International Criminal Court to Probe Darfur
The UN refers to Darfur, Sudan, as one of the worse humanitarian crises on the planet, with a high number of murders, mass rapes and other crimes. This past March, the UN Security Council directed prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Moreno Ocampo, to investigate allegations. The UN handed over evidence and directed Ocampo to suspects. Unfortunately, Ocampo has not been able to interview witnesses inside Sudan, and has had to rely on witnesses that have escaped the country. Further, he doesn't think he has the ability to protect witnesses that come forward, especially since some of the suspects are within Sudan's government and military. There seems to be little hope for the ICC to make inroads into the atrocities being committed in Durfur.
It is interesting to note that the ICC, created in 1998 by the Rome Treaty, has only been ratified by 100 countries so far. It was specifically created as a permanent global war crimes tribunal to try individuals for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity committed after July 1, 2002. One of the holdouts for ratification is the United States, which specifically opposes the International Criminal Court because it could be used to try US soldiers who have committed crimes in war zones where the US military operates. Further, the US has been busy trying to sign pacts with other nations to shield its citizens from being prosecuted by the ICC for crimes.
Related reading:
It is interesting to note that the ICC, created in 1998 by the Rome Treaty, has only been ratified by 100 countries so far. It was specifically created as a permanent global war crimes tribunal to try individuals for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity committed after July 1, 2002. One of the holdouts for ratification is the United States, which specifically opposes the International Criminal Court because it could be used to try US soldiers who have committed crimes in war zones where the US military operates. Further, the US has been busy trying to sign pacts with other nations to shield its citizens from being prosecuted by the ICC for crimes.
Related reading:
- Entrenching Impunity: Government Responsibility for International Crimes in Darfur -- by the Human Rights Watch
Too little too fucking late. Kristof of the NYT has been reporting on Darfur forever. It took them this long? Cripes! How many more men, women and children have to be tortured and maimed before this is taken care of?
ReplyDeleteThe pace at which the world moves ... it would be good if we could just get to the point where countries like Sudan can have horrible disfiguring scars instead of a bloody open wound.
ReplyDelete