OTP Weekly Briefing Issue #90: Prosecution Files Closing Brief In Lubanga Case, Prosecutor Briefs UN Security Council On Darfur

New WCRO Report Examines Expediting Proceedings at the International Criminal Court

War Crimes Research Office Announcement
Originally Published 9 June 2011

Washington, DC June 9, 2011 —The War Crimes Research Office (WCRO) launched a new report on the International Criminal Court (ICC) yesterday at the Colombian Embassy in The Netherlands, at an event co-hosted by the Group of Friends of the ICC.  The report, Expediting Proceedings at the International Criminal Court, examines means of avoiding delays in proceedings before the ICC.

In its less than one decade of existence, the International Criminal Court (ICC) has achieved a great deal, opening formal investigations into six situations involving some of the most serious atrocities seen since the birth of the Court in 2002 and commencing cases against a number of the individuals believed to bear the greatest responsibility for those atrocities. However, nearly ten years after coming into being, the ICC has yet to complete a single trial, raising concerns among States Parties to the Rome Statute and others regarding the effective functioning of the Court.  Hence, while recognizing that the ICC is still a relatively young institution faced with a variety of novel substantive and procedural challenges, the aim of this report is to identify areas of unnecessary delays in proceedings currently before the Court that are likely to arise again, and suggest ways in which such delays may be avoided in the future.

The report is the fourteenth in the WCRO’s ICC Legal Analysis and Education Project, an initiative aimed at producing public, impartial, legal analyses of critical issues raised by the ICC’s early decisions. The ICC Legal Analysis and Education Project benefits from the insights of an Advisory Committee comprised of the following experts in international criminal law:

–        Judge Mary McGowan Davis, former Acting New York State Supreme Court Judge and Board Member of the International Judicial Academy and the American Association for the International Commission of Jurists;

–        Justice Unity Dow, Commissioner of the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), member of the ICJ’s Executive Committee and former judge of the Botswana High Court;

–        Siri Frigaard, Chief Public Prosecutor for the Norwegian National Authority for Prosecution of Organized and Other Serious Crimes and former Deputy General Prosecutor for Serious Crimes in East Timor;

–        Justice Richard Goldstone, former Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and Rwanda (ICTR); and

–        Chief Justice Phillip Rapoza of the Massachusetts Appeals Court and former Chief International Judge serving as Coordinator of the Special Panels for Serious Crimes in East Timor.

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For a hard copy of the report or more information, contact the War Crimes Research Office at warcrimes@wcl.american.edu, or +1 (202) 274-4067. The reports are also available online at http://www.wcl.american.edu/warcrimes/icc/icc_reports.cfm.

Man Sentenced To One Year In Labor Camp For Blog

By: Jessica Ties
Impunity Watch, Asia

BEIJING, China – In February China launched a campaign against dissent that has resulted in the detention of those criticizing the Chinese government without giving the accused a trial.

Chinese blogger Fang Hong was detained on April 24 and sentenced to serve one year in a Chongqing re-education labor camp for using a blog to mock the chief of Chongqing’s Communist party, Bo Xilai, despite his removal of the blog post following the orders of web censors.

Hong’s blog arose from Chongqing’s prosecution of a lawyer, Mr. Li, who defended a man being prosecuted for perjury. Mr. Li was himself charged after his former client testified that he had encouraged him to make false torture allegations. However, many believe that Mr. Li was framed by the government for opposing the campaign of Bo Xilai. Mr. Li was convicted and sentenced to two and a half years in prison.

The April 21 blog, which was posted to the Chinese social network Tencent, accused Bo Xilai of having excessive influence over Chongqing’s court system by comparing the case made against Mr. Li to excrement that Bo Xilai had delivered to Mr. Li who then returned it to Bo Xilai. The post then used Bo Xilai’s name in a sexual pun.

