War Crimes Prosecution Watch is a bi-weekly e-newsletter that compiles official documents and articles from major news sources detailing and analyzing salient issues pertaining to the investigation and prosecution of war crimes throughout the world. To subscribe, please email warcrimeswatch@pilpg.org and type "subscribe" in the subject line.
East Timor Reception, Truth and Reconciliation Commission (CAVR)
Official Website of the East Timor Reception, Truth and Reconciliation Commission (CAVR)
Indonesia top court doubles Timor militiaman's term
Reuters
March 13, 2006
JAKARTA, March 13 (Reuters) - Indonesia's Supreme Court on Monday doubled to 10 years the punishment for a leader of pro-Jakarta militia that went on a rampage in the period surrounding East Timor's 1999 freedom vote.
The verdict was similar to the sentence Eurico Guterres, who is ethnically East Timorese, was given by a district-level court in November 2002. However, an appellate court had halved that to five years in 2004.
After the appellate court's 2004 decision, the prosecution and Guterres, who has denied any wrongdoing, appealed to the Supreme Court, which chose to back the district court's ruling.
"The appellate court's ruling did not match the general feeling of justice. It was far below the minimum sentencing" for human rights abuse cases, Supreme Court judge Masyhur Effendi told reporters.
Effendi is a member of the five-judge panel that handled the case against Guterres, who led the notorious Aitarak militia gang.
Local militia gangs backed by Indonesian army elements were blamed for much of the carnage before and after East Timor voted in August 1999 to end 24 years of rule by Jakarta. The United Nations estimates about 1,000 people were killed in the 1999 violence.
The Supreme Court decision means Guterres, currently a politician on the Indonesian side of Timor island, becomes the only person of the 18 men indicted by Jakarta prosecutors over the 1999 Timor violence whose legal proceedings have ended with a conviction from Indonesia's highest judicial body.
Guterres, himself, has yet to serve any time for the conviction on East Timor violence. It is unclear whether or when he will start after the latest ruling but his lawyer said a judicial plea against the decision would be filed soon.
Under Indonesian laws, a convicted party can challenge a Supreme Court ruling if the individual can present strong new evidence.
Although some of the 17 other defendants of the 1999 events received sentences at certain court stages, all were eventually acquitted by the appellate court or Indonesia's Supreme Court.
All of the 17 were Indonesian security officers or government officials based in East Timor in 1999.
Their acquittals, which some say were a whitewash of the Indonesian government's involvement in the atrocities, have drawn fire from the West and international human rights groups.
East Timor , once a Portuguese colony, became an independent state in 2002.
Indonesian Court Rejects Guterres' Appeal
Associated Press
March 13, 2006
JAKARTA , Indonesia -- Indonesia's top court has rejected a final appeal by notorious militia leader Eurico Guterres over his role in the 1999 violence in East Timor, meaning he will have to serve out a 10-year sentence, media reports said Monday.
Guterres has been free while his appeal process was being heard. His appeal was rejected, Metro TV and other local broadcast media said, but the reports did not say when.
The Supreme Court's decision means he will now be taken to prison, marking only the second time that that an Indonesian court has punished anyone over the violence that swept East Timor when it voted to break from Jakarta rule in a U.N.-sponsored independence ballot.
Officials from the court, which meets behind closed doors and does not publicly announce its verdicts, were not immediately available for comment.
President of Timor-Leste meets with UN rights chief
UN News Centre
March 15, 2006
Far from encouraging impunity with a policy of forgiveness for past crimes, Timor-Leste is trying to establish conditions for its people build their future, the young country’s President Xanana Gusmão, said today in Geneva after meeting with United Nations High Commissioner for Human rights Louis Arbour.
At a press conference at UN Headquarters there, President Gusmão said that he had met with Ms. Arbour to request aid in the consolidation of democratic values in his country, to help with issues of gender and domestic violence, and to help civil society disseminate human rights values.
He acknowledged that National Commission of Truth and Reconciliation of Timor-Leste did not satisfy everybody, adding that the Commission of Truth and Friendship has been established together with Indonesia to strengthen efforts to heal the wounds of the past.
He said an office of Ombudsman had also been established and while in Geneva he had asked UN agencies to help provide it with training programmes and financial assistance.
Last year, the UN created an independent Commission of Experts to review the prosecution of serious human rights violations committed in 1999 in Timor-Leste, then known as East Timor, after the former Portuguese colony occupied by Indonesia in 1974 voted for independence.
The country achieved its independence in 2002.
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Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia for the Prosecution of Crimes Committed during the Period of Democratic Kampuchea
Annan nominates international judges for Cambodia’s Khmer Rouge trial
UN News Centre
March 8,2006
United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has submitted a list of international judges and other legal experts to Cambodia’s Prime Minister to serve in the trial of former leaders of the Khmer Rouge accused of horrific crimes, including mass killings, during the 1970s, a spokesman for the world body announced today.
In a letter to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen yesterday, Mr. Annan recommends 12 legal experts, including seven nominees for international judges, to serve in the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia for the Prosecution of Crimes Committed During the Period of Democratic Kampuchea.
A 2003 agreement between the UN and Cambodia’s Government provides for a Trial Chamber, composed of three Cambodian judges and two international judges, and a Supreme Court Chamber, composed of four Cambodian judges and three international judges. It also called on the Secretary-General to provide a list of not less than seven nominees.
The agreement provides that these five international judges will be appointed by the Supreme Council of the Magistracy of Cambodia, and in yesterday’s letter Mr. Annan now requested Cambodia’s Prime Minister to transmit his nominations to that Council.
Under an agreement signed by the UN and Cambodia, the trial court and a Supreme Court within the Cambodian legal system will investigate those most responsible for crimes and serious violations of Cambodian and international law between 17 April 1975 and 6 January 1979.
The three-year budget for the trials is about $56.3 million, of which $43 million is to be paid by the UN and $13.3 million by the Government of Cambodia.
At last year’s pledging conference to support the UN assistance to the trials, Mr. Annan said that the crimes committed under the Khmer Rouge rule “were of a character and scale that it was still almost impossible to comprehend,” adding that “the victims of those horrific crimes had waited too long for justice.”
UN and Cambodia sign key agreements ahead of Khmer Rouge trials
UN News Centre
March 14, 2006
The United Nations and Cambodia’s Government today signed agreements putting in place the legal foundations for the administrative set-up and operations of the Extraordinary Chambers to try Khmer Rouge leaders, accused of horrific crimes, including mass killings, during the 1970s.
A UN spokesman said the two agreements established the “last legal instruments needed on the logistics and administrative side before the trials take place.”
“One of the agreements signed today concerns supplementary arrangements on the facilities, utilities and services the Cambodian Government would provide for the premises of those Chambers; the other deals with safety and security arrangements,” Stephane Dujarric told reporters.
Earlier this month, Secretary-General Kofi Annan submitted a list of international judges and other legal experts to Cambodia’s Prime Minister to serve in the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia for the Prosecution of Crimes Committed During the Period of Democratic Kampuchea.
A 2003 agreement between the UN and Cambodia’s Government provides for a Trial Chamber, composed of three Cambodian judges and two international judges, and a Supreme Court Chamber, composed of four Cambodian judges and three international judges. It also called on the Secretary-General to provide a list of not less than seven nominees.
The agreement provides that these five international judges will be appointed by the Supreme Council of the Magistracy of Cambodia, and Mr. Annan also asked Cambodia’s Prime Minister to transmit his nominations to that Council.
Under an agreement signed by the UN and Cambodia, the trial court and a Supreme Court within the Cambodian legal system will investigate those most responsible for crimes and serious violations of Cambodian and international law between 17 April 1975 and 6 January 1979.
The three-year budget for the trials is about $56.3 million, of which $43 million is to be paid by the UN and $13.3 million by the Government of Cambodia.
At last year’s pledging conference to support the UN assistance to the trials, Mr. Annan said that the crimes committed under the Khmer Rouge rule “were of a character and scale that it was still almost impossible to comprehend,” adding that “the victims of those horrific crimes had waited too long for justice.”
Milosevic death a spur for Khmer Rouge trials - U.N.
Reuters
March 14, 2006
The death of Serb leader Slobodan Milosevic during his trial has heightened the need to start the long-delayed trials of aging Khmer Rouge leaders on charges of genocide, United Nations officials said on Tuesday.
"We all know that the possible accused all are aging, so we really have to start the process as soon as we can," Michelle Lee, the U.N.'s deputy director of the court administration preparing the trials.
No date has been set for the trials of the surviving leaders of the Khmer Rouge under whose rule an estimated 1.7 million people were killed or died of forced labor, starvation or disease between 1975 and the end of 1978.
But Halen Jarvis, the tribunal's Australian spokeswoman, said at a ceremony for the signing of an agreement on the logistics of the trials that everyone involved wanted them to start soon.
"Not only for the possible accused, but also the victims and Cambodians who are waiting for justice, everybody needs to move forward quickly," Jarvis said.
"And of course this concern is heightened by the death of Slobodan Milosevic over the weekend," she said.
Two Khmer Rouge leaders have been detained -- Ta Mok, the one-legged Khmer Rouge military chief who is now 78, and Duch, 59, head of the Tuol Sleng interrogation center from which few prisoners emerged alive. Duch's real name is Kang Kek Ieu.
The regime's leader, "Brother Number One" Pol Pot, died in 1998, but others such as "Brother Number Two" Nuon Chea, former head of state Khieu Samphan and former Foreign Minister Ieng Sary are living as free men. All are in their 70s.
