidents during the period in which the gravest crimes occurred. Based on the evidence collected we identified those most responsible for these crimes. Translation: he's "close" to requesting arrest warrants for "those most responsible" for crimes in Darfur. And here's the fact that might cause the most nervousness in Khartoum -- if Moreno Ocampo follows the practice of the Yugoslav tribunal, he can request that the arrest warrants be sealed, so even their existence is secret until they are executed. That means that if top Sudanese government officials travel abroad, especially to western Europe, they have to worry that the sudden knock at the door of their posh hotel room isn't room service . . .
Update: This morning's Independent in London reports on recent visits to the UK by the notorious Sudanese intelligence chief, Salah "Gosh," for "medical treatment." He perhaps should stock up on his prescriptions -- remember that ex-Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet was arrested in a London clinic while recovering from back surgery.
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11/15/06
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 Earlier this week I raised some questions about the proceedings in the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga, such as why he was only charged with recruiting child soldiers and why he is so far the only individual charged by the ICC despite the enormity of the situation in DR Congo. In an interview with the UN Mission in Congo (MONUC), ICC Deputy Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda addressed these and other questions. On the limited charges brought so far: This crime of enlisting and conscripting children in my opinion is very important and for a long time it has not received the recognition that it deserves. This is the first time that the ICC is bringing charges based solely on this particular type of crime. And we hope that by doing so we will build international consensus to emphasize that it should not go unpunished. . . .
In addition to that, at the time that we sought the arrest of Thomas Lubanga Dyilo from the DRC, the office of the prosecutor had sufficient evidence only to prove this particular charge. And because Thomas Lubanga Dyilo was under arrest and his release was imminent, we had to act with urgency; that is why we brought this charge alone. However, this does not mean that even after this initial case, we will not bring other charges for other crimes against Lubanga. (Photo of Thomas Lubanga © IRIN)
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11/09/06
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The United States government has long opposed the International Criminal Court (ICC) for fear that it would target U.S. officials. President Clinton ultimately authorized signature of the ICC treaty, but said he wouldn't submit it for ratification to the Senate because of concerns about its provisions. President Bush subsequently repudiated the U.S. signature. A key Bush Administration opponent of the ICC has been soon-to-be ex-UN Ambassador John Bolton. Lately U.S. opposition seems to have lessened. The U.S. abstained when the Security Council voted in March 2005 to refer the Darfur situation to the ICC. Is this a new acceptance of the court? Or does it reflect a feeling that the court is not likely to amount to much anyway?
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11/09/06
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 The Hague-based International Criminal Court is moving forward on its first case: charges involving the use of child soldiers against a Congolese warlord named Thomas Lubanga. Lubanga is the first -- and so far only -- defendant in custody at the ICC. His case raises a couple of issues. First, he is charged with using child soldiers; but most believe he is guilty of so much more than that. Second, however bad he may be, he is only one player in an enormous catastrophe involving many, many crimes of international concern. Will he be charged with more crimes? Will there be other indictments and trials? And, if so, when? I discussed some of these issues recently with Human Rights Watch's Anneke van Woudenberg.
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