SECURITY COUNCIL: LIBYAN TRIALS COULD BE ‘NUREMBERG MOMENT,’ ICC PROSECUTOR SAYS

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From: UNNews <UNNews@un.org>
Date: 8 May 2013 15:00:00 -0400
Subject: SECURITY COUNCIL: LIBYAN TRIALS COULD BE 'NUREMBERG MOMENT,'
ICC PROSECUTOR SAYS
To: news11@ny-mail-p-lb-028.ptc.un.org

SECURITY COUNCIL: LIBYAN TRIALS COULD BE 'NUREMBERG MOMENT,' ICC
PROSECUTOR SAYSNew York, May 8 2013 3:00PMThe prosecutor of the
International Criminal Court (ICC) today said that if Libya can
conduct fair trials of alleged perpetrators during the pro-democracy
uprising in 2011, the proceedings could equal the lasting impact of
the Nuremberg trials.

"By conducting fair, just, and transparent judicial proceedings for
all alleged perpetrators, while also continuing to respect the ICC
judicial process, Libya can set a lasting example for other States,"
Fatou Bensouda, Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court,
<"http://www.icc-cpi.int/iccdocs/otp/Prosecutor-statement-to-UNSC-08-May-2013.pdf">told
the Security Council during an opening meeting this morning.

She later stressed that "these trials can be Libya's Nuremberg moment,
one that will endeavour to seal the primacy of the rule of law, due
process and human rights for future generations," she said, referring
to the tribunals that nearly 70 years ago prosecuted prominent members
of the political and military leadership of Nazi Germany.

Ms. Bensouda said her office was aware of "serious crimes" committed
by former Qadhafi officials, some of who are outside of Libya, and
that her office's mandate "is still essential to ending impunity in
Libya."

"We are currently engaged in the process of documenting the most
serious of those crimes and documenting the current activities of
those officials who were most responsible for them," Ms. Bensouda
noted.

Libya has been undergoing a transition toward a modern democratic
State after decades of autocratic rule and toppling of the regime of
Muammar al-Qadhafi. Colonel Qadhafi ruled the North African country
for more than 40 years until a pro-democracy uprising in 2011 –
similar to the protests in other countries in the Middle East and
North Africa – led to civil war and the end of his regime.

Ms. Bensouda said that the office also "continues to be concerned"
about allegations of crimes committed by rebel forces, including the
expulsion of residents of Tawergha, who have been unable to return
home and ongoing alleged persecution of ethnic groups perceived to
have been affiliated with the former regime.

In her remarks to the Council, Ms. Bensouda noted the cases against
Saif Al-Islam Qadhafi, son of the former leader, and Abdullah
Al-Senussi, a former senior intelligence official. Mr. Qadhafi has
been indicted by the ICC in relation to attacks against protesters and
rebels during the 2011 uprising.

Among the mains legal issues in the case is where the men, who are in
Libya, should be tried. The Rome Statue gives primary responsibility
to national institutions to investigate and prosecute such crimes,
with the ICC - which is not part of the UN system but has a
relationship with the Organization - intervening only if they are
inactive or otherwise unwilling or unable to do so genuinely.

Ms. Bensouda said investigations in both cases have been suspended in
accordance with the Rome Statue and it is now up to the Chamber to
decide. She added that it was "commendable" that Libya invoked its
rights through a judicial process which demonstrates "full
understanding of the difference between the Council's political
mandate and the ICC's judicial mandate, even where this Council has
referred the situation to the ICC."

She also noted that "what happens with Libya's perpetrators is a page
in the history books of international justice, no matter where those
investigations and prosecutions take place."

Ms. Bensouda recently met with new Libyan Prosecutor-General, Abdel
Qader Radwan, and the Libyan ICC Focal Point, Ahmed El Gehani, who
travelled to The Hague.

"These preliminary positive discussions illustrate the willingness of
my Office and the Government of Libya to cooperatively work together
in furthering investigations that could lead to the arrest and
surrender of alleged perpetrators, both inside and outside of Libya,"
she told the Council.

Ms. Bensouda, who said she plans "soon" to travel to Libya, stressed
the importance of cooperation between her office and the Government
"to realize a comprehensive strategy for justice" particularly
following its first democratic election in more than four decades, the
installation of a new government last November, and the appointment of
a new Prosecutor General last month.May 8 2013 3:00PM
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