On Thursday, U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan sent Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen a list of 12 possibles for the international staff on the landmark joint tribunal, which has a three-year budget of $56.3 million.
Phnom Penh had also submitted its candidates for the court, which will be presided over by three Cambodian and two international judges sitting jointly.
Almost every single Cambodian family lost relatives under the rule of the back to the land Khmer Rouge, who emptied the cities and isolated the country.
None of their leaders has faced justice and critics fear many of them will die before the legal process ends.
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Darfur (ICC)
Official Website of the International Criminal Court
Sudan: UN Security Council Must Act to Ensure UN Deployment
Human Rights Watch Letter to UN Security Council
March 16, 2006
Sudan: Pelosi - 'Darfur Is a Humanitarian Disaster That Challenges the Conscience of the World'
United States Congress
by Nancy Pelosi
March 17, 2006
House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi delivered a major address this morning at the Center for National Policy on the crisis in Darfur. In her speech, "A Challenge to the Conscience of the World: Bringing Security and Hope to Darfur," Pelosi discussed what she believes must be done to address the crisis.
Click the link above to view the prepared text of her speech.
Sudan: UN Refugee Agency Sends Security Team to South Sudan Following Fatal Attack
UN News Service
March 17, 2006
A security and operations team from the United Nations refugee agency is heading to southern Sudan to assess the situation after Wednesday's attack on an agency post in the town of Yei in which a local guard was killed and an Iraqi staff member and a second local guard seriously wounded.
Non-essential UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) staff in Yei are scheduled to travel to Nairobi, Kenya, today for debriefing on the traumatic incident, which High Commissioner António Guterres said underscored the difficulty the agency faces in south Sudan as it tries to create a sustainable environment for returning refugees after two decades of civil war.
Meanwhile the two wounded men have been evacuated by air from southern Sudan's main city of Juba to a Nairobi hospital where they are now in a stable condition, UNHCR spokesman Ron Redmond told a news briefing in Geneva today.
"The UNHCR staff member evacuated - an Iraqi national - was shot three times in the abdomen during the attack and underwent surgery last night after arrival in Nairobi. He had previously undergone surgery in Juba to stabilize his condition before being medevac-ed to Nairobi," he said.
The guard suffered a bullet wound to the leg requiring surgery during the attack by two armed intruders, one of whom was killed while the other was arrested.
Mr. Guterres is sending a team from the agency's Emergency and Security Service to assess the situation on the ground. Separately, Assistant High Commissioner for Operations Judy-Cheng Hopkins and the director of UNHCR's Sudan-Chad operations, Jean-Marie Fakouri, will go to Yei, Mr. Redmond said.
There are 350,000 refugees from South Sudan in neighbouring countries and some 4 million internally displaced people, uprooted by 21 years of civil war between Government and rebel forces that ended in a peace accord in January 2005.
UNHCR, along with other UN agencies and non-governmental organizations, has been working since then to prepare communities to receive returnees, building or rebuilding schools, hospitals, vocational training centres and water points.
Last week the agency launched a $63.2-million supplementary appeal for the operation. So far it has received $8 million. The appeal noted that security remained a concern in many parts of the south because of inter-ethnic tensions and rivalries between various armed groups.
How to Stop a Genocide
Newsweek
by
Fareed Zakaria
March 20, 2006
'Khartoum will try corruption, coercion, force, anything' to derail peace talks on the killing in Darfur, a Sudanese activist warns
There is a glimmer of hope for Darfur, where in the past two years 300,000 people have been killed and 2 million displaced in a genocidal war that has been encouraged and funded by Sudan's government. Last week the African Union declared a six-month extension for its 7,000 troops who are patrolling the region and protecting the camps for the displaced. In September, those soldiers may be placed under U.N. authority, which would mean a larger, better-equipped force.
So why is Mudawi Ibrahim Adam not cheering? It's not out of any sympathy for the Sudanese government, which has jailed him three times in the past 18 months, placed him in solitary confinement, confiscated his passport at one point and continues to maintain absurd criminal charges against him--including one that is punishable by death under Sudanese law. (It's a Kafka-esque case: during one of his prison stays he carried out a hunger strike, and as a result has been charged with attempted suicide.) His persecutors want to scare him into silence. But they have failed. Mudawi continues to be an outspoken advocate of democracy and human rights in Sudan. He heads the Sudan Social Development Organization, a human-rights group that monitors the violence in Darfur and, in particular, has documented Khartoum's role in funding, encouraging and assisting the genocide.
Even so, Mudawi isn't clamoring for military intervention. "Simply putting more troops, or better troops in, is not much of a solution," says Mudawi. "They will have some effect in lessening the violence, but only for a while. Look at what has happened with the African Union peacekeepers. At first they seemed effective, and within a few months they were being ambushed, having their jeeps stolen, and security got much worse." Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick does not dispute that assessment. "The African Union forces have done a tremendous job," he said last week. "But they came in to enforce a ceasefire, and that ceasefire has broken down." The AU's 7,000 peacekeepers--or even 20,000 U.N. troops--can't be expected to control a region larger than France.
The conflict in Darfur arose from a series of political disputes between two groups: the Arabs who make up the government-backed Janjaweed militia versus the region's non-Arab farmers. In 2002, the Janjaweed engaged in particularly bloody massacres, and the non-Arab tribes launched a rebellion against the dictatorship in Khartoum. The government responded by unleashing the Janjaweed, who since then have engaged in mass rapes, killings and lootings. Mudawi holds Khartoum squarely responsible for the atrocities. "The government of Sudan has taken advantage of political divisions... and is perpetrating crimes against humanity," he says. Nevertheless, he adds, there's no choice but to negotiate with the perpetrators: "The solution will have to be a political solution that addresses those divisions and, most important, that includes all the parties in Darfur."
Mudawi holds scant hope for the current peace talks in Abuja, Nigeria. "The parties from Darfur are not really represented," he says. "The Khartoum government is there, but it has no interest in having the talks succeed. Relatively few of the Janjaweed or the other tribes are there. And no one is representing the 2 million people who have been displaced and are living in camps. They have separate but crucial claims that have to be placed on the table." Mudawi wants talks with all major tribes represented. But, he argues, only the presence of a senior American figure at the table can offset the maneuverings of the Sudanese government. " Khartoum will try corruption, coercion, force, anything to derail such talks," he says. "Only international pressure could counteract this."
Peace in Darfur will certainly depend on talks between the groups who live there. Still, Mudawi and others who want an American at the table should recognize that the African Union and the United Nations might be more help. "If we're out there front and center, the bad guys will discredit the whole process by presenting it as 'American imperialism,' another attempt at regime change and a plot to occupy another Muslim country," says a senior administration official, asking to remain anonymous because of the talks' sensitivity. "That will retard our efforts to stop the bloodshed."
Could the people of Darfur really make peace after so much killing? "It happens everywhere," says Mudawi. "In Sudan in particular, we know that we are a country of tribes. We have to live together." After all, he says, decades of civil war in southern Sudan produced peace accords that are working now under the supervision of only a few dozen international monitors. Mudawi's message appears to be getting through at last. He visited the United States last week and got a receptive ear from the administration. On Thursday he met with President Bush, and the president made sure they were photographed together. Bush wanted to boost the Sudanesedissident's international visibility and send a warning to Khartoum. "I got the sense that Darfur is rising on the president's agenda. And I think he understands there needs to be a broader solution," says Mudawi. "I left the meeting with hope." But as he well understands, it will take more than hope. Even doing good requires a plan.
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Uganda (ICC)
Official Website of the International Criminal Court
Ugandan army says LRA rebel boss enters Congo
Reuters
by Daniel Wallis
March 16, 2006
Uganda's army said on Thursday the leader of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) rebels had left a south Sudanese hideout and joined his deputy in the jungles of neighbouring Congo. Uganda's military spokesman Major Felix Kulayigye said intelligence reports that LRA leader Joseph Kony, wanted internationally for war crimes, had entered the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on Tuesday partly prompted an extra deployment of troops along the Congolese border.
"We have stepped up security and we are on high alert, although Kony and his men are weakened," he said. "We don't want to take chances. We have to ensure our people are safe." On Tuesday, the military said it was increasing border surveillance because of fresh fears that other anti-Ugandan rebels in Congo might slip into the country and launch attacks.
Uganda has long accused Congo of being a safe haven for rebels seeking to destabilise it and has twice joined Rwanda to invade the huge country with the stated aim of flushing out rebel bases in its eastern forests.
Both Kony, a self-proclaimed mystic, and LRA deputy commander Vincent Otti are wanted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court in The Hague.
But they have remained elusive throughout their 20-year rebellion, mostly hiding out in their bases in lawless southern Sudan.
Last year, Otti led a heavily-armed group of LRA fighters into northeastern Congo's Garamba National Park from Sudan. A failed U.N. mission to catch him there in January claimed the lives of eight Guatemalan commandos.
Staging raids into northern Uganda, LRA fighters have massacred civilians, cut off the lips of survivors and abducted at least 25,000 children to serve as fighters and "wives". The U.N. estimates that some 1.6 million people have been uprooted by the war.
The U.N. and Congolese government have turned down many offers by Uganda's military to pursue the LRA over the border.
Uganda's army said it was giving intelligence to Kinshasa.
"Since we are not allowed to cross over and hunt them down, we have alerted DRC authorities to find them and annihilate them wherever they may be hiding," Kulayigye said.
Uganda: Kony Joins Otti
AllAfrica.com: New Vision (Kampala)
by
F. Ahimbisibwe
March 16, 2006
THE Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) chief, Joseph Kony, has joined his deputy Vincent Otti in the Garamba National Park in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Kony left his hideout in southern Sudan on Tuesday with over 70 soldiers, according to the army sources. Army spokesman Major Felix Kulayigye yesterday said the army had confirmed that Kony had crossed, prompting the UPDF to reinforce deployment at Uganda's border with the DRC.
