November 2019

By Kelly Van Eeten and Francisca De Castro - Junior Research Associates PILPG-NL

Monthly News Update: Southern Cameroons – November 2019

This news update deals with the developments which have taken place in the Cameroons in November 2019. This includes both national and international events relating to the ongoing conflict.

Humanitarian Crisis

Cameroon | Ongoing Violence leads to Humanitarian Emergency

The ongoing violence in the North-West and South-West regions of Cameroon has grown into a humanitarian emergency which has already affected nearly1.9 million people.  This is a 15-fold increase compared to the figures in 2017.  Insecurity and poor road access have left about 65 percent of both these regions inaccessible to aid workers. As a result, the aid workers face a higher risk of being taken hostage.

Moreover, “thousands of children in Cameroon are living in fear. They need peace so that they can resume their education and reclaim their future,” said UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore. “When children are out of school, they face a higher risk of recruitment by armed groups, child marriage, early pregnancy and other forms of exploitation and abuse.”  Reports suggest that over 855,000 children are out of school.  

Since the start of the academic year, about 90 percent of the public primary schools and 77 percent of public secondary schools have remained closed or non-operational in the above discussed regions. UNICEF gives the fear of violence as a reason, since parents are afraid to send their children to school and the staff of the schools is afraid to work. In some areas community-run learning activities have been introduced.

Attacks on health care centres

Southern Cameroons | Attacks on Health Centres Leads to Severe Damages but No Deaths

Health care centres have again been the centre of attacks. The health centre in Buea was burnt down on October 30 and 31. Security sources now say that separatist groups initiated the attack against the centre.  No casualties were recorded, but there is significant material damage. However, this is not the first time health centres have been attacked. In February, armed men burnt down a hospital and 7 hospital vehicles, which resulted in 4 casualties.

US Cuts Cameroon Trade Privileges Over Rights Abuses

United States | US Stops Funding Cameroon

In early November, the Trump administration announced that it intends to cut trade benefits for Cameroon from January 1, 2020 onwards, citing human rights violations in the country.  With this, Cameroon lost its privileged access to the US market  under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).  

Furthermore, the United States does not share the Cameroonian government’s enthusiasm on the “success” of the National Dialogue encounter.  Tibor Nagy, the Assistant Secretary for the US Department of State’s Bureau of African Affairs affirmed the need for a true dialogue and a transfer of powers to the region.  He warned against moderate Cameroonians leaning towards secession, and emphasized the importance of “something of sufficient interest for those who remain in the moderate point of view”.

February elections

Cameroon | Elections Will Take Place in 2020

Cameroon is scheduled to have parliamentary and municipal elections on February 9, 2020.The 2018 presidential election triggered a major political crisis and some fear that these elections will create even more chaos.  Kamto, the opposition leader in Cameroon, announced that his party (MRC) would boycott the February’s legislative and local elections.  He called on other opposition parties, as well as civil society organizations and religious groups to join the boycott.

November 2019

Monthly News Updates: Domestic Prosecution of International Crimes (DPIC) - November 2019

By Raghavi Viswanath and Erez Roman Junior Research Associates PILPG-NL

November was an important month for universal jurisdiction. Notably, victim groups initiated proceedings for the prosecution of core crimes in Norway, Sweden, and Argentina. This post provides an overview of some of these developments, and compiles updates on other domestic prosecutions of international crimes.

EUROPE

France | France's Lafarge has charge of crimes against humanity lifted

A French appeal court rejected a preliminary charge of “complicity in crimes against humanity” brought against cement maker Lafarge, part of Lafarge Holcim, over its operations in Syria.  But the French company still faces investigation into charges of “financing terrorism”, endangerment of people’s lives and violation of sanctions. (Nov. 7, 2019).

Belgium | Rwanda official on trial in Belgium over 1994 genocide

The trial of Fabien Neretse, a former Rwandan official and alleged Hutu militia leader, has commenced in Belgium.  Neretse is accused of committing genocide in Rwanda in 1994.  This is the fifth trial in Belgium in relation to the conflict in Rwanda of 1994 but the first in which the accused has been charged with the crime of genocide.  (Nov. 4, 2019).

Sweden | Iranian citizen arrested for crimes against humanity 

An Iranian citizen has been jailed in Sweden on the suspicion of carrying out crimes against humanity and murder in Tehran between July 28, 1988, and August 31, 1988.  His alleged crimes correspond with the end of Iran’s long war with Iraq, which began when Saddam Hussein invaded Iran in 1980.  (Nov.13, 2019).

