Subject: Tribunal to Hear Second War Crime Charge Against Bush &
Associates
Tribunal to Hear Second
War Crime Charge Against Bush & Associates
On May 7-13, 2012. The Kuala Lumpur War Crimes
Tribunal will be hearing the second charge of Crime of Torture and War Crimes
against former U.S. President George W. Bush and his associates namely Richard
Cheney, former U.S. Vice President, Donald Rumsfeld, former Defence Secretary,
Alberto Gonzales, then Counsel to President Bush, David Addington, then General
Counsel to the Vice-President, William Haynes II, then General Counsel to
Secretary of Defense, Jay Bybee, then Assistant Attorney General, and John
Choon Yoo, former Deputy Assistant Attorney-General. This is one of the first
times in history that lawyers have been charged with war crimes for rendering
misleading legal advice in an attempt to exonerate war crimes by their
principals and governments.
The Kuala Lumpur War Crimes Tribunal is constituted
of eminent persons with legal qualifications. The judges of the Tribunal, which
is headed by retired Malaysian Federal Court judge Tan Sri Dato Lamin bin Haji
Mohd Yunus, who also served as an ad litem judge at the International Criminal
Tribunal for the former Republic of Yugoslavia, include other notable names
such as Mr Alfred Lambremont Webre, a Yale graduate, who authored several books
on politics, Tunku Sofiah Jewa, practising lawyer and author of numerous
publications on International Law, Prof Salleh Buang, former Federal Counsel in
the Attorney-General Chambers and retired Court of Appeal judge Datuk Mohd
Sa’ari Yusof.
The prosecution for the trial will be led by
Prof Gurdial Singh Nijar, prominent law professor and author of several law publications
and Prof Francis Boyle, leading American professor, practitioner and advocate
of international law, and assisted by a team of lawyers.
READ FULL ARTICLE:
Tribunal to Hear Second War Crime Charge Against
Bush & Associates
KUALA LUMPUR, 12 April 2012 (mathaba)
The Kuala Lumpur War Crimes Tribunal will be hearing the second charge of
Crime of Torture and War Crimes against former U.S. President George W. Bush
and his associates namely Richard Cheney, former U.S. Vice President, Donald
Rumsfeld, former Defence Secretary, Alberto Gonzales, then Counsel to President
Bush, David Addington, then General Counsel to the Vice-President, William
Haynes II, then General Counsel to Secretary of Defense, Jay Bybee, then
Assistant Attorney General, and John Choon Yoo, former Deputy Assistant Attorney-General.
The charge reads as follows:
The Accused persons had committed the Crime of
Torture and War Crimes, in that:
The Accused persons had wilfully participated in
the formulation of executive orders and directives to exclude the applicability
of all international conventions and laws, namely the Convention against
Torture 1984, Geneva Convention III 1949, Universal Declaration of Human Rights
and the United Nations Charter in relation to the war launched by the U.S. and
others in Afghanistan (in 2001) and in Iraq (in March 2003); Additionally,
and/or on the basis and in furtherance thereof, the Accused persons authorised,
or connived in, the commission of acts of torture and cruel, degrading and
inhuman treatment against victims in violation of international law, treaties
and conventions including the Convention against Torture 1984 and the Geneva
Conventions, including Geneva Convention III 1949.
The Kuala Lumpur War Crimes Commission (KLWCC)
following the due process of the law is bringing this charge against the
accused. In 2009, the Commission, having received complaints from torture
victims from Guantanamo and Iraq, proceeded to conduct a painstaking and an
in-depth investigation for close to two years. Two charges on war crimes were
drawn and filed against the accused persons.
The Kuala Lumpur War Crimes Tribunal had heard
the first charge in November 2011 against the two accused, former U.S.
President George W. Bush and former British Prime Minister Anthony L. Blair who
were after a 4-day trial found guilty of Crimes Against Peace. These two former
heads of state violated the United Nations Charter and international law when
they planned, prepared and invaded the sovereign state Iraq on 19 March 2003
without just cause.
At the first hearing in November 2011, the
Tribunal had permitted the prosecution’s application to hear only the first
charge. The second charge will now be heard at the second Tribunal hearing from
7 – 12 May 2012.
The Kuala Lumpur War Crimes Tribunal is
constituted of eminent persons with legal qualifications. The judges of the
Tribunal, which is headed by retired Malaysian Federal Court judge Tan Sri Dato
Lamin bin Haji Mohd Yunus, who also served as an ad litem judge at the
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Republic of Yugoslavia, include
other notable names such as Mr Alfred Lambremont Webre, a Yale graduate, who
authored several books on politics, Tunku Sofiah Jewa, practising lawyer and
author of numerous publications on International Law, Prof Salleh Buang, former
Federal Counsel in the Attorney-General Chambers and retired Court of Appeal
judge Datuk Mohd Sa’ari Yusof.
Point to note is that victims of torture will
also be called to give evidence before the Tribunal. The cries of these victims
have thus far gone unheeded by the international community. The fundamental
human right to be heard has been denied to them. These witnesses will testify
on the torture they had endured during their incarceration. The accused will
have a right to cross-examine them as in any open court hearing.
The Tribunal will adjudicate and evaluate the
evidence presented as in any court of law. The judges of the Tribunal must be
satisfied that the charges are proven beyond reasonable doubt and deliver a
reasoned judgement.
In the event the tribunal convicts any of the
accused, the only sanction is that the name of the guilty person will be
entered in the Commission’s Register of War Criminals and publicised worldwide.
The tribunal is a tribunal of conscience and a peoples’ initiative.
The prosecution for the trial will be lead by
Prof Gurdial Singh Nijar, prominent law professor and author of several law
publications and Prof Francis Boyle, leading American professor, practitioner
and advocate of international law, and assisted by a team of lawyers.
The trial will be a public hearing held in an
open court on 7-12 May 2012 at the premises of the Kuala Lumpur Foundation to
Criminalise War (KLFCW) at 88, Jalan Perdana, Kuala Lumpur. The hearing is open
to members of the public.
CONTACT
For further information concerning the Kuala
Lumpur War Crimes Tribunal please read Background to the Kuala Lumpur War
Crimes Tribunal.
News media wishing to receive coverage of the
event from 7 to 12 May please Mathaba News Agency for arrangements to obtain a
special direct news feed, and agreements on republishing and usage rights. News
media contacting via Email to mathaba@gmail.com should include "
KLWCC Media Request " in the subject line.
The Commission can be reached via Mathaba News
Agency at mathaba@gmail.com and should include
" KLWCC Commission Request " in the subject line.
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1 comment:
And....The kangaroo court strikes again. This five member panel from a third-world country with no authority will not hold up in court. They are a joke, even though they mean well. They will not be taken seriously. Nothing happened from the last time.
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