"We have stepped up security and we are on high alert although Kony and his men are weakened. We do not want to take chances. We have to ensure that our people at the border are safe," he said.
Kulayigye said they had alerted the DRC authorities and the United Nations to disarm or arrest the rebels.
"Since we are not allowed to cross over and hunt them down, we have alerted DRC authorities to find them and annihilate them wherever they may be hiding," he said.
In September last year, Otti crossed into the DRC with 150 fighters, leaving their women and children in Sudan with Kony and commander Odhiambo.
Sources yesterday said Kony had also left his children and women in southern Sudan.
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Iraqi High Tribunal
Official Website of the Iraqi High Tribunal
Grotian Moment: The Saddam Hussein Trial Blog
Three defendants take stand at Hussein trial
CNN
Associated Press
March 12, 2006
The trial of Saddam Hussein entered a new phase Sunday as three of the defendants testified for the first time, denying under the judge's questioning that they had any role in the killings and arrests of Shiite Muslims in the 1980s.
All eight defendants are to be brought before the court, one by one, for direct questioning -- and Hussein was expected to go last, possibly Monday, though it was up to chief judge Raouf Abdel-Rahman to decide when to call him.
Hussein and the other defendants have spoken up often during the six-month trial, casting doubt on witness testimony or making speeches. But now the judge and prosecutor can pose direct questions at them for the first time.
That means the court will have the chance to try to draw the former Iraqi leader out on the crux of the trial: How much he knew of and directed the crackdown in the Shiite town of Dujail, launched in the wake of a 1982 assassination attempt against him.
Hussein and seven former members of his regime are on trial for the deaths of 148 Shiites in the crackdown, as well as illegal imprisonment and torture of Dujail residents. They face possible execution by hanging if convicted.
In the last session, on March 1, Hussein stood and boldly confessed that he sent the 148 Shiites to trial before his Revolutionary Court, which eventually sentenced them to death. But he insisted it was his right to do so, since they were suspected of trying to kill him.
The prosecution has argued that the Revolutionary Court trial was "imaginary" and that the defendants didn't even appear before the court. They say the crackdown was punitive against Dujail's civilian population, with entire families -- including young children -- arrested, with men and women tortured in Hussein's prisons.
On Sunday, three of the lower-level defendants in the case stood before the chief judge and testified. Hussein and the other three defendants did not appear during the session.
Mizher Ruwaid, his father Abdullah Ruwaid and Ali Dayem Ali were local Dujail officials in Hussein's ruling Baath Party, accused of being informants -- directing the feared Mukharbat intelligence agency to Dujail residents, some of whom were later killed.
Under questioning from Abdel-Rahman and the chief prosecutor, each denied playing any role in the crackdown. Mizher Ruwaid appeared nervous, swearing to God he was innocent, while his father Abdullah joked with the judge, occasionally bringing a smile to Abdel-Rahman's face.
"I have never detained people. I cannot even harm an insect," the elder Ruwaid said. "I will say the truth even it takes me to the gallows."
"God willing there will be no gallows," Abdel-Rahman responded.
Abdullah Ruwaid admitted to being a member of Hussein's former ruling Baath Party, but said he was demoted in its ranks. "Although I was in the party for a long time I suffered a lot. Hardly a month passed with me getting punished or a warning," he said.
The judge pressed the younger Ruwaid about handwritten letters prosecutors presented, allegedly from him informing to police on Dujail families in the wake of the shooting.
Mizher Ruwaid denied the letters were his. "The state and the security services did not need the help of a small employee like me," he insisted. He said he worked in the Dujail telephone office and held only a low rank in the Baath Party.
Ali, the second to testify, said he was in Baghdad the day of the shooting attempt against Hussein's motorcade, though he returned to Dujail later in the day.
"My foot did not step into any house in Dujail. We did not harm the people of Dujail and we did not write reports about them," he insisted.
Abdel-Rahman asked Ali about his signed affidavit to investigators that states his co-defendant Barzan Hassan -- Hussein's half brother and head of the Mukhabarat at the time -- heading the Dujail crackdown and that Taha Yassin Ramadan, another of the defendants, was in charge of razing Dujail farmland.
Ali replied that he had only heard the two men were involved, not seen them, and said he had not read the affidavit before signing it. "My eyes started hurting after reading three lines," he said.
After four hours of testimony, Abdel-Rahman adjourned until Monday, when the court will start to hear the remaining defendants: Hussein, Hassan, Ramadan, former Revolutionary Court chief Awad Bandar and another lower-level Baath official Mohammed Ali.
Court spokeman Raid Juhi said it was up to Abdel-Rahman when to call Hussein. If Hussein does come last, his turn may not be until the next session following Monday's.
Since proceedings began October 19, the prosecution has been bringing forward witnesses and presenting documents they say prove the defendants' role in the crackdown. Last month, they showed the court a memo allegedly signed by Hussein approving the death sentences against the 148 Shiites from Dujail.
After the defendants testify, the defense can produce witnesses or documentation it wishes.
Under the Iraqi justice system, that will end the first portion of the trial, when the broad complaint against the defendants is outlined.
The five-judge panel will call a recess and draw up exact charges against the defendants, Juhi said. The court will then reconvene and the prosecution and defense will each have their turn to address the charges, he said.
Saddam co-defendants in spotlight
BBC News
by Andrew North
March 14, 2006
It was the turn of some of the lesser-known defendants in the trial of Saddam Hussein to get some of the limelight on Monday.
There were several heated exchanges, with the judge repeatedly ordering a former Baath party official in the dock to calm down and stop shouting.
But the testimony of one of those in the dock at this latest hearing went to the heart of the case - which centres on how Saddam Hussein and his government responded to an attempt on his life almost 25 years ago.
It is hardly surprising that so far it has been the Iraqi leader himself who has got most of the attention, as well as his half-brother, former intelligence chief Barzan al-Tikriti - now famous for turning up to one session in his underwear, as a protest.
But there are six other people facing charges in this US-sponsored trial, in connection with a mass killing in the village of Dujail, north of Baghdad, in the early 1980s.
Law of the land
One-hundred-and-forty-eight people from the village were executed, after an attempt to kill Saddam Hussein there when he visited in 1982.
But Awad Hamed al-Bandar, the judge responsible for issuing those death sentences told the court he was only carrying out the law of the time.
"They had attacked the president and they had all confessed," he said.
Chief Judge Raouf Abdul Rahman repeatedly pressed him on the fairness of their trial, which lasted just two weeks.
How could so many people have had a fair hearing in such a short time, he wanted to know.
Under pressure, the former judge said he had no choice - his instructions came from the highest levels.
"If you were in my position, you'd have done the same," he protested.
In effect, he was saying, "I was only following orders".
But also reflecting the position taken by his former leader, Saddam Hussein.
When he last appeared in court he admitted ordering the trial and executions, and demanded to know "where is the crime?"
'Lies and denials'
But the first defendant to take the stand on Monday, a former local Baath party official from Dujail, Mohammed Azawi Ali al-Massoumi, denied having anything to do with the killings.
Standing up and gesturing angrily, he insisted he had never made a statement he had signed.
"The (investigating) judge wrote this. I didn't say it. It is a lie."
The last to face the judge in the marbled courtroom was former vice president Taha Yasin Ramadan.
He, too, denied any role in the executions and denounced the court as a tool of American occupation.
He also said he had been tortured after he was first captured by US forces in 2003.
The court said it will investigate.
The trial was adjourned until Wednesday, when Saddam Hussein himself and his half-brother are expected to appear.
In first testimony, Hussein urges Iraqis to fight
CNN
by
Nic Robertson and Joe Sterling
March 15, 2006
Former dictator's trial adjourns until April 5
Saddam Hussein took the stand for the first time at his trial Wednesday and angrily called on Iraqis to unite and fight the occupying forces.
"I am Saddam Hussein al-Majid, president of Iraq and commander of armed forces," Hussein declared, adding that God had trusted him to lead Iraq.
Judge Raouf Abdel Rahman reminded Hussein he is a defendant and no longer the president. (Watch Hussein's first testimony at his trial -- 6:36)
Hussein's tactics prompted the exasperated judge to close the proceedings to the media at one point. The trial was reopened to reporters later, then adjourned for three weeks, until April 5.
Before the sharp exchanges, Hussein's demeanor at first was not as theatrical as it had been in the past.
He walked in swiftly, with his shoulders bent and head down. He didn't acknowledge his defense team, apparently expecting a tough session.
Hussein read from a statement calmly at first, followed by angry outbursts as the exchanges with the judge grew more heated.
When challenged, Hussein became irate, shaking his finger and pointing at the judge.
Rahman told the former dictator, "This is a criminal court. We are not interested in politics."
Hussein answered, "If it wasn't for politics, neither you nor I would be here today."
The incensed judge cut off Hussein's microphone at least nine times as the former Iraqi president made provocative remarks such as "you are living in darkness and bleeding from rivers of blood."
Hussein is on trial with seven co-defendants from his former regime on charges of crimes against humanity in Dujail, a town north of Baghdad, after a failed assassination attempt against the ex-Iraqi leader in 1982.
More than 140 Shiite males were killed in a crackdown after the attempt on Hussein's life.
Hussein praised the Iraqi people and their efforts against the U.S.-led forces in Iraq.
"You have always been great in my eyes, and you will continue to be so. I have total faith in you," he said.
