Foreign Secretary announces funding for international criminal tribunals

26 March 2012

Foreign Secretary William Hague announced additional UK funding for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia and the Special Court for Sierra Leone.

In a written statement to Parliament he said:
"In line with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's Strategic Framework priority of Safeguarding Britain's national security by countering terrorism and working to reduce conflict, and as a demonstration of the Government's continued support for international justice as a key pillar of our foreign policy, I am pleased to announce additional UK funding for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia and the Special Court for Sierra Leone.

We will provide £1 million to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, taking the UK's total contribution to £3.3 million since 2009.  This contribution underlines the UK's steadfast support for the Special Tribunal which is key to holding to account of those guilty of serious crimes and ending the climate of impunity for political assassination in Lebanon.  The UK is, and will remain, committed to working towards Lebanon's continued sovereignty and stability.

We will contribute a further £750,000 to the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, taking the UK's total contribution to around £4.4 million since 2006.  This demonstrates the UK's continued commitment to Cambodian reconciliation and development and bringing justice to the victims, and families of victims of the horrific atrocities and deaths of around 2 million Cambodians under the Khmer Rouge.

Finally, we will make available an additional £600,000 for the Special Court for Sierra Leone, taking the UK's total contribution to around £27.6 million since 2002.  This will help allow the Special Court to complete the trial of Charles Taylor, former President of Liberia.  The Special Court will be the first court to deliver judgement on a former head of state related to charges of war crimes for actions he took while in office.  

We believe there should be no impunity for the most serious crimes at the international level. The effective prosecution of those who commit these crimes is fundamental to preventing such crimes, which in turn is vital in the development of communities which are more stable and prosperous.  I take this opportunity to applaud the important continuing work of all of the international tribunals."

President temporarily suspends “criminal association” proceedings

Leidschendam, 16 March 2012 – The STL President has decided to temporarily suspend proceedings to define the crime of "criminal association" in an order today. This follows the Pre-Trial Judge's rejection of the Prosecutor's request to amend the indictment.

The Prosecution had filed a confidential request to amend the indictment on 8 February and sought to add a count of "criminal association" to the indictment. The Pre-Trial Judge then asked the Appeals Chamber to define "criminal association", which is an offence under the Lebanese Criminal Code (article 335).

The Pre-Trial Judge later rejected the Prosecution's request in a confidential decision on 13 March. The rejection was based on procedural grounds.

The President of the STL has now asked the parties and the Defence Office to make submissions on whether the Appeals Chamber should continue with the process of defining "criminal association".
 
 

Request to define the crime “criminal association”

Leidschendam, 2 March 2012 - The Pre Trial Judge has requested the Appeals Chamber to define the crime of "criminal association" following the Prosecution's recent request to amend the indictment.
On 8 February, the Prosecution requested to amend the indictment in a confidential filing only to the Pre Trial Judge. The contents of the amended indictment remain confidential. The Prosecution is seeking to add a new count to the indictment of "criminal association", which is an offence under the Lebanese Penal Code (article 335).

Under the Tribunal's Rules, the Pre Trial Judge may ask the Appeals Chamber to deal with such preliminary questions. This happened last year when the Appeals Chamber was asked to define terrorism and conspiracy, amongst other crimes. At that time, the Appeals Chamber was not called on to define the crime of "criminal association".

The Pre Trial Judge will rely on the Appeals Chamber's definition in his review of the Prosecution's request to amend the indictment. He can confirm or reject the proposed amendments completely or in part.
http://www.stl-tsl.org/en/media/press-releases/02-03-2012-request-to-define-the-crime-criminal-association
 

Media Advisory – STL President answers frequently asked questions on video

Leidschendam, 1 March 2012 – The first public statements by Judge Sir David Baragwanath, the Tribunal's President, on a number of key issues including the so-called "false witnesses" and connected cases, are now available on the STL website.
The videos are available on http://www.stl-tsl.org/en/ask-the-tribunal as well as the STL Youtube channel and high-resolution versions are being distributed to broadcast media.
In the videos, the STL President addresses the issues of the so-called "false witnesses", how the Tribunal determines connected cases, whether the STL can try political assassinations that occurred in Lebanon after 2005 or the deaths of Lebanese civilians in the 2006 war, and how the STL contributes to the rule of law in Lebanon.

