In public, Sudanese government officials have uniformly defended Bashir against the supposed depredations of the ICC. According to the Institute for War & Peace Reporting, however, they tell a different story in private: A minister with the president’s National Congress Party, NCP, said that members were left reeling by the announcement of an arrest warrant issued against Bashir by ICC judges...
I am happy to report -- though some readers will no doubt be unhappy to hear -- that the OTP has requested leave to appeal the Pre-Trial Chamber's decision on the genocide charges. The appeal cites my recent post on the majority's misunderstanding of the "reasonable grounds" standard, which is both a tremendous honor and a testament to the ever-increasing...
Speaking of what Obama should do about Darfur, The New Republic is currently hosting a fascinating roundtable discussion on precisely that question. Contributors include Alex de Waal, Eric Reeves, my former professor Alan Wolfe, Elizabeth Rubin, and Andrew Natsios. Not surprisingly, I agree with Eric Reeves, who both justifiably calls Darfur a genocide and defends the ICC arrest warrant. Sadly, though,...
Although Julian and I continue to disagree about the merits of the arrest warrant against Bashir, we agree on one thing: Obama's response to the expulsion of the humanitarian-aid groups has been appallingly weak. I'm not surprised -- I never bought into the cult of Obama, particularly its naive belief that his foreign policy and national-security policy would be fundamentally...
Two genocide bloggers at Change.org, Michelle F. and Michael Bear Kleinman, have been engaged for the past couple of weeks in an impassioned debate over the ICC's arrest warrant for Bashir. (See here and here, for the most recent installments.) Michelle, though certainly not unaware of its dangers, supports the warrant. Kleinman opposes it, blaming the ICC -- like many...
One of the most important issues in international criminal law is whether a genocidal policy or plan is an element of the crime of genocide. The ICTY Appeals Chamber held in Jelisic that it is not -- and that, as a result, genocide can be committed by a lone genocidaire. Some scholars disagree, most notably Bill Schabas, who pointed out...
Everything you need to know about the majority's dismissive attitude toward the Prosecution's evidence of genocide is contained in this paragraph: 179. In relation to the alleged insufficient resources allocated by the GoS to ensure adequate conditions of life in IDP Camps in Darfur, the Majority considers that the Prosecution's allegation is vague in light of the fact that, in addition...
Having now read the decision on the arrest warrant, I am more convinced than ever that the majority completely misunderstands Article 58's "reasonable grounds" requirement. The rationale for the majority's argument that there are no reasonable grounds to believe Bashir is responsible for genocide comes in paras. 158 and 159, concerning the Prosecution's proof of the Sudanese government's genocidal intent...
In what proved to be the worst kept secret in the world, the Pre-Trial Chamber (PTC) has decided to issue a warrant for Bashir's arrest on the war crimes and crimes against humanity charges, but not on the genocide charges. More substantive analysis will have to await an explanation of the PTC's reasoning. For now, a couple of quick thoughts. To...
My friend Sonya Sceats at Chatham House has asked me to announce the following event: International Law Discussion Group Monday 23 March 2009 17:30 to 19:00 Location: Chatham House, London Speakers include: Judge Bernard Ngoepe, African Court on Human and Peoples Rights; Sanji Monageng, Chairperson of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights; Nobuntu Mbelle, representative of civil society Chair: Lord Steyn Against the backdrop of human tragedies...
A few months ago, I mentioned in the comments to my now-infamous grape soda post that although I have no ethical qualms about advising Dr. Karadzic, I would not have defended Hitler if he had lived to see the inside of an Allied courtroom. That statement led to a number of pointed -- and understandable -- criticisms, such as this...
My apologies for the light posting lately. Getting settled in Melbourne -- and preparing to teach Australian criminal law -- has been very time consuming. My new email address is kheller@unimelb.edu.au. Feel free to write! I'll be back to posting regularly soon. In case you just can't wait that long -- hi, mom! -- here is a link to an hour-long...