"It's only a question of time until the sun rises and you'll be victorious and you will prevail."
Hussein added, "Your enemies don't wish you any good. They wish you misery and more suffering and bloodshed.
"I never discriminated against any of you and have always tried to be just and fair to everyone," said Hussein, saying he is "inspired by the principles that are familiar to you and under our constitution which stipulated Islam official religion of Iraq: one nation."
Ramsey Clark -- the former U.S. attorney general who is one of the former Iraqi leader's attorneys -- told CNN that during the closed session Hussein delivered a "powerful and effective" statement about the context of the time period in which the Dujail events took place.
Clark said Hussein argued comprehensively about the necessity and legality of what the government had to do during that violent period -- wracked by its war with Iran, infiltration from Iran, treason and desertions.
The closed session lasted more than an hour and a half. Clark said the court has "threatened us with prosecution if we release what he said."
"We don't even have a copy of it. I hope to get one. I'm going to do everything I can because I think it's important for the world to know what he said," Clark said.
When reporters were allowed back in later, Hussein was not at all combative. He appeared to have a subdued demeanor and even raised his hand at one point when he wanted to speak.
Before Hussein took the stand, his half brother, former intelligence chief Barzan Hassan, testified, denying he took part in the Dujail crackdown. (Full story)
Hussein's half brother testifies
CNN
Associated Press
March 15, 2006
Saddam Hussein's half brother, former intelligence chief Barzan Hassan, denied he took part in crackdown against Shiites in the 1980s as he testified Wednesday for the first time in the trial of the former Iraqi leader and members of his regime.
Hassan is the latest of the eight defendants in the trial to undergo direct questioning by the judge and chief prosecutor. Hussein is expected to testify later Wednesday.
The former Iraqi leader and his regime officials are charged with killing 148 Shiites, illegal imprisonment and torture in a crackdown launched after an assassination attempt against Hussein in the Shiite village of Dujail in 1982. They face possible execution by hanging if convicted.
In previous sessions, Dujail residents have testified that Hassan personally participating in torturing them during their imprisonment at the Baghdad headquarters of the Mukhabarat intelligence agency, which Hassan headed. One woman claimed Hassan kicked her in the chest while she was hung upside down and naked by her interrogators.
Hassan, wearing a traditional red scarf on his head, told chief judge Raouf Abdel-Rahman that he visited Dujail on the day of the July 8, 1982 shooting attack on Saddam's motorcade and on the following day -- but then "never visited it again after that."
He said the General Security agency handled the investigation into the shooting, not his own Mukhabarat. He claimed he ordered the release of Dujail residents who had been detained. "I chided the security and party officials for detaining those people," he said "I shook their (the released detainees') hands and let them go."
Reading from a statement, Hassan said he has been badly treated since his arrest by U.S. forces in April 2003. He said that when he was captured, his American interrogators asked him "how Oasma bin Laden came to Iraq" and met with Hussein. "They asked dozens of such questions with imaginary bases and assumptions," he said.
He also said he has asked for the past two years for medical tests "but no one has listened to me."
Hassan has made such statements previously in court -- but the testimony is the first opportunity for the judge and prosecutors to directly question him. Earlier this week, six other defendants went through similar questioning, one by one, and all insisted on their innocence.
One of the defendants, Awad Bandar -- the former chief judge of the Revolutionary Court -- admitted on Monday that he sentenced the 148 Shiites to death but he maintained they received a fair trial and had confessed to trying to assassinate the former Iraqi leader.
His comments echoed those of Hussein in an earlier session. Last month, Hussein admitted in court that he ordered the 148 Shiites put on trial before his Revolutionary Court, but said it was his right to do so because they were suspected of trying to kill him.
Prosecutors are trying to show Hussein's regime sought to punish the town's civilian population. Hundreds of people were arrested -- including entire families, with women and young children -- and detained for years.
They argue the Revolutionary Court trial was "imaginary," with no chance of defense, and have produced documents showing 10 juveniles -- including some as young as 11 and 13 -- were among those sentenced to death.
European court tosses Hussein suit
CNN
Associated Press
March 15, 2006
Europe's human rights court has thrown out a lawsuit filed by Saddam Hussein against 21 European countries whose troops joined the U.S.-led military campaign in Iraq, saying the case fell outside its jurisdiction.
Saddam said his arrest, detention and subsequent handover to the Iraqi authorities and the ongoing trial in Baghdad breached the European Convention on Human Rights.
The former Iraqi president said coalition forces had violated his right to life, liberty and security, and several other articles of Europe's human rights convention. He noted that he could face execution if found guilty in a trial that he claimed lacked even the basic tools for a defense.
He argued that his case fell within the jurisdiction of the European nations that joined the U.S.-led coalition, which he said continued to hold de facto power in Iraq even after the June 2004 transfer of authority to Iraqis. He said that if sentenced to death, the verdict would violate two articles of Europe's human rights treaty: abolition of the death penalty in times of peace, and abolition of the death penalty in all circumstances.
The European Court of Human Rights, which deals with human rights violations on the territory of the 46 member states of the Council of Europe, said on Tuesday that Saddam's suit did not fall within the jurisdiction of any of the 21 nations cited.
"The court considered that the applicant had not demonstrated that he fell within the jurisdiction of the respondent states on any of the bases alleged. He did not fall within their jurisdiction on the basis of their control of the territory where the alleged violations took place," the court said in a statement.
"Even if he could have fallen within a state's jurisdiction because of his detention by it, he had not shown that any one of those states had any responsibility for, or any involvement or role in, his arrest and subsequent detention."
The court said the case had been dealt with confidentially to protect Saddam's legal representatives.
The trial of Hussein and his seven co-defendants Wednesday in Baghdad. Hussein may testify about his actions after an assassination attempt in 1982 in the town of Dujail.
Chaos and comedy at Saddam trial
BBC News
by Andrew North
March 16, 2006
Saddam Hussein set the tone for his latest chaotic court appearance from the start - a day that led to the media being barred from much of the proceedings.
Invited by the judge to start his defence, he condemned the trial as a "comedy".
Twenty minutes later, the former Iraqi leader, wearing a black suit and white shirt, had not even mentioned the charges against him.
Instead, he used the session to call on people to fight American troops, whom he described as the "aggressors" and "the invaders".
With seven other defendants, he is accused in connection with the killing of 148 people in a village north of Baghdad in the early 1980s - which followed an assassination attempt on the Iraqi leader there.
But it was recent events that Saddam Hussein wanted to talk about.
Expressing his concern about recent sectarian strife in Iraq, he said "I call on the people to start resisting the invaders instead of killing each other."
That led to the first of several interventions by chief judge Raouf Abdel Rahman.
"What does this speech have to do with the case?" he demanded. "We asked for your testimony on the subject of Dujail and your role as the head of state at that time."
"I am the head of state," Saddam shot back.
"You used to be the head of state," the judge said. "Now you are a defendant in a court."
That exchange provoked smiles from officials across the courtroom.
Media censorship
But much of the time, the expressions you see are what you could describe as fearful fascination.
Saddam Hussein's court appearances may no longer be a novelty, but for many Iraqis, seeing the man on trial whose name they would not even dare mention when he was in power, remains a compelling sight.
But when the former dictator continued with his appeals to the Iraqi people, the judge ordered transmission of his words and the English translation to the watching media to be cut.
This has happened before. Fearing security breaches and that defendants' statements could spark violence, court officials and their US advisors decided from the beginning to censor video and audio output from the trial.
At one point, journalists also heard in their headphones one of the American officials telling a translator to stop conveying Saddam Hussein's words.
Amid chaotic scenes in the courtroom, the judge then ordered journalists out.
The rest of the hearing was held in secret.
Denials and accusations
However, in effect, Saddam Hussein had already made his defence clear at his last appearance two weeks ago - admitting he had ordered the trial and executions of the Dujail villagers in response to the assassination attempt on him.
"Where is the crime?" he demanded then.
And sources in the court said he took a similar line in his statements after journalists were ejected.
So, too, did Barzan al-Tikriti, Saddam Hussein's half-brother and his former intelligence chief, when he testified earlier in the day.
"Is there any government," he asked the court, "that would not punish assailants after an assassination attempt on the head of state?"
But he denied any personal involvement in the Dujail killings.
He had been in the village, he said, but it was another security agency that had been responsible for the operation there.
His hands "were as clean as Moses" he insisted, frequently invoking the name of the key Shia figure, Imam Ali, despite the fact he is a Sunni Muslim.
Both Barzan al-Tikriti and Saddam Hussein are accused of far worse crimes than they allegedly committed in the Dujail case, including charges of genocide against Iraq's Kurds and Shias.
But prosecutors went for this one first because they believed it was more clear-cut and hoped it would be easier to prove their responsibility.
But as things are turning out, they are having to put the old Iraqi legal system under Saddam Hussein on trial as well as the man himself.
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International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY)
Official Website of the ICTY
Press Briefing of the ICTY
Alexandra Milenov, Liaison Officer for Registry and Chambers, made the following statement: (partially reproduced below):
March 6, 2006
Milan Babic Found Dead in Detention Unit
At 18:30 hours on Sunday, March 5, Milan Babic, a detained witness, was found dead in his cell at the United Nations Detention Unit in Scheveningen. The Detention Unit Medical Officer confirmed Milan Babic’s death shortly after his body was found. The Dutch authorities were called immediately. After conducting an investigation, they confirmed that the cause of death was suicide. Milan Babic’s family has been informed. Pursuant to his authority under the Tribunal’s Statute and Rules of Detention, the Tribunal President, Judge Fausto Pocar, has ordered an internal inquiry.