Bosnia-Herzegovina | Former Serb soldiers plead guilty to crimes against humanity

Former Bosnian Serb Army soldiers Radovan Paprica and Slavko Ognjenovic pleaded not guilty at the Bosnian state court to crimes against humanity including rape and sexual abuse in the Foca area during the war in 1992.  (Nov.13, 2019).

Norway | Syrian torture survivors file complaint against the Syrian military

Five torture survivors from Syria have filed a criminal complaint in Norway against officials from the Syrian intelligence services and military.  The victims, supported by several human rights groups, have requested Norwegian prosecutors to investigate the allegations of torture and crimes against humanity.  17 officials have been identified as being involved in the alleged crimes committed in 14 different detention facilities.  (Nov.12, 2019).

Netherlands | Dutch state not obliged to take back Islamic State children

The Hague appeals court ruled that the Dutch state is not obliged to actively help repatriate the young children of women who left the Netherlands and joined Islamic State in Syria.

A lower court earlier this month had said the government must actively help repatriate 56 children living in poor conditions in camps in Syria.  (Nov. 22, 2019).

SOUTH AMERICA

Guatemala | Former Guatemalan army chief accused of crimes against humanity and genocide

Guatemala’s Attorney General’s Office presented its indictments against two of the three senior military officials charged in a new grave crimes case regarding the Maya Ixil genocide, which occurred during the military government of Romeo Lucas García (1978-1982). The indictments of Benedicto Lucas García, the former chief of the General Staff of the Guatemalan Army (and brother of the president), and retired General Manuel Callejas y Callejas, the former chief of military intelligence, occurred as part of a first declaration hearing that had previously been postponed.  (Nov.12, 2019)

Argentina | Complaint filed in Argentina over ethnic cleansing of Rohingya Muslims

Former democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi is among several top Myanmar officials named on Wednesday (Nov 13) in a case filed in Argentina for crimes against Rohingya Muslims, the first time the Nobel Laureate has been legally targeted over the crisis.  Rohingya and Latin American human rights groups submitted the lawsuit in Argentina under the principle of universal jurisdiction, a legal concept enshrined in many countries' laws.  (Nov.13, 2019).

ASIA

Bangladesh | Crimes Against Humanity: SC upholds Azhar’s death penalty

The Supreme Court of Bangladesh upheld the death sentence of top Jamaat-e-Islami leader ATM Azharul Islam for his involvement in genocide and crimes against humanity during the 1971 Liberation War.  A four-member bench of the SC’s Appellate Division, headed by Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain, delivered the verdict around five years after the International Crimes Tribunal-1 handed down capital punishment to Azhar for the crimes committed in Rangpur.  (Nov. 01, 2019).

NORTH AMERICA

United States | Trump clears three service members in war crimes cases

US President Donald Trump has cleared three service members who were involved in war crimes in Afghanistan and Iraq.  With the presidential executive order, Trump issued pardons for two soldiers, First Lt. Clint Lorance and Army Major Mathew Golsteyn, and reversed disciplinary action against Navy SEAL Edward R. Gallagher.  (Nov.15, 2019).

AFRICA

Democratic Republic of Congo | Congo court sentences warlord to life for crimes against humanity

A military court in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) sentenced Frederic Masudi Alimasi to life in prison on Tuesday after a two-month trial.  Alimasi, also known as Kokodikoko, is head of the Raia Mutomboki, one of the most powerful militia groups operating in the Eastern DRC.  He and four others were arrested in April on multiple charges including murder, rape and enslavement committed against the civilian populations of two villages from February to August 2018.  Two of the other militiamen were sentenced to 15 and 20 years in prison, respectively, and the remaining two were acquitted because none of the victims mentioned them.  (Nov. 21, 2019).

ASP18 Side Event: A Civil Society Conversation on ICC Review: Towards a Victim-Centered Assessment of ICC Performance

18TH SESSION OF THE ASSEMBLY OF STATES PARTIES TO THE ROME STATUTE

Day 1 (2 December 2019)

Name of the Event: A Civil Society Conversation on ICC Review: Towards a Victim-Centered Assessment of ICC Performance (Side Event co-hosted by the American Bar Association’s International Criminal Court Project, International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and Human Rights Watch)

Overview by: Tanushree Nigam, Junior Research Associate PILPG-NL

Summary of the Event:

“If we are not protecting the victims who are speaking up against their regimes then we are not doing our job seriously"

The event brought together civil society experts working in the conflict situations of Ivory Coast, Libya, Sierra Leone, and Georgia to bring to focus possible ways of making the International Criminal Court more victim centric in its approach. Ambassador Stephen Rapp (ABA Board member and former US Ambassador-at-large for Global Criminal Justice) started the discussion by highlighting the importance of the job of civil society groups using the Milosevic example with regard to al-Bashir. He mentioned that States should be mindful of the complementarity principle and focus on capacity building of local groups and enabling effective assessors. He stressed that this is essential due to limited funds at the Court’s disposal.

