Who wrote the UDHR? | openDemocracy

A good question–and the answer is not Eleanor Roosevelt:

In fact, as Waltz shows, Roosevelt supplied neither the text nor the substantive ideas that shaped the UDHR. Ricardo Alfaro, former President of Panama, proposed the idea and first draft of such a Declaration, which was taken up by many others including public intellectuals such as HG Wells. While early drafts were worked on by Rene Cassin of France, along with many US lawyers, each clause was voted on by member states, and many suggestions came from drafters from small and newly de-colonised states. The Latin American states promoted  social and economic rights, while the Soviet Union concentrated on racial discrimination – a convenient way of bashing the US, as well as colonial states.

The  desire for emancipation of all, emphasising that rights applied to everyone everywhere, emerged as a major concern. Significant additions were made by newly de-colonised states regarding, slavery, discrimination, the rights of women and the right to national self determination.

via Who wrote the Universal Declaration of Human Rights ? | openDemocracy.

Prosecutors Describe Khmer Rouge Leaders’ ‘Organized and Systematic’ Atrocities – NYTimes.com

A glimpse inside the nature of Khmer Rouge evil:

In an almost daylong presentation, Ms. Chea Leang, the co-prosecutor, asserted several times that the atrocities she described were part of an “organized and systematic” bureaucracy with a “high level of integration” that kept the defendants constantly informed of the actions of their subordinates at all levels.

“These crimes were committed in accordance with the Communist Party center,” she said. “The accused participated in the giving of these orders or were fully aware of the crimes. They failed to act in their capacity as superiors to prevent the crimes or to punish the perpetrators.”

via Prosecutors Describe Khmer Rouge Leaders’ ‘Organized and Systematic’ Atrocities – NYTimes.com.

Criminal Court in Indirect Talks With Qaddafi Son, Prosecutor Says – NYTimes.com

Suddenly international justice might look better for Seif Qaddafi:

There has been speculation that Mr. Qaddafi, who has eluded capture by the rebels who overthrew Colonel Qaddafi in late August, may have undergone a change of heart about turning himself over to court custody after his father was captured, brutalized and killed while in rebel custody on Oct. 20 in his hometown Surt, an event captured on cellphone videos and widely circulated on the Internet.

“Through intermediaries, we have informal contact with Seif,” Mr. Moreno-Ocampo said through a spokesman. “The office of the prosecutor has made it clear that if he surrenders to the ICC, he has the right to be heard in court, he is innocent until proven guilty. The judges will decide.”

via Criminal Court in Indirect Talks With Qaddafi Son, Prosecutor Says – NYTimes.com.

The ‘Enabling Violation’ of International Adoption – NYTimes.com

Are children in the developing world “better off” if they are adopted by people in the US and Europe?  This Sunday opinion article explores issue unresolved by the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption.

There is no easy way in which the adopted child’s imaginary domain can be facilitated, although dual citizenship seems to be a minimum guarantee to adopted children, so that they can return to their country of birth if they so desire. Ultimately, international adoption is profoundly implicated in relations of inequality that cannot be addressed on the basis of one family alone. Perhaps, then, if we at least recognize international adoption as an enabling violation, we can avoid the worst kinds of self-righteous humanitarianism, and find ourselves pointed towards a struggle for a more just world.

via The ‘Enabling Violation’ of International Adoption – NYTimes.com.

IntLawGrrls: The Convention Against Torture and W

Should former President George W. Bush be indicted for torture?

On September 29 and October 14 of this year, the New York-based Center for Constitutional Rights and the Canadian Centre for International Justice, which has offices in Ottawa and Vancouver, made joint requests for the indictment of former President Bush for his role in the authorization and oversight of acts of torture committed pursuant to his administration’s well-documented torture program. The request for indictment was based upon Canada’s obligations under the Convention Against Torture, on Canadian Criminal Code § 269.1, which addresses criminal liability for torture, and on Canadian Supreme Court precedent condemning the acts of torture that took place at Bagram Air Base, secret “black sites,” through extraordinary renditions, and at Guantánamo against detainees in U.S. custody. The legal grounds for liability under the Canadian Criminal Code are based on evidence that Mr. Bush ordered, authorized, condoned, planned or otherwise aided and abetted acts of torture, or, at a minimum, that he failed to prevent or punish subordinates who committed these acts.

CCR and CCIJ delivered over 4,000 pages of exhibits, admissions and evidentiary materials together with joint letters and a 70-page legal brief and draft indictment to Canada’s Attorney General, Robert Nicholson. Given the overwhelming documentation, there are reasonable grounds to believe that Mr. Bush is responsible for acts of torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading-treatment and enforced disappearances, violations that took place during the CIA’s secret detention program between 2002 and 2009.

via IntLawGrrls: The Convention Against Torture, the Canadian Criminal Code & the Prosecution of George W. Bush.

What Palestinian Statehood Would Mean Legally?

Implications of Statehood from the ASIL “Insight” author John Cerone:

Confirmation of statehood by the General Assembly, even if not providing member state status to Palestine, could have important legal consequences.