Background
The Tribunal sentenced Milan Babic to 13 years imprisonment for crimes committed against non-Serb civilians in the self-proclaimed Serb political entity in eastern Croatia (the Serbian Autonomous Region of Krajina, which later became the Republic of Serbian Krajina). After the Appeals Chamber confirmed Milan Babic’s sentence, he was transferred to serve his sentence abroad.
Milan Babic, who held a number of high-level political positions in the Croatian Serb entity including the presidency, pleaded guilty on January 27, 2004 to participating in a plan to forcibly and permanently remove the non-Serb population from this area. The crimes he admitted to include murder, deportation or forcible transfer, and unlawful imprisonment of non-Serb civilians, as well as the destruction of their property.
At the time of his death, Milan Babic was testifying in the case against Milan Martic, another former high-level official of the Croatian Serb political entity charged with crimes against non-Serb civilians. Milan Babic began his testimony on February, 15 2006. He had previously testified in the case against Slobodan Miloševic from November 18, 2002 until December 9, 2002.
March 8, 2006
Appeals Chamber Reduces Momir Nikolic’s Sentence
The Tribunal’s Appeals Chamber today reduced the sentence against Momir Nikolic, a Bosnian Serb army officer convicted of crimes committed in Srebrenica in 1995, to 20 years.
The full text of the Judgment can be found on the ICTY website at: www.un.org/icty/mnikolic/appeal/judgement/nik-aj060308-e.pdf
March 10, 2006
Appeals Chamber Modifies the Conditions of Ramush Haradinaj's Provisional Release
The full text of the decision can be found on the ICTY website at the following address: http://www.un.org/icty/haradinaj/appeal/decision-e/060310.pdf
March 15, 2006
Tribunal Convicts Enver Hadzihasanovic and Amir Kubura
Tribunal judges today convicted Enver Hadzihasanovic and Amir Kubura, both high level commanders in the Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina (ABiH). The Trial Chamber sentenced Enver Hadzihasanovic to five years imprisonment and Amir Kubura to two and a half years. Trial Chamber II of the Tribunal convicted both men for failing to take necessary and reasonable measures to prevent or punish several crimes that forces under their command committed in central Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1993 and the beginning of 1994. The Trial Chamber acquitted the accused of a number of other crimes.
In the first Tribunal judgment to deal with the presence of foreign Muslim or Mujahedin combatants in central Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Trial Chamber found that Enver Hadzihasanovic exercised effective control over a detachment of such forces. It found that Mujahedin members severely beat and psychologically abused five civilians from the Croatian and Serbian community in Travnik and murdered Dragan Popovic in October 1993 in the Orasac camp. The Trial Chamber found Enver Hadzihasanovic guilty of failing to prevent these crimes. The Trial Chamber also convicted Enver Hadzihasanovic for failing to take necessary and reasonable measures to punish members of his forces who murdered Mladen Havranek, a Bosnian Croat army prisoner of war, on 5 August 1993. Finally, it found Enver Hadzihasanovic guilty of failing to prevent or punish members of his forces who cruelly treated civilians and prisoners of war in five detention facilities in 1993.
The Trial Chamber convicted Amir Kubura for failing to take necessary and reasonable measures to punish members of his forces who plundered private or public property in the villages of Susanj, Ovnak, Brajkovici and Grahovcici in June 1993. It also convicted him for failing to prevent or punish members of his forces who plundered private or public property in the village of Vares in November 1993.
The Trial Chamber is composed of Judge Jean-Claude Antonetti, Presiding, Judge Vonimbolana Rasoazanany and Judge Bert Swart. The Trial Chamber heard evidence from 172 witnesses, admitted 33 witness statements in writing, as well as three stipulations during the trial of Enver Hadzihasanovic and Amir Kubura, which began on 2 December 2003 and closed on 15 July 2005. A total of 2949 exhibits were tendered into evidence.
The case against Enver Hadzihasanovic and Amir Kubura is one of many before the Tribunal dealing with high-level accused charged with committing crimes against Croatian and Serbian civilians.
The full summary of the judgment as read out by Judge Antonetti can be found at: www.un.org/icty/hadzihas/trialc/judgement/060315/hadz-sum060315.htm
March 16, 2006
Trial Chamber Lifts Confidentiality of Materials in Milosevic Case to Assist Inquiries
The document can be found on [the ICTY] website at www.un.org/icty/milosevic/trialc/order-e/060316.htm.
Press Conference of the ICTY Prosecutor
Carla Del Ponte
March 12, 2006
…I deeply regret the death of Slobodan Milosevic. It deprives the victims of the justice they need and deserve.
In the indictment which was judicially confirmed in 2001, Milosevic was accused of 66 counts of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo between 1991 and 1999. These crimes affected hundreds of thousands of victims throughout the former Yugoslavia.
During the prosecution case, 295 witnesses testified and 5000 exhibits were presented to the court. This represents a wealth of evidence that is on the record. After the presentation of the prosecution case, the Trial Chamber, on 16 June 2004, rejected a defense motion to dismiss the charges for lack of evidence, thereby confirming, in accordance with Rule 98bis, that the prosecution case contains sufficient evidence capable of supporting a conviction on all 66 counts. The Defense was given the same amount of time as the prosecution to present its case. There were in total 466 hearing days. 4 hours per day. Only 40 hours were left in the Defense case, and the trial was likely to be completed by the end of the spring.
It is a great pity for justice that the trial will not be completed and no verdict will be rendered. However, other senior leaders have been indicted for the crimes for which Slobodan Milosevic was also accused. Later this year, the trial of eight senior leaders accused of the Srebrenica genocide will begin. Furthermore, also this year, six most senior former Serbian leaders will be tried for crimes committed in Kosovo. But the most senior perpetrators are still at large. Now more than ever, I expect Serbia to finally arrest and transfer Ratko Mladic and Radovan Karadžic to The Hague as soon as possible.
The death of Slobodan Milosevic makes it even more urgent for them to face justice. Finally, I would like to share a thought for Zoran Đinđic, his wife and his family. Exactly three years ago, he was murdered in Belgrade. He is the man who had the courage to bring Slobodan Milosevic to The Hague so that he could face justice.
Former Serb leader found dead
Sydney Morning Herald
Reuters / AP
March 7, 2006
Former Croatian Serb leader Milan Babic has committed suicide in detention in the Hague where he was serving a 13-year prison sentence.
Former rebel Croatian Serb leader Milan Babic has committed suicide in detention in The Hague, according to the UN war crimes tribunal.
The tribunal said in a statement that Babic was found dead in his cell at the UN detention unit.
"The Dutch authorities were called immediately. After conducting an investigation, they confirmed that the cause of death was suicide," the statement said, adding that Tribunal President Judge Fausto Pocar had ordered an internal inquiry.
Babic, 50, pleaded guilty before the UN war crimes tribunal in 2004 to a single charge of inflaming an ethnic cleansing campaign that killed hundreds of Croats and expelled tens of thousands in the self-proclaimed Croatian Republic of Krajina.
The plea was part of a deal in which prosecutors dropped four other charges of murder, cruelty and the wanton destruction of villages during the war in Croatia.
He was sentenced to 13 years jail and appealed against the lengthy sentence, but his appeal was rejected last July.
After the tribunal's appeals chamber confirmed Babic's sentence, he was transferred to serve his sentence abroad, but he was brought back to The Hague last month to testify in the trial of Milan Martic, another Croatian Serb.
Babic was also a pivotal witness at Milosevic's war crimes trial, which is continuing in The Hague.
UN prosecutors regarded Babic - the former president of the breakaway Krajina Serb republic after Croatia declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1991 - as one of former Yugoslavian President Slobodan Milosevic's key allies.
Babic was a ranking Croatian Serb leader when the Serb minority revolted after Croatia broke away from Yugoslavia in 1991.
Babic's family was informed yesterday after the chief medical officer of the centre confirmed the cause of death was suicide.
The tribunal did not say how Babic killed himself.
It was the second time a detainee committed suicide. The first was Slavko Dokmanovic, another Croatian Serb leader, in 1998.
Slobodan Milosevic, 64, Former Yugoslav Leader Accused of War Crimes, Dies
New York Times
by Marlise Simons and Alison Smale
March 12, 2006
Slobodan Milosevic, the Communist leader whose embrace of Serbian nationalism set off almost a decade of Balkan warfare, was found dead early Saturday in his cell at the United Nations detention center in The Hague, where he had been since 2001. He was 64.
Mr. Milosevic appeared to have died from natural causes, but tribunal officials said they would not be able to give a full account until an autopsy and toxicological report were completed. He was found lifeless on his bed in his cell, a court statement said. Mr. Milosevic's wife, and his partner of almost five decades, Mirjana Markovic, who, like his brother, Borislav, is living in Moscow, was informed of Mr. Milosevic's death, the court said.
Death came as Mr. Milosevic's four-year trial for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide was drawing to a close. A verdict had been expected later this year.
He was the first former head of state to answer charges of such crimes and his was the longest war-crimes trial of modern times, delayed by Mr. Milosevic's frequent bouts of illness related to high blood pressure and a bad heart.
The complex indictment covered the events of three wars — in Croatia, Bosnia and Kosovo — and almost a decade of bloodshed and vengeance that killed more than 200,000 people and earned Mr. Milosevic the sobriquet "Butcher of the Balkans."
On the advice of medical specialists, Mr. Milosevic went to court only three days a week. A lawyer by training, he insisted on conducting his own defense, often speaking for hours and summoning witnesses, including, just last month, former President Bill Clinton, who declined. Although Mr. Milosevic had become less blustery of late, his trademark defiance allowed him to act the role of martyr for the Serbian cause until the very end.