• Can the STL try political assassinations in Lebanon that occurred after 2005?
• How can the STL contribute to the rule of law in Lebanon?
• Can the STL consider the issue of the so-called "false witnesses"?
• How does the Tribunal determine that attacks are "connected" to the 14 February attack?

BAN APPOINTS PROSECUTOR AND JUDGE FOR UN-BACKED TRIBUNAL FOR LEBANON

New York, Feb 29 2012 2:10PM
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today appointed Norman Farrell of Canada as the prosecutor of the United Nations-backed independent tribunal set up to try those responsible for the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq Hariri.

Mr. Farrell replaces Daniel Bellemare, who has completed his term as prosecutor of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL). Mr. Farrell is currently deputy prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY).

Mr. Ban expressed his gratitude to Mr. Bellemare for his leadership in advancing the work of the Special Tribunal.

The Secretary-General also appointed Daniel David Ntanda Nsereko of Uganda as an international judge of the appeals chamber of the special tribunal. Mr. Nsereko is currently a judge in the appeals division of the International Criminal Court (ICC). He replaces the late Antonio Cassese, who was also a former president of the STL.

"In announcing these appointments, the Secretary-General once again reiterates the commitment of the United Nations to the efforts of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon to uncover the truth regarding the terrorist attack that took the lives of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri and 22 others, as well as other connected attacks, so as to bring those responsible to justice and send a message that impunity will not be tolerated," said a statement issued by his spokesperson.

The STL is an independent court created at the request of the Lebanese Government, with a mandate issued by the Security Council.

Mr. Hariri and the 22 others were killed on 14 February 2005 after a massive car bomb exploded as his motorcade passed through central Beirut.

Salim Jamil Ayyash, Mustafa Amine Badreddine, Hussein Hassan Oneissi and Assad Hassan Sabra, all Lebanese nationals, have been indicted over the killing. They will be tried in absentia after the STL determined earlier this month that all reasonable attempts had been made to inform the four men of the charges they face and to bring them before the court.

BAN EXTENDS MANDATE OF UN-BACKED TRIBUNAL IN LEBANON

New York, Feb 22 2012 3:10PM
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has extended the mandate by another three years of the United Nations-backed independent tribunal set up to try suspects in the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq Hariri.

Mr. Ban extended the mandate of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), which is based in The Hague in the Netherlands, by three years from 1 March this year, according to information released by Mr. Ban's spokesperson.

Mr. Hariri and 22 others were killed on 14 February 2005 after a massive car bomb exploded as his motorcade passed through central Beirut.

Salim Jamil Ayyash, Mustafa Amine Badreddine, Hussein Hassan Oneissi and Assad Hassan Sabra, all Lebanese nationals, have been indicted over the killing. They will be tried in absentia after the STL determined earlier this month that all reasonable attempts had been made to inform the four men of the charges they face and to bring them before the court.

Mr. Ban's spokesperson noted that the Secretary-General reaffirms the UN's commitment to support the efforts of the STL to uncover the truth behind the bombing so as to bring those responsible to justice and to send a message that impunity for such major crimes will not be tolerated.

The tribunal is an independent court created at the request of the Lebanese Government, with a mandate issued by the Security Council.

Assignment of permanent counsel

Beirut, 2 February 2012 - The Head of Defence Office assigned permanent counsel to the four accused in the case Prosecutor v. Ayyash et al.

The Trial Chamber decided that the accused will be tried in absentia. Today the Pre-Trial Judge requested the assignment of counsel.

The Head of Defence Office assigned the eight counsel that were previously assigned as duty counsel. He stated that "he is confident that he assigns experienced and competent counsel. They are fully independent and can choose any strategy they see best fit to defend the rights of the accused."

The Prosecutor is now required to disclose the indictment supporting materials to the counsel within 30 working days.

The defence counsel face the difficult task of representing and defending the accused without communicating with him. In order to assist in achieving equality of arms, the Defence Office shall provide counsel with legal advice and practical support.