Drissa Traore (FIDH Secretary General and Honorary President of the Mouvement ivoirien des droit humains), Marwa Mohamed (Head of Advocacy and Outreach at the Lawyers for Justice in Libya), and Nino Jomarjidze (Strategic Litigation Coordinator at the Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association) continued the discussion with case studies of the different regions in conflict. The example of Ivory Coast was used to emphasize on 1) the importance of having written judgments by the Court. The panelist said that not doing this created a trust deficit in the minds of the victims and 2) effective coordination between domestic bodies and the Court to not not aggravate conflicts further. The experts made a reference to the Libyan situation to emphasize on the importance of purposive interpretation to enable access to justice to the widest group of victims. The Sierra Leone example was used to stress timely investigation in conflict situations and the importance of transparency and openness to bring victims issues at the forefront. The panelists also lauded Georgian civil society groups for being effective intermediaries between the Court and victims. All panelists stressed the importance of independent review of the Court by independent experts and lauded the proposal to bring a resolution in this regard as the ICC is the only hope for victims in regions of conflicts where local judicial systems are often ineffective. 

The panelists offered various solutions to make the approach of the court more victim centric. They said that independent reviewers should be given enough time and man power to carry out their own investigations. Complementarity and bringing together different perspectives to the conflict was reiterated. They mentioned the importance of breaking the language barrier to make the victims feel more included and that the Court should pay special attention to the priorities of victims. Lastly and most importantly, the panelists stressed on the importance of increasing the budgetary allocation for the Trust Fund for Victims by State parties.

ASP18 Side Event: The Future of International Criminal Justice and Africa: Strengthening the Role of the International Criminal Court in the African Region

18TH SESSION OF THE ASSEMBLY OF STATES PARTIES TO THE ROME STATUTE

Day 1 (2 December 2019)

Name of the Event: The Future of International Criminal Justice and Africa: Strengthening the Role of the International Criminal Court in the African Region (Side Event co-hosted by Sierra Leone and the Coalition for the International Criminal Court (CICC))

Overview by: Signe Wolf Børm, Junior Research Associate, PILPG-NL

Main Highlights:

• This side event focused on the necessity of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to provide victim protection. 

• It was furthermore deemed necessary to widen the scope of the ICC in the sense that it should consider inter state cooperation in the adjudication of international crimes, considering Part 9 of the Rome Statute. 

Summary of the Event:

The representative of Sierra Leone opened the side event by welcoming the African Union (AU) states representatives. 33 States Parties to the Rome Statute are African, making it the largest geographical group. In light of the discussions on reforming the ICC, it was underlined that the considerations of the AU are interesting considering the wide scale representation it has, and in particular considering the large amount of ICC cases in the AU, a large number of civil society organisations, but also victims which the court aims to protect. The AU transitional justice policy’s purpose is achieving sustainable peace, justice, reconciliation, social cohesion, and healing of the victims of masatoricities. These matters impact the manner in which conversations around the ICC are held. The AU states were urged to consider the future perspective of the ICC and how it could be improved.

The panelists proceeded to reflect upon experiences within their countries and based on this provided recommendations on what to improve within the framework of the ICC. 

First, the ambassador of Sierra Leone Michael, Imran Kanu, gave a speech in which he pointed out a multitude of relevant and interesting things. Firstly, he stated that the clouds were clearing, pointing out that the dialogue between the AU and the ICC has improved. He furthermore pointed out that engagement should be taken further than purely to the Hague to ensure the proper functioning of the ICC and secure the internationalism of the institution.

Next, the representative from Côte d'Ivoire highlighted it was deemed necessary to improve the outreach strategy, which should be carried out not only by the civil society organizations but also by the states through training and capacity building. He further mentioned that it is necessary that victims are at the center of the ICC, as well as it being necessary to improve investigations.

Hereafter a representative from the victim support initiative in Uganda reflected on experiences from Uganda. The main point to be drawn from this speech was that one of the future strengths of the ICC might be that future ICC cases are dealt with under national law. It was further highlighted that outreach should have a greater involvement at the trial stage.

Lambert Nigarura representing Burundi spoke next, pointing out that, the protection of witnesses and victims has not been a strong point of the ICC. Lambert furthermore pointed out Burundi’s withdrawal from the ICC and its bilateral agreements with other countries, as well as the country rebuilding its relationship with France. 

Hereafter the Lybian situation was considered and the participants were asked, “why is the ICC not investigating the situation in Libya ́ ́. The representative furthermore pointed out that the ICC has an unclear victim protection.