In December, Mr. Milosevic asked to travel to Moscow for medical treatment. The judges in The Hague refused to let him leave, arguing that adequate treatment was available in the Netherlands.
Article continues here.
Two Bosnian Muslim Commanders Convicted of War Crimes
The Washington Post
Associated Press
March 16, 2006
Two Bosnian Muslim army commanders were convicted of war crimes Wednesday for failing to rein in foreign Muslim volunteers who murdered and tortured Bosnian Croats and Serbs in the 1990s.
The U.N. war crimes tribunal in The Hague sentenced former Bosnian army chief of staff Enver Hadzihasanovic to five years in prison and his deputy, Amir Kubura, to 2 1/2 years.
It was the first time the tribunal had dealt with the mujaheddin, or holy warriors, who came mainly from North Africa and the Middle East to fight on the Muslim side in the 1992-95 Bosnian war, in which an estimated 200,000 people were killed.
Hundreds of volunteers, many of them veterans of the war in Afghanistan against Soviet occupation, enlisted in the Muslim cause in mid-1992 after Bosnia declared independence from the crumbling Yugoslav federation.
Yugoslavia was then headed by Slobodan Milosevic, who died in his cell near The Hague on Saturday in the custody of the same tribunal that tried the two Bosnians.
The two were among the highest-ranking Muslim officers brought to trial by the war crimes court, which has been criticized in Serbia for prosecuting far more Serbs than members of other ethnic groups.
Hadzihasanovic, 55, and Kubura, 42, were acquitted of the most serious allegation -- the massacre of non-Muslim Bosnians. Prosecutors had charged Hadzihasanovic with the responsibility for about 200 deaths and asked for a prison term of 20 years.
In northern Bosnia, meanwhile, NATO troops searched the home and business of a man suspected of helping Radovan Karadzic, the indicted Bosnian Serb wartime leader, evade capture. Charges against Karadzic include orchestrating the slaughter of 8,000 Muslims in Srebrenica in 1995.
Milosevic Exam Shows No Evidence of Poisoning
The Washington Post
by Molly Moore
March 17, 2006
Preliminary toxicology reports found no traces of harmful or toxic substances in the body of former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic at the time of his death earlier this month, the U. N. war crimes tribunal announced Friday.
Court officials said they have ordered an outside investigation of conditions at the tribunal's prison near The Hague after revelations that alcohol and unprescribed drugs were found repeatedly in Milosevic's cell and private prison office.
"How would it be possible to smuggle in drugs?" asked Hans Holthuis, the chief administrator of the tribunal and its prison. "That is, indeed, the burning question, and I have no ready answer to that."
Statements by tribunal officials at a press conference Friday in The Hague resolved few of the mysteries surrounding Milosevic's death last weekend after four years of trial at the U.N. tribunal. He was charged with genocide and other war crimes in connection with the Balkan wars of the 1990s when he was president of Yugoslavia and Serbia, one of its republics. The trial had been expected to conclude in May.
The Dutch Forensic Institute, which performed the toxicology exam, said the report released Friday represented "provisional results" and that further tests were being conducted.
Milosevic, 64, was found dead on his bed in his cell last Saturday. Doctors who conducted an autopsy concluded he had died of a heart attack. But neither their report nor Friday's determined the cause of the heart attack.
The toxicology exam, completed from blood and tissue samples taken from Milosevic's body after his death, found "no indications of poisoning," according to a summary of the report released by the tribunal Friday.
A Dutch specialist who examined blood samples taken from Milosevic in January reported this week that he found evidence of a powerful, unprescribed drug, Rifampicine, that may have diluted the effectiveness of Milosevic's medication for high blood pressure and a chronic heart condition.
Friday's report found "no traces of Rifampicine." It said that the drug disappears from the body quickly and the toxicology exam confirmed only that Milosevic did not take the drug "in the last few days before death."
Although "a number of medicines prescribed" for Milosevic were detected, the report said none were present "in toxic concentration."
Holthuis confirmed Friday reports that "contraband" had been smuggled to Milosevic inside the prison. Milosevic was allowed a private office inside the prison that was checked daily by prison officials, but was not monitored by prison authorities when Milosevic was meeting with his attorneys or witnesses.
Milosevic received 70 witnesses inside the prison, Holthuis said, adding that the witnesses "are not subject to the same rigorous search as prisoners or others."
[back to contents]
International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR)
Official Website of the ICTR
Case of Rwandan Lawyer Revives Tensions Between Kigali and the ICTR
AllAfrica.com - Hirondelle News Angency (Lausanne)
March 7, 2006
In normal circumstances, the news that a Rwandan lawyer had been appointed to represent one of the accused at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) would have been received with a round of applause and an outpouring of national pride. The long-awaited announcement however provoked an unexpected spark from Rwanda, which risks rekindling the tensions between Kigali and the tribunal that have in the past come under regular strain. The first alarm bells sounded through the Rwandan newspaper The New Times which quoted a Rwandan official in charge of hunting down genocide suspects as saying that a Rwandan lawyer, Callixte Gakwaya, was one of their targets. Gakwaya is a member of the Mozambican bar association and has been appointed to defend a former Rwandan businessman and genocide suspect held by the tribunal, Yussuf Munyakazi. It would be a strange situation indeed if a lawyer accused of the same crimes as his client was allowed to defend him at an international court. The information was confirmed by Rwanda’s special representative to the ICTR, Aloys Mutabingwa, who revealed that a warrant of Gakwaya’s arrest had already been passed to Interpol. “We were very surprised because the ICTR was aware of the arrest warrant against Gakwaya”, said the Rwandan diplomat commenting on the suspect’s appointment.
Though Mutabingwa described the situation as grave, he also seemed to extend an olive branch. “I hope this does not become an issue between us and the tribunal. It is in its interests to cooperate with us by giving us suspects [to try in Rwandan courts] who are not on its list”, he said. For the initiated, these were clear warning signs that the tensions were again approaching fever pitch. The ICTR reacted irritably ten days later. A statement quoted the acting deputy registrar, Everard O’Donnell as saying that he had on many occasions requested Rwanda’s opinion before Callixte Gakwaya’s appointment but that Kigali had kept silent. O’Donnell went on to add that the accused person had previously served as a defense assistant in a trial that is already completed and that Rwanda had raised no objections. The deputy registrar challenged the Rwandan authorities to prove Gakwaya’s guilt as the ICTR did “not feel able to take any action in respect of his appointment in the absence of sensible information form the Rwandan government.” Mutabingwa came back with guns blazing and described the registry’s communiqué as “pure rhetoric” and that it did not reduce the gravity of the accusations against the lawyer. According to him, the ICTR was adopting a defensive stance and accused it of being “adamant” when discussing the issue of “recruiting genocide suspects or their accomplices.” Kigali maintains that the ICTR has employed several genocide suspects and the Rwandan envoy threatened to make their dossiers public if a diplomatic solution was not arrived at soon. As regards Gakwaya, Mutabingwa pointed out that he would give the ICTR a copy of his warrant of arrest and would demand that it cooperates in his arrest and extradition. “If the ICTR wants, it can prosecute him but not employ him,” he said ironically. Mutabingwa went on to say that he would not furnish the registry with further proof against Gakwaya as it would prejudice the case against him.
The antagonism between Kigali and the tribunal is not new matter – it has its roots in the very beginnings of the tribunal. In November 1994 – with Rwanda as one of the members of the UN Security Council at that time- Kigali voted against the establishment of the court, citing among other issues the fact that there would be no death penalty for anyone found guilty.
The criticisms emanating from Kigali were to increase as time went by. At first, the main focus was on the slow pace of the trials. But the real big crisis broke out in November 1999 when the tribunal released, on procedural grounds, Jean-Bosco Barayagwiza, a former politician and media official. This angered Rwanda and it severed relations with the tribunal, which were only later re-established when the prosecutor rescinded her position. The truce however did not last long. The following year, the then Prosecutor, Carla Del Ponte, announced that she would open investigations into alleged war crimes committed by members of the current government army. It was the beginning of a merciless protracted game of chess, between the Rwandan authorities and Del Ponte that only ended with her departure in August 2003. In the meantime, the tribunal was hit by another crisis - that of Rwandan witnesses coming to testify in Arusha - which lasted the better part of 2002. Genocide survivors’ associations forbade their members from testifying at the ICTR, citing harassment at the hands of defense lawyers during cross-examination. Even though the current crisis might appear to be less severe than the previous ones, it risks affecting the tribunal which at this crucial moment is trying to avoid anything that might interfere with its image and hamper its completing its task and finishing all trials and appeals by 2010.
To make matters worse, Rwanda has now demanded that the ICTR arrest Emmanuel Bagambiki, a former Préfet (Provincial Governor) who was recently acquitted by the tribunal, on the basis of new charges brought against him by Kigali. Things do not look pretty at all.
