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Wed., May. 14, 2008
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Justice for Victims
Commencing with the Nuremberg war crimes trials after World War II, the United States has championed international criminal law as a means to end impunity for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. The United States was instrumental in creating tribunals to prosecute the individuals responsible for genocide and ethnic cleansing in Yugoslavia and Rwanda and actively participated in the process that created the International Criminal Court (ICC)—the first permanent international criminal court to hold individuals accountable for crimes like genocide.
However, despite a noble U.S. legacy to bring war criminals to justice and protect human rights, the current U.S. administration has not recognized the valuable role that the ICC can play in ensuring justice and establishing the rule of law globally. It has, in contrast, aggressively sought to undermine the ICC.
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The current U.S. position vis-à-vis the Court is a particular tragedy for the people of Darfur in Western Sudan. In January 2003, a brutal campaign of genocide began in the war-torn region of Darfur. Gangs of Arab militia called the Janjaweed have singled out the non-Arab population of Darfur. Since then, more than 400,000 people have been killed and more than 2.4 million have been displaced in refugee camps in Sudan and neighboring Chad.
The ongoing atrocities in Darfur represent one of today’s greatest challenges for the global community to uphold human rights and bring war criminals to justice. Given its current mandate and legal authority, the ICC is the most qualified mechanism for securing justice for the victims in Darfur.
Experts from all fields agree that people are profoundly affected by atrocities such as ethnic cleansing and genocide. The psychological, physical, and collective effects of such acts resonate for generations. In order for people and communities to recover, transitional justice mechanisms like the ICC are needed to provide retribution and closure. The ICC can ensure justice by prosecuting those individuals most responsible for atrocities, as well as potentially deterring future crimes from being committed.
Despite a U.S. abstention, the UN Security Council voted to refer the situation in Darfur to the ICC in March 2005. While the ICC’s Chief Prosecutor, Luis Moreno Ocampo, has begun an intensive investigation into the atrocities committed in Darfur, the investigation has been difficult. The region’s inaccessibility, the political dynamics on the ground, and a complete lack of cooperation from the Sudanese government are among several challenges that the ICC faces. The Sudanese government (which is tacitly supporting the Janjaweed militia) has in fact developed two “special courts” to thwart the jurisdiction of the ICC.
Meanwhile, in Darfur, a campaign of genocide continues. More than 500 people are dying daily.
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In Darfur, and wherever war crimes are being committed, victims need a sense that the international community has answered their call for justice. U.S. public support for the ICC and its mandate is critical to the Court’s success. Student groups, advocates, legal professionals, and the general public must demonstrate their support for the Court by actively seeking and disseminating information about it, and pushing for a more positive approach by the U.S. government.
U.S. public support, coupled with the Prosecutor’s efforts, can bring justice to the countless victims in Darfur.
Golzar Kheiltash, Legal Analyst
Citizens for Global Solutions
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PERSPECTIVES HOMEPAGE: PREVENTING GENOCIDE
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