At the very end the representative of South Africa presented his arguments which particularly concerned the likely impact of its withdrawal from the Rome Statute. It was stated that the status concerning the possible withdrawal now is that an act has to be approved by the South Afriacan people to make the withdrawal valid. It was pointed out that regardless of whether South Africa remains in the ICC or not, they will continue contributing towards dialogue and be involved with the ICC. The representative also addressed the international arrest warrant that had been issued against former president Al-Bashir, which means that he should have been arrested while he was in South Africa, as also established by the high court and the supreme court. The representative of South Africa lastly pointed out that it, based on Part 9 of the Rome Statute, hopes states will be able to work together to effectively carry out their mandates and to secure the proper prosecution of international crime, as this has not been made use of yet despite it being provided for under the Rome Statute.

ASP18 Second Plenary Meeting: General Debate

18TH SESSION OF THE ASSEMBLY OF STATES PARTIES TO THE ROME STATUTE

Day 1  (2 December 2019)

Name of the Event: Second Plenary Meeting (General Debate) 

Overview by: Tanushree Nigam, Signe Wolf Børm, and Leonore ten Hulsen, Junior Research Associates PILPG-NL

Main Highlights:

Topics discussed by States Parties included:

• Cooperation 

• Independence and impartiality of the Court

• Review of the Court by independent experts

• Elections of the new Prosecutor and Judges 

• Threats against the Court

Summary of the Event:

During the first part of the General Debate, common topics discussed by States Parties were cooperation, complementarity, and universality of the Rome Statute. Various States Parties thanked the Court, ASP, and other States Parties for their long-term commitment to the court and the international criminal order to ensure international justice. South-Africa, however, expressed apprehension at the role of the Court as it believed that its peacemaking efforts in Africa were being hindered by the Court’s active role in the region. South Africa also mentioned that its proposal to withdraw from the Rome Statute is still under deliberation by its parliament.

Almost all states urged non member states to sign the Statute. Many States Parties congratulated Kiribati on acceding to the Rome Statute. Additionally, several states, including Austria, Luxembourg, Sweden, and Ireland expressed support for the amendment proposed by Switzerland to include the starvation of civilians in non-international armed conflict as a war crime under Article 8 of the Rome Statute.

Zambia pointed out that the contradictory interpretations of Article 27 and 98 of the Rome Statute should be settled to ensure effective cooperation between the parties. In this regard, it called for the creation of a working group of experts to look into the interpretations. 

Palestine's Minister of Foreign Affairs expressed concern at the length of the preliminary examination in Palestine. He stated that the protracted nature of the examination has contributed to impunity for atrocity crimes.

States, including Bangladesh and Sweden, noted the atrocities committed against the Rohingya people and lauded the ICC for its action in the situation in Bangladesh/Myanmar. 

Many states also underlined the importance of victim participation and reparations and welcomed the increased focus on victims and reaffirmed their commitment by announcing their voluntary contributions to the Trust Fund for Victims. 

Some States Parties referred to the efficiency and budget of the Court. States Parties spoke about the fact that the budget should be clear and sufficient. Korea argued that budgetary effectiveness and discipline must be a core priority. Slovakia mentioned that effective means for financing should be ensured, because without resources the Court will not be able to fulfill its global justice goals.

Moreover, the idea of an independent review of the ICC was welcomed by various states, including Slovenia, Ireland, Luxembourg, Norway, Denmark, and Vanuatu. Korea argued that the review of the ICC should be state-party driven. States including Botswana and South Africa also expressed support for the Resolution in this regard to improve the performance of the Court.

The election of the next Prosecutor and Judges in 2020 was touched upon by several states, including Ireland, Uruguay, France, Norway, Malawi, Germany, Ecuador, Denmark, Austria, the UK, and The Netherlands, urging for the election to be fair and transparent. Ecuador proposed having public hearings as a part of the process of electing judges. 

A number of States Parties, such as The Netherlands, Austria, Iceland, Ireland, Trinidad and Tobago, Sweden, Uruguay, and Slovenia referred to the Court’s work with regard to sexual and gender based violence, and stressed the importance of eradicating SGBV.

Finally, Vanuatu called for the “radical idea” to amend the Rome Statute to include ‘ecocide’ as a crime under ICC jurisdiction. Vanuatu requested other member states to consider this idea and to give it proper consideration. They argued that it is in the interest of the international community to prosecute climate damaging acts as climate change poses an existential threat to humanity. 

Points of action for the next meeting: 

States Parties Colombia, Sierra Leone, El Salvador, Bulgaria, Timor-Leste, Australia, and Andorra were supposed to make statements at the second plenary meeting but their statements are postponed to tomorrow’s third Plenary Meeting.