Rwanda Intends to Prosecute Ex-Governor Emmanuel Bagambiki for Rape
AllAfrica.com - Hirondelle News Angency (Lausanne)
March 8, 2006
The Rwandan Government on Tuesday announced that it intends to prosecute a former governor of Cyangugu (South-Western Rwanda) Emmanuel Bagambiki whose acquittal on charges of genocide was confirmed by the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) last month. "Emmanuel Bagambiki shall be prosecuted in Rwanda or elsewhere as expediency may require for rape and sexual violence as a crime against humanity committed in Cyangugu in 1994," announced Rwanda's special representative to ICTR Aloys Mutabingwa. The envoy at the same time called on the tribunal to cooperate with the Rwandan Government in the process to have Bagambiki extradited to Rwanda. He said that the warrant of arrest would be served on the ICTR authorities and the Government of Tanzania. Bagambiki and Andre Ntagerura, former minister for transport, were first acquitted of genocide by the trial chamber February 25 2004 for lack of sufficient evidence. The prosecutor appealed the decision but the Appeals Chamber confirmed the acquittal on February 8 2006. Bagambiki and Ntagerura are still under the custody of the tribunal at a safe house in Arusha because they have failed so far to find countries to host them. Mutabingwa said the initial indictment drafted by ICTR against Bagambiki was flawed because it lacked particular material. "In particular the indictment excludes rape as a crime against humanity .The Government of Rwanda holds that such an omission is fatal and highly prejudicial," stated the envoy. Mutabingwa went on to blame the immediate former ICTR prosecutor of the tribunal, Carla Del Ponte of mishandling the case. According to Mutabingwa, the Government of Rwanda is seized of the material in support of the charge of rape and sexual violence as a crime against humanity committed in Cyangugu.
Mutabingwa said a significant part of the material underscores the responsibility borne by Bagambiki as an individual and as a person in position of authority. "It is highly prejudicial to ignore the vivid evidence available in Cyangugu to-date. Especially owing to the fact that some victims of rape and sexual violence are still suffering the pain inflicted by Bagambiki individually and in concert with others," Mutabingwa said.
Mutabingwa added that the decision by the Rwandan Government to prefer charges of rape and sexual violence as a crime against humanity on Bagambiki complies with all legal principles and charging practices because it was not part of the trial at ICTR. The tribunal is expected to respond to Rwanda's announcement on Wednesday.
Milosevic's Death Causes Disgruntlement Among Detainees At ICTR
AllAfrica.com - Hirondelle News Angency (Lausanne)
March 14, 2006
The death of the former Yugoslavia President Slobodan Milosevic on Monday caused disgruntlement among those on trial at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. Some of the defense lawyers argued that the same fate could befall some of the accused who are unwell and are not accorded proper medical care. The defense teams in the trial of three former leaders of the former Rwandan ruling party Mouvement républicain national pour la démocratie et le développement (MRND) asked that the health of all the accused be looked into seriously in light of what happened to Milosevic.
The former Yugoslavia president was found dead at his cell on Saturday morning. He was on trial for war crimes, including genocide, at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), a sister tribunal to ICTR. The issue was brought up by defence attorney Felix Sow ( Senegal) defending the former vice president of MRND Edward Karemera who had been sick on and off since February 17 th. The attorney told the court that Karemera still has a problem with one of his legs and that the poor health care he has received at the detention facility is likely to harm his defense case. "It is important that measures are taken since a serious issue has happened in ICTY to President Milosevic;" said Sow. Making arguments in turns, another defense attorney Peter Robinson (USA) said his client was also ailing and he wanted the chamber to create more time for the matter to be discussed at length. "I would like to inform the court that Joseph Nzirorera has health problems and in light of what happened to Milosevic over the weekend it's the duty of the Trial Chamber to take care of these people in their custody," said Nzirorera's lead counsel. Nzirorera is the former Secretary General of the MRND.
Defense attorney Frederic Weyl ( France) complained that the worst could happen to the accused if they were taken ill suddenly at the detention due to lack of an alarm system.
"We told the court four years ago that there is no alarm system in the cells. It is legitimate that these concerns be addressed," said Weyl. The presiding judge, Dennis Byron ( St. Kitts and Nevis) said that it was necessary for the bench to consider the issue carefully then issue a ruling. Another defense attorney in separate trial of four former senior military officers, Christopher Black ( Canada) told the court that he was saddened by Milosevic's death and had lost a friend. He added that he was unable to concentrate.
Pauline Nyiramasuhuko Wants Her Trial Dismissed
AllAfrica.com - Hirondelle News Agency (Lausanne)
March 14, 2006
The only woman indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), former minister of gender Pauline Nyiramasuhuko, has demanded that charges against her be dropped. According to a motion seen by Hirondelle News agency Tuesday, Nyiramasuhuko's lawyer, Nicole Bergevin from Canada, is basing her demand on two points: an unjustifiable fusion of the trial; and divergent political views. She says the joining of her client's trial with that of her five co-defendants was highly prejudicial to her client. The former minister was initially only accused together with her son, Arsene Shalom Ntahobali, but on October 5, 1999, their trial was joined together with that of two former Préfets of Butare (southern Rwanda), Sylvain Nsabimana and Alphonse Nteziryayo and two former mayors; Joseph Kanyabashi (Ngoma) and Elie Ndayambaje (Muganza). The Prosecutor had argued at that time that holding joint trials (grouped by region, line of work or function) the proceedings would be speeded up. Court observers concur that that prediction was false. The so-called "Butare trial" is the longest running at the ICTR and despite several requests by Hirondelle News Agency to know the costs already incurred by the trial, the office of the registrar has not been forthcoming. Bergevin maintains that the prejudice arises from a conflict of interest between the defence strategies of both Kanyabashi and Nsabimana with that of her client and therefore asks the tribunal to separate the case. All six are accused of the 1994 massacres of Tutsi civilians in there home town of Butare (south). The trial opened in June 2001. It has been apparent during the trial that when it comes to Kanyabashi and Nsabimana - both members of the Parti social-démocrate (PSD)- who are beginning to present their defences - that they intend to place the blame for the killings in the laps of the former ruling party, the Mouvement républicain national pour la démocratie et le développement (MRND). Nyiramasuhuko was an influential member of the ruling party.
Nyiramasuhuko's defence argues that the trial can not continue in the same vein because it would cause irreparable and serious prejudice. "In the light of the exceptional circumstances, the chamber should order a new trial", suggests Bergevin. But, adds the lawyer, "a new trial would lead to considerable delays which would add to the eight years already passed in prison without any judgment being passed". "In those circumstances, the chamber should pronounce an end to the trial", she concluded. Last year her son Ntahobali made a similar request but it was thrown out by the chamber. The Prosecutor of the ICTR alleges that Ntahobali was the head of the MRND militias in Butare. The trial is presided over by Judge William Sekule from Tanzania. He is assisted by Judge Arlette Ramaroson ( Madagascar) and Solomy Balungi Bossa ( Uganda).
ICTR Registrar Insists Trials Will Be Completed By 2008
AllAfrica.com - Hirondelle News Agency (Lausanne)
March 15, 2006
The Registrar of the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), Adam Dieng, on Tuesday reaffirmed that the court will have completed all trials on its hands by the end of 2008.
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Liberia Truth and Reconciliation Commission
U.S.: Support Liberian President in Seeking Taylor's Surrender
Reuters
Human Rights Watch
March 14, 2006
When Liberia's newly elected president visits Washington today, the U.S. government should give her strong support in seeking Charles Taylor's surrender to face trial at the Sierra Leone war crimes court, Human Rights Watch said today. The Bush administration should commit to assist in maintaining stability and democracy in Liberia and toward strengthening U.N. peacekeeping forces there as necessary. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, who was inaugurated as Liberia's president on January 16, is expected to brief a joint session of Congress and meet with U.S. President George W. Bush.
"The Bush administration has played a positive role in pressing for Taylor to face trial at the Sierra Leone war crimes court," said Richard Dicker, director of the International Justice Program at Human Rights Watch. "Now the administration needs to see this through by giving Liberia's new president strong backing to request Taylor's surrender. She should not be expected to shoulder this burden alone."
Over the past two weeks, Sirleaf-Johnson and Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo discussed former Liberian President Charles Taylor, according to news reports. In 2003 Taylor left Liberia for Nigeria. In taking Taylor in as a temporary measure, Nigeria acted with the support of the United States, the African Union and other actors in the international community in efforts to secure a peaceful transition in Liberia.
For his role in Sierra Leone's armed conflict, Taylor has been accused of 17 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity by the Special Court for Sierra Leone. The crimes include killings, mutilations, rape and other forms of sexual violence, sexual slavery, the recruitment and use of child soldiers, abduction, and the use of forced labor by armed groups. The Special Court was set up in 2002 to try those most responsible for war crimes committed during Sierra Leone's armed conflict.
Nigerian President Obasanjo has thus far been reluctant to surrender Charles Taylor to the Special Court, however. He has indicated though, that he would consider surrendering Charles Taylor upon request from a duly-elected Liberian government.
"More than any other individual, Taylor is associated with atrocities and murder in West Africa," said Dicker. "Nigeria should promptly surrender him to face trial at the Sierra Leone Special Court and immediately comply with any request from Liberia's president for his surrender."
Time is of the essence for Taylor to face trial, Human Rights Watch said. The Special Court is already advanced in its operations, faces major funding difficulties, and will confront increasing international pressure to complete operations.
The U.S. government also needs to send a strong message in support of accountability for serious crimes committed in Liberia, Human Rights Watch said. Liberia's recently inaugurated Truth and Reconciliation Commission provides an important forum for establishing a record of abuses. However, prosecutions for serious crimes will also be essential. Given the devastation of the Liberian justice system, international support is likely to be necessary to rebuild the national courts, including ensuring justice for serious crimes.
"This is a crucial moment for Washington to help West Africa break a devastating cycle of impunity," Dicker said.
Editorial: Liberia: To Heal Our Wounds~ Liberia’s Truth Commission Must Have A Comprehensive Mandate
The Liberian Times
by Ahmed K. Sirleaf II
March 14, 2006
Precedents show that Truth and Reconciliation Commissions (Commissions of Inquiries, in some cases) vary in accordance with the particular society’s needs just as the atrocities they attempt to address in different post conflict environments. They can never be the same- given that all post conflict divided societies have different needs for transitional justice and reconciliation.