If Palestine is a state, then it is entitled to all of the rights of states under international law.[20] These rights include immunities of the state and its officials, protection from the use of force by other states, the right of self-defense and collective self-defense in the event of an armed attack against it, plenary jurisdiction over its territory, the prohibition of intervention in matters essentially within its domestic jurisdiction, the possibility of membership in other intergovernmental organizations and specialized agencies, and full treaty-making capacity.

Statehood could also provide access to international courts and other dispute settlement mechanisms.  While it cannot be a party to the Statute of the International Court of Justice “ICJ” without Security Council approval, it may be able to access the ICJ under Article 352 of its Statute and pursuant to Security Council Resolution 9 1946, which allows states not parties to the ICJ Statute to file a declaration accepting the Court’s jurisdiction.

A collective determination of statehood could also have more immediate legal implications.  During the Israel–Gaza armed conflict in late 2008 and early 2009, the Palestinian National Authority lodged a declaration with the Registrar of the International Criminal Court “ICC” stating that it recognizes “the jurisdiction of the Court for the purpose of identifying, prosecuting and judging the authors and accomplices of acts committed on the territory of Palestine since 1 July 2002 [the entry into force date of the Rome Statute, the treaty establishing the ICC].”  Article 123 of the ICC Statute allows for a “State which is not a Party to this Statute” to accept the exercise of the Court’s jurisdiction over crimes committed by its nationals or within its territory.  The ICC Prosecutor has since been examining “first, whether the declaration accepting the exercise of jurisdiction by the Court meets statutory requirements, and second, whether crimes within the Court’s jurisdiction have been committed.”[21] If Palestine is a State, it can enable the ICC to exercise jurisdiction over crimes committed on its territory, even if those crimes have been committed by nationals of states that are not States Parties to the Rome Statute.

via The American Society of International Law.

Justice Beyond the Hague: Supporting the Prosecution of International Crimes in National Courts

Tomorrow’s Council on Foreign Relations conference call with David Kaye, UCLA School of Law will focus on the issue of international justice in domestic courts.  Suggested readings:

1) David Kaye, “Justice Beyond the Hague: Supporting the Prosecution of International Crimes in National Courts,” Council Special Report No. 61, Council on Foreign Relations, June 2011.

2) Deborah Jerome, “Will the ICC Help Defeat Qaddafi?” Analysis Brief, Council on Foreign Relations, June 28, 2011.

3) David Kaye, “Who’s Afraid of the International Criminal Court?”  Foreign Affairs,  May/June 2011.

4) Vijay Padmanabhan, “From Rome to Kampala: The U.S. Approach to the 2010 International Criminal Court Review Conference,” Council Special Report No. 55, Council on Foreign Relations, April 2010.

5) “Pursuing International Justice: A Conversation with Luis Moreno-Ocampo,” Transcript, Council on Foreign Relations, February 5, 2010.

The Secrets of Government Killing, Part II

Can the U.S government kill its own?  This issue came up last week and received some modest attention–and discussion here.  But judging from the LDS National Security listserv discussions moderated by BYU Professor Valeria Hudson–which reached their apotheosis last week, and this latest summary opinion by Arthur Brisbane, the NYT Public Editor–warrants more discussion.  He writes:

The answer, as a matter of law, is simply unknown right now. That is an extraordinary thing, arising out of the new tactics and technology in use in the American offensive against terrorists and their networks.

via The Secrets of Government Killing – NYTimes.com.

The implications may not simply be the death of one American, even if he was a terrorist.  The U.S. government may well be part of a drone “arms race” with serious implications for domestic security.  And legally they may also be creating and international norm–something critical in understanding the impact of international law.

I Can Find an Indicted Warlord. So Why Isn’t He in The Hague? | Mother Jones

Good question.  The road to international justice is not straight and can be bumpy.  This long read is sometimes a bit overwrought at times but captures the tone missing in many other narratives about the real challenges facing governments and international organizations in the shadow of the ICC.

Foreign diplomats are not, Stearns says, “pushing the envelope” nearly as far as they could—”which is typical of diplomacy in the region.” Foreign aid makes up an estimated 50 percent of Congo’s budget, so foreign governments have plenty of leverage were they interested in wielding it. But instead, they “don’t get too involved, even if by not getting involved serious offenders remain at large, because by getting too involved, that increases your responsibility for whatever happens.” True, the conflicts in this huge country are transnational and extraordinarily complicated, and observers fear that the peace is tenuous. Also, there’s China, which has a $9 billion mineral deal with Congo—and, just in case, is looking to increase military cooperation with Rwanda. “I sympathize with the UN, to be honest with you,” Stearns says, but “they can do more.”

via I Can Find an Indicted Warlord. So Why Isn’t He in The Hague? | Mother Jones.

Challenges in Defining an Israeli-Palestinian Border – Multimedia Feature – NYTimes.com

The Palestinian Statehood issue involves drawing boundaries. This four-part interactive feature explains the complexities involved in the process. See it here:  Challenges in Defining an Israeli-Palestinian Border – Multimedia Feature – NYTimes.com.

The Kennedy Center hosted legal advisor Daniel Seidemann a few years back–and he’s the kind of person who knows exactly where the boundaries would be decided–down to the road and building.

 

http://kennedynew.byu.edu/archive/lecture_embed.php?file=lec_11feb09