25 March 2015 - NPWJ News Digest on international criminal justice

NPWJ press release

ICC: NPWJ and the NRPTT welcome the ICC decision to hold part of the Bosco Ntaganda trial in the DRC
by NPWJ, 20 Mar 2015

On 19 March 2015, Trial Chamber VI of the International Criminal Court recommended that the opening statements of Mr Bosco Ntaganda trial take place in Bunia in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Following this decision, the ICC Presidency will consult with the DRC authorities and decide on this matter in consultation with the ICC judges. Mr Ntaganda is the former alleged Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Force Patriotiques pour la Libération du Congo and stands accused before the ICC of 13 counts of war crimes and five crimes against humanity allegedly committed in Ituri, DRC, in 2002-2003. Bunia is sufficiently close to the majority of victims of crimes and the only location considered appropriate by the Court for security and logistical reasons.
 

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Bahrain: Joint Statement condemning threats of reprisals against Human rights defenders Husain Abdulla and Abdulnabi Al-Ekri at the Human Rights Council
by NPWJ, 19 Mar 2015

 On 15 March 2015 during a side event that was organised by Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB), in the framework of the 28th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council held in Geneva, human rights defenders Husain Abdulla, Executive Director of ADHRB, and Abdulnabi Al-Ekri, President of Bahrain Transparency Society and member of the Bahrain Human Rights Observatory (BHRO), were reportedly threatened by MP Khalid Al-Shaer, Chairman of the Human Rights Committee in the Bahraini Parliament. This resulted in the need to bring UN security to prevent the MP from attending the event. Al-Shaer reportedly threatened Al-Ekri that he will “be discussing things at the public prosecution” when returning to Bahrain. In addition to telling Abdulla that “I came to Geneva to see you,” he accused him of using ADHRB to “defame his homeland and spread lies.” He then added, “I know that you still have family residing in Bahrain and you can imagine what would have already happened to them [his family], if the government was truly bad."

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Articles

Ruto and Sang Trial Resumes After Seven-Week Break
by International Justice Monitor, 23 Mar 2015

Today, the International Criminal Court (ICC) trial of Deputy President William Samoei Ruto and former journalist Joshua arap Sang, which resumed following a seven-week break, was held entirely in private session. Trial Chamber V(a) had ordered Monday’s sitting to hear the testimony of Witness 727. The judges made this order on February 17 after the witness had failed to honor previous commitments to give his testimony. It is unclear whether the witness appeared before the chamber via video link on Monday as the court had ordered. The location of the witness has not been publicly disclosed.
 

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Syrian Insurgents 'Mimicking Ruthlessness' of Army: Rights Group
by The New York Times, 23 Mar 2015

 Insurgent groups in Syria have carried out scores of indiscriminate attacks that have killed and maimed civilians in violation of the laws of war, a Human Rights Watch report said on Monday. The report said armed groups could not point to abuses by government forces and allied militias to justify their own violence, which it said had often targeted areas with a high concentration of religious minorities. "We've seen a race to the bottom in Syria, with rebel groups mimicking the ruthlessness of government forces with devastating consequences for civilians," said Nadim Houry, HRW's deputy Middle East director.

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TFV commits to draft reparations plan for victims in Lubanga case
by ICC, 20 Mar 2015

The Trust Fund for Victims (TFV) at the International Criminal Court (ICC) is firmly dedicated to ensure that the right of victims to reparations under the Rome Statute becomes a meaningful reality. More than eleven years have elapsed since the sufferings of victims in the Lubanga case. The time has come to deliver on their rightful expectations. At its 12th Annual Meeting held from 17-19 March 2015 in The Hague, the Board of Directors of the TFV had the timely opportunity to consider the very first final reparations order issued by the ICC Appeals Chamber on 3 March 2015 in the case against Mr Thomas Lubanga, who has been convicted for the conscription, enlistment and use of child soldiers under the age of 15 in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). To assure an appropriate response to the harm suffered by victims in this case, the TFV reaffirms its commitment to consult with victims, their communities and other stakeholders in the course of drafting an implementation plan for reparations, which is due on 3 September 2015.
 

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Ntaganda case: Trial Chamber VI recommends holding the opening of trial in DRC; decision to be made in due course
by ICC, 19 Mar 2015

 On 19 March 2015, Trial Chamber VI of the International Criminal Court (ICC) recommended to the Presidency of the Court that the opening statements of the trial in the Ntaganda case be held in Bunia, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).  The ICC Presidency will now consult with the DRC authorities and make a decision on this matter, in consultation with the Trial Chamber, in due course. The Chamber states that it is with the intention of bringing the judicial work of the Court closer to the most affected communities that it is making this recommendation to the Presidency. Prior to making this recommendation, the Chamber received a report of the ICC Registry on the feasibility and security implications of holding part of the trial in the DRC or some nearby location, as well as the responses of the Office of the Prosecutor, the Defence, and the Legal Representatives for Victims.

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