This paper is a preliminary attempt to look at the potential role of Liberia’s newly inaugurated Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) in our quest for justice and reconciliation following a brutal history. In this vein, the paper will look at the mandate provided for in the 2003 Accra Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA). The paper critiques the apparent inadequacies of this crucial legal document (CPA), including what appears to be deliberate attempts by the Parties to create a weak legal framework for achieving the goals of accountability and reconciliation, and justice. A common thread in societies recovering from conflicts is the balance between accountability and reconciliation, and the need to deter impunity by holding perpetrators of atrocities accountable.
The legitimacy of such structures thus invariably depends on the potency of these institutions and processes in truly pursuing justice and reconciliation. Given the nature of the weak mandate granted to the Liberia TRC, the author will make several policy recommendations vis-à-vis prosecution and the TRC, so that the latter can be regarded by the Liberian people and the international community as a legitimate process to deliver true justice and reconcile Liberian society.
To see the full article, click here.
Political refugee heads home to Liberia for probe
USA Today
by Oren Dorell
March 16, 2006
Massa Washington's stepbrother was murdered in Liberia. Her sister-in-law's body was eaten by dogs. She had seen neighbors killed and a man beheaded.
Washington, 42, came to the USA seven years ago to escape the death. Now she's going home to confront it.
The graduate student at Temple University in Philadelphia will be one of 12 members of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission that the Liberia's new president has asked to investigate the crimes of a civil war that left thousands dead.
Washington will sit on a panel that will recommend whether to prosecute or forgive people who confess their crimes. The country's former warlord president Charles Taylor will not be immune, she says.
"There can be no reconciliation without justice, until someone can answer for what was done," she says. As for herself, "I've made peace with my ghosts. I promised myself I'm not going in with my issues."
Washington's appointment comes at a time of optimism for her native country.
In 2003 Liberia's former dictator was removed from the country, ending its 14-year civil war. Last month, Liberia held elections deemed free and fair by international observers. Voters elected Ellen Johnson Sirleaf president, and on Wednesday she became the first female head of state from Africa to address a joint meeting of the U.S. Congress.
In her speech, Sirleaf referred to historic ties between the two countries, noting that Liberia was founded by freed slaves from America. She credited President Bush and Congress with forcing Taylor into exile in Nigeria. She is to meet with Bush at the White House on Tuesday.
It was Sirleaf who affirmed Washington's appointment to the truth panel. The two met in 1987 in Liberia when Washington was a Red Cross volunteer and Sirleaf was in prison for an alleged coup attempt.
Washington was studying journalism at the University of Liberia in 1989 when militias loyal to Taylor overtook her neighborhood and searched for "enemies." Enemies were people who didn't speak their language, students and college professors.
"They were all drunk on drugs and alcohol so they just killed indiscriminately," Washington says.
A commander at a checkpoint littered with bodies held a knife to her nose and threatened to chop it off because he didn't like its shape. Her sister-in-law was killed in the capital of Monrovia. The family was not allowed to retrieve her body, which was left on a street to be eaten by dogs.
Another time she was confronted by a death squad. One man was dressed in surgeon's scrubs; one was attired like a judge and another wore a bikini and stockings. They decapitated a man standing in front her and her father. She felt faint and fell on her father who whispered, "be strong."
Washington joined one of the country's leading newspapers, The Inquirer. In her writing she was critical of the warring factions and assailed the atrocities they committed. She helped found a group, Liberian Women Initiated, to represent concernsof women during peace talks in 1994.
A year or two later, her stepbrother, Daniel Ajavon, was murdered. He was mentally retarded and mute. The family had sent him to the country. But rebels thought he was faking his condition and killed him, his father and his father's wife.
"I was in the paper, on the air. I was all over the place," Washington says. "Daniel, who never even spoke, he got killed."
Her paper was burned down three times in five years. In 1999 she sought political asylum in the United States because of its "history of freedom."
Here she became active in the Liberian community and got a job working with the mentally retarded. At first she was ambivalent about interrupting her studies at Temple's School of Social Administration to join the truth panel. But Sam Washington, her father, persuaded her.
"My father told me 'All your life you've been an advocate for change,' " Washington says. "This was the first time my father said for me to come back to Liberia."
Her work will not be without danger. Commission Chairman Jerome Verdier said many of the perpetrators of crimes are in positions of power and wealth in Liberia.
"We still have our doubts about Liberia," Washington says. "Hopefully just by hearing the stories we'll also be able to heal ourselves."
Addressing Security Council, President of Liberia expresses determination to confront painful past to enable nation to move forward
ReliefWeb
UN Security Council
March 17, 2006
Following a conflict that had touched virtually every family and every individual in the land, Liberia must confront the legacy of the past, so that the nation could go forward in the future, the country’s newly-elected President, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, said in an address to the Security Council this morning.
As the Council considered the situation in Liberia, she said the country was determined to address its painful past, including the question of impunity. For that reason, it had established the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, as mandated by the Accra Peace Agreement. An issue of major concern to Liberians, as well as the West African subregion, was the case of former President Charles Taylor, who was presently exiled in Nigeria. She had asked that country’s President, Olusegun Obasanjo, to consult with colleagues in the subregion regarding the resolution of that issue, in conformity with the requirements of the United Nations and the international community. Any proceedings on that question must be undertaken in an environment that protected fundamental human rights, she added.
She emphasized the imperative of providing tangible assurances to the Liberian people that democracy would bring change for the better. They must see early improvements in health and education, as well as economic opportunity, starting with jobs. Liberia would need the support of the United Nations and the international community to make the changes necessary to achieve those important national goals. Liberia, for its part, was committed to continued collaboration with its international partners in implementing the Governance and Economic Management Assistance Programme. At the same time, a capacity-building programme must be implemented to enhance Liberian ownership of that Programme, and help to transfer critical skills to Liberians, so as to strengthen national capacity on a long-term basis.
Click here for entire article and speech.
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Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL)
Offical Website of the Special Court for Sierra Leone
The Sierra Leone Court Monitoring Programme
SCSL Court Summary
Week ending in 10 March 2006
Press Release, Special Court for Sierra Leone: Prosecutor Welcomes Discussions to Facilitate the Transfer of Charles Taylor to the Special Court
Office of the Prosecutor
Special Court Chief Prosecutor Desmond de Silva QC
March 13, 2006
Special Court Chief Prosecutor Desmond de Silva QC welcomed today’s announcement by the Government of Liberia that discussions have begun between Nigerian President, Olusegun Obasanjo, and Liberian President, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, to end Charles Taylor’s temporary asylum in Nigeria.
“I am heartened by today’s announcement which stresses that both the leaders of Nigeria and Liberia are committed to seeing a resolution of this matter which has dragged on since August 2003”, said Mr. de Silva.
“Charles Taylor has been indicted by this international criminal tribunal for his role in the civil conflict in Sierra Leone”, said Mr. de Silva. “The trials of nine indictees at the Special Court are already at an advanced stage. Mr. Taylor will enjoy the same rights and safeguards provided to all other indictees under international law. The rights accorded to defendants before international criminal courts are more generous than those in many domestic jurisdictions”.
The Special Court is an independent tribunal established jointly by the United Nations and the Government of Sierra Leone. It is mandated to bring to justice those who bear the greatest responsibility for atrocities committed in Sierra Leone after 30 November 1996.
To date, the Prosecutor has indicted thirteen persons on various charges of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and other serious violations of international humanitarian law committed in Sierra Leone. Two indictments were withdrawn following the deaths of the accused. Nine indictees are currently in the custody of the Court and on trial.
The Prosecutor stressed that the Court’s mandate covers only persons responsible for crimes in Sierra Leone – not in Liberia. He emphasised that he had no intention of issuing indictments against active Liberian politicians or any other specific groups of people.
Witness Reveals Issa Sesay Had Child Bodyguards
AllAfrica.com - Concord Times (Freetown)
by Tanu Jalloh
March 6, 2006
TF1-113 testifying as Prosecution witness in the seventh session of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) trial at the Special Court, Friday revealed Issa Hassan Sesay had child bodyguards while in the jungle during the war but denied knowing any of their names.
"Issa Sesay took children called SBU (Small Boy Unit) as his bodyguards. They were very fearless and were quick to disgrace and strip someone naked. One could not go closer to them or anywhere near Issa Sesay lest they could take care of you," she said and claimed that Issa Sesay was present when sixty-seven men, suspected of been Kamajors, were summarily executed in Kailahun.
Responding, defence counsel for Issa Sesay as first accused in the RUF trial, Wayne Jordash put it to the witness that she is telling lies. He made reference to paragraph six of page 16980 of the witness' 2005 November 5th proofing note to deduce what he said were inconsistencies.
"Witness I want to put to you that your testimonies are fabricated lies against Issa Sesay. Your first statement misses out completely that Issa Sesay ever present at all in Kailahun during the said killings," defence counsel argued and continued, "It is my submission that you are telling lies because you received over Le 1million from the Witness and Victims Protection Unit of this court." He further suggested to the witness, "the Le 650, 000 you received as transport and Le427, 000 as medical allowances were part of your motivation to come here and testify. Did you pay your way to Freetown to tell the truth?" The witness denied ever receiving any such huge sum of money from the witness Protection Unit. Rather, the witness said she gets whatever allowances in bits.
"I have took an oath with the Holy Q'uran so I cannot tell lies. Besides I am a businesswoman and can take care of myself," she told the court.
Hearings continue