According to Fang Hong’s son, Fang Di, government discomfort with the blog post began to manifest when his father was told to go to the police station, his home was placed under surveillance and his electricity and gas were turned off.  A post on a human rights website states that Fang Di vanished Tuesday after he had notified his lawyer that he was at the public security police office.

Over the past year, Bo Xilai has become known for promoting a campaign to revive Maoism by reviving Mao-era songs and instigating a violent crackdown on corruption which has been opposed by many who believe such a revival to be dangerous. Last month, following the detention of Fang Hong, China set up a command center dedicated to controlling the information that can be found on the internet which has left many fearful that internet regulation will soon become even more severe.

Rights lawyer Ma Gangquan stated in an interview that “Education through labor itself is illegal because the practice has already been annulled by law. But currently, the punishment is still used by police…”

For more information, please see:

New York Times – Scatological Mockery of Chinese Official Brings Swift Penalty – 8 June 2011

Bloomberg – Chinese Blogger Jailed for a Year After Writing About Party Chief, FT Says – 7 June 2011

Financial Times – Dissent Lands Chinese Blogger in Labour Camp – 7 June 2011

Radio Free Asia – Netizen ‘Re-educated’ for Online Rant – 6 June 2011

OPPOSITION PARTIES IN YEMEN BATTLE WHILE THE CIVILIAN POPULATION HANGS IN THE BALANCE

by Adom M. Cooper
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

ZINJIBAR, Yemen–Only days after President Ali Abdullah Saleh left his country after being injured in an attack on his compound, opposition forces in Yemen have ramped up their offensive in an effort to see real change happen. High government officials in Yemen routinely blame the violence on al-Qaeda operatives on such attacks. President Saleh is currently in Saudia Arabia, recovering from burns over 40% of his body and a collapsed lung, according to a U.S. government official briefed on the situation.

In the major city of Zinjibar, reports have surfaced that both government troops and opposition fighters lost their lives during overnight clashes. The government’s troops moved into the city in an attempt to recover control of it, as major sections of the city have been held by opposition gunmen since late May.

The head of the tribal council in Taiz, Sheikh Hammoud Saeed Al-Mikhlafi, relayed this message to an AFP news agency correspondent via telephone:

“We the tribes, in support to the oppressed and in retaliation against the illegitimate government have deployed around government installations, which we now control in order to protect from thugs.”

In the country’s capital Sanaa, approximately 4,000 protesters gathered in front of Vice President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi’s residence, calling for President Saleh to create a transitional council to allow a new government to be born. A young activist named Omar al-Qudsi relayed this sentiment to a Reuters’ correspondent:

“We will remain in front of the residence of the vice president for 24 hours to pressure him for the formation of a transitional council. The era of Saleh has ended.”

The developing situation in Yemen has become a concern for Western powers due to its geographical location, its oil shipping lanes, and its oil-giant neighbor, Saudi Arabia. If the chaos in the country continues, al-Qaeda operatives could benefit the most from the freedom of movement. As recent as 9 June 2011, the US has launched airstrikes against designated al-Qaeda targets in Yemen to disrupt their efforts to gain from the ongoing turmoil.

Zinjibar was once home to approximately 50,000 residents. But as a result of the continual clashes, it is reported now to resemble a ghost town. The continual clashes of the Saleh regime and its opposition are coming at the expense of its residents, the very people that the government is supposed to protect. One can only wonder where this large number of displaced individuals has gone and if they are able to find access to basic resources, such as food and water.

For more information, please see:

Boston Globe-AP sources: US planes hit Yemeni militants-09 June 2011

Bloomberg-Yemen Opposition Seeks Formal Declaration That Saleh is No Longer President-08 June 2011

CNN-Witnesses: Tribal fighters take over major city in Yemen-08 June 2011

Al-Jazeera-Yemen opposition offer for talks rebuffed-07 June 2010

BBC Yemen-30 dead in Zanjibar and ‘clashes’ in Taiz-07 June 2010

Reuters-Yemen’s Saleh injuries believed more serious-07 June 2011