16 Apr 2014 - NPWJ News Digest on international criminal justice

NPWJ press release

Justice for Syria: NPWJ and NRPTT welcome French initiative on ICC Referral
By NPWJ, 16 Apr 2014

France is increasingly becoming the focal point for diplomatic activities around a possible referral of Syria to the ICC. Last week, France requested a meeting of the United Nations Security Council on the situation of human rights in Syria, during which UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay briefed the Council, reiterating previous statements that there is “massive evidence” that war crimes and crimes against humanity have been committed. Ms Pillay indicated that according to their information, responsibility lies at the highest level; she again called for a referral to the ICC. Yesterday, France convened an “Arria-formula” meeting, which is an informal, confidential gathering of Security Council members, to consider a January report by a team of legal and forensic experts about the alleged torture and execution of detainees by the Syrian Government.

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NPWJ in the news

UNPO Conference on Minority Rights in Ukraine: Political Crisis Gives New Meaning to Minority Protection and Concept of Self-Determination
UNPO, 10 Apr 2014


With the aim of addressing the sensitive, yet critical issue of minority protection in Ukraine in the burning context of the Crimean crisis, the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO), in collaboration with Members of the European Parliament Mrs. Inese Vaidere and Mr. László Tőkés, convened a conference entitled ‘Minority Rights in Ukraine: What is at Stake?’. The conference took place at the European Parliament in Brussels on April 9th 2014 and gathered a diverse audience of diplomats, experts, human rights defenders and high-ranking European politicians.
(…) Intervening in the second panel of the Conference, Mr. Niccolò A. Figà-Talamanca, Secretary General of No Peace Without Justice, stated that Ukraine should be proud to be a multi-ethnic country, and thus rid Russia of its current pretext, i.e. protection of Ukraine’s Russian minority, for invasive action.
An important conclusion to be drawn from this conference is that the political crisis in Ukraine has seriously challenged previous negotiations about accommodating minority rights and the very concept of self-determination. Furthermore, a consensus emerged throughout the conference on the necessity and urgency to take swift action in order to guarantee minority protection and cultural preservation in Ukraine. As the country is moving forward towards finalizing its association agreement with the EU, all stakeholders must step up their efforts to find concrete solutions to the escalating tensions in Ukraine. UNPO believes that this conference was a positive step in giving more attention to the dire situation facing Ukraine’s different minorities, but further action is urgently needed.

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Articles

Judge Says a Radical Cleric’s 9/11 Comments Can Be Used as Evidence
By Time Magazine, 16 Apr 2014

Jurors at the trial of radical Islamic cleric Mustafa Kamel Mustafa, who is also known as Abu Hamza al-Masri, will be privy to comments the suspect made praising the 9/11 terrorists attacks, a judge ruled this week. Mustafa is accused of trying to establish al Qaeda training camps in Oregon in the late 1990s and of aiding extremists who kidnapped a group of foreigners, including two American tourists, in Yemen in 1998. According to an undated interview with a British television station, Mustafa stated: “Everybody was happy when the planes hit the World Trade Center.”

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Rivals show force in eastern Ukraine before talks
By Reuters, 16 Apr 2014

Ukrainian government forces and separatist pro-Russian militia staged rival shows of force in eastern Ukraine on Wednesday amid escalating rhetoric on the eve of crucial four-power talks in Geneva on the former Soviet country's future. Government troops drove seven armored personnel carriers flying the Ukrainian flag into the town of Kramatorsk after securing control of a nearby airfield from the rebels on Tuesday, prompting Russian President Vladimir Putin to warn of the risk of civil war. 

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Libya's Justice Pandemonium
By Human Rights Watch, 14 Apr 2014

This past week, Libya's official television station broadcasted a series of videos featuring al-Saadi Gaddafi, a son of the deposed Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, from what appears to be his jail in Tripoli. Al-Saadi, who is awaiting trial and is wearing a blue prison suit, "apologizes" to Libya's people and the authorities for any "destabilization" he may have caused, asks for "forgiveness" and "confesses" to working against the current political system, while giving detailed accounts of his interactions with prominent figures in Libya before he was extradited.

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UN Security Council: Support Justice for Syria
By Human Rights Watch, 14 Apr 2014

(New York) –France’s steps at the UN Security Council toward an ICC referral for Syria give momentum to international efforts to ensure justice there, Human Rights Watch said today. Security Council members and other countries alike should express support for a referral of the situation in Syria to the International Criminal Court (ICC). They should impress on reluctant Council members, in particular Russia and China, the urgency of taking up the issue of accountability for crimes committed by all sides.

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