25 July 2018 - NPWJ News Digest on International Criminal Justice

Articles

Bemba to return to DR Congo August 1 ahead of polls
by Daily Monitor, 24 Jul 2018

Former DR Congo vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba, acquitted last month of war crimes, will return to the country on August 1 ahead of end-year elections, his party announced Monday.

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Extensive Report Suggests Myanmar Military Thoroughly Planned Crimes Against Humanity in Rakhine State
By Council on Foreign Relations , 23 Jul 2018

Last week, the research and advocacy group Fortify Rights, which has amassed considerable expertise on the situation in Rakhine State and the abuses perpetrated by the Myanmar armed forces, released probably its most comprehensive report yet. The report [PDF], based on interviews with more than two hundred survivors of the killings in Rakhine State and some two years of research, strongly suggests that the Myanmar military carefully laid the plans for massive crimes against Rohingya in Rakhine State in late 2017. In fact, some of the evidence collected in the report makes the situation in Myanmar seem reminiscent of the type of planning that occurred in Rwanda, prior to the genocide against Tutsis there in 1994. The Myanmar military has denied any and all allegations that it planned atrocities in Rakhine State. As the Guardian notes, “A military inquiry into the conduct of soldiers released its findings in November 2017, exonerating the army.”

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International Criminal Court Treaty Turns 20
by Human Rights Watch, 20 Jul 2018

This week was the 20th anniversary of the adoption of the Rome Statute, the treaty that led to the creation of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague. The court, with its mandate to prosecute atrocity crimes, has a more crucial role than ever. But it also faces important challenges, some that need to be addressed by the court itself, and others – like resources, arrests, and political support – that require action by its member countries.

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Nepal: Draft bill on transitional justice falls short of international law and standards
by Amnesty International, 20 Jul 2018

The legitimacy and viability of the government of Nepal’s draft "Bill to Amend the Act on Commission on Investigation of Disappeared Persons, Truth and Reconciliation, 2014” must be questioned due to the lack of a meaningful consultation process, and serious shortcomings when evaluated against international law and standards, Amnesty International, the International Commission of Jurists and TRIAL International said today in their preliminary comments on the draft bill.

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