With Judicial Duty Ongoing, Mechanism for Closed Rwanda, Former Yugoslavia Criminal Tribunals Has ‘Still Important Work to Conclude’ President Tells General Assembly
Guaranteeing the world’s future justice framework and capabilities for preventing and addressing a recurrence of atrocious crimes is critical and should be supported in all ways possible, submitted Graciela Gatti Santana, President of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals, as she made a strong case for the continued functioning of the Mechanism, albeit in its residual phase.
Because the Security Council mandates the Mechanism to protect and support victims and witnesses, supervise the enforcement of sentences of convicted persons, maintain the archives of these tribunals, assist States pursuing fugitives and trying perpetrators from these conflicts, the justice cycle “is long and there is still important work to conclude,” she said. The Mechanism’s judicial responsibilities, therefore, have not ended.
Presenting the Mechanism’s twelfth annual report (document A/79/249), she noted that it has concluded the core crime cases assigned to it — which involved tracking remaining fugitives wanted for heinous crimes by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda — and its jurisprudence is being applied by other international and national courts. “The UN’s commitment to ensure our financial backing is why these significant milestones have been achieved. It is why international criminal justice is no longer just the hopes of victims and academic discussion.”
However, identifying a suitable State for the provisional release of Rwandan businessman Félicien Kabuga, whose proceedings were indefinitely stayed on account of his health and the weighty charges against him, is ongoing. Also, judges are besieged by several requests for access to confidential information or modification of witness protective measures to support domestic prosecutions of war crimes, and a review hearing authorized by the Appeals Chamber of Rwandan medical doctor Gérard Ntakirutimana is slated for November at the Mechanism’s Arusha branch. If the new information presented is proven, it could support overturning certain aspects of his genocidal convictions, she said.
“The Mechanism must continue to fulfil these duties with diligence and in accordance with the highest legal standards,” she said. Regretting that six released or acquitted individuals still remain in Niger, she underscored the need for Member States to act to address this situation and urged States’ cooperation with the Mechanism’s efforts, particularly in sentence enforcement.
Though Security Council resolution 1966 (2010) established the Mechanism to be temporary and efficient, she noted that closing it now would be “no easy task, given the unprecedented scope of the functions and caseload that the Mechanism inherited from its predecessor tribunals” — with operations on two continents and continuous responsibilities that follow from charging over 250 individuals with international crimes. “The breadth of our inherited responsibilities eclipses those of other previous and existing international and internationalized residual tribunals, even when taken together,” she said.
Nevertheless, that body has reduced its requirements while continuing to fulfil its mandate, as by the year’s end, its staff strength would have been decreased by 60 per cent since January 2020 and the budget cut by over 30 per cent. She listed specific cost-cutting efforts to include a reduction of its institutional footprint when the Kigali Field Office ceased operations, the closure of its External Relations Office in June and a combination of its Records Unit and the Archives Records Section.
While “Saying goodbye to diverse, hardworking and ingenious staff members who have dedicated their careers to upholding justice is painful” she noted, “our focus on justice has not strayed”. And these reductions have not inhibited mandate fulfilment. Even though the Mechanism requires sufficient resources and more time, its budget for 2025 will be smaller than 2024, and it is committed to finding further, substantial cost savings while maintaining the highest standards of justice. “Our residual activities show the world’s resolve to see this essential mission through, to prevent the revision of history and to provide hope that our future can be different,” she said.
More Work Needed on Outstanding Matters to Ensure Justice
Many delegates, while commending the Mechanism’s efforts in bringing to book perpetrators of the atrocious crimes in Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia, called for more work to be done on related and other outstanding matters.
While success of the Mechanism and its predecessor tribunals has ushered the world into “a new era of accountability” where perpetrators of national and cross-border crimes “can no longer assume that they can escape justice,” the representative of the United States pointed out that justice after conflict has been shown as not just possible but key to lasting peace and security. As such Member States should support the Mechanism in its efforts.
Call for Special Tribunal for Crime of Aggression against Ukraine
Speaking for the Baltic States and describing the Mechanism as “a guardian of justice and accountability,” the records and archives of which keep “reminding us” of the international community’s responsibility to stand against impunity, Latvia’s delegate called for an establishment of a special tribunal to prosecute those responsible for the crime of aggression against Ukraine, with cross-regional support to guarantee its legitimacy.
Supporting this position, Costa Rica’s delegate opined that “justice is not just an aspiration, but a necessity to prevent future atrocities and ensure that the horrors of the past are never repeated.” By making those responsible for international crimes accountable, an “unequivocal message” is sent: the global community is unwaveringly committed to the rule of law and impunity — which “is not just a failure of justice” but “a betrayal of humanity” — will not be tolerated.
On that, the representative of Canada, also speaking for Australia and New Zealand, was disappointed that Félicien Kabuga “will not face judgment for his alleged crimes”. He called on States to cooperate with the Mechanism, maintain the integrity of proceedings and condemn witness interference. France’s speaker said his country is committed to fighting against impunity and preserving the Mechanism’s legacy and called on States to support the body which is “still facing stumbling blocks”.
Support from National Authorities is Crucial
Some speakers highlighted the need for national support for the Mechanism as it transitions in its assignment.
“The pursuit of accountability does not end with the Mechanism entering into its truly residual phase,” reminded the speaker for the European Union, in its capacity as observer. National authorities must now cooperate and redouble their efforts to achieve greater justice for the victims. Sentences should be enforced, the backlog of national cases reduced and fugitives located and prosecuted.
Strong national institutions are key in the fight against impunity, Brazil’s representative said, noting that international tribunals are supplementary to the national judiciaries. “The principle of complementarity ensures that States retain ownership in their right and, above all, duty to provide justice to their citizens,” he emphasized. It is indeed up to the national authorities to strengthen their commitment to the prosecution of the atrocious crimes committed in the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, Germany’s representative said. “We want to remind States that justice does not end with the delivery of a final judgment, especially now in the residual phase,” he said.
Malta’s delegate mirrored this thought, noting that the Mechanism reaching a historic journey by transitioning into its truly residual phase “does not mean the end of judicial activities”. Disseminating valuable lessons from over 30 years of experience is important, “not only for the Mechanism’s legacy, but also because it is a pivotal tool to encountering genocide denial and the glorification of war criminals”.
The representative of Sierra Leone also called for support to national jurisdictions in prosecuting crimes against humanity, noting that “despite efforts, the relocation of acquitted and released individuals presently in Niger remains unrealized, and that the Mechanism continues to face challenges in securing the agreement of countries to serve as enforcement States”.
Repository of Legal Proceedings and Judicial Memory
The need for a repository of legal proceedings, judicial memory and relevant information materials pertinent to the predecessor tribunals and the Mechanism was also underscored by a sizeable number of delegations.
“Let's take this information from shelves to the public, from courtroom to classroom as a part of the international community's initiative to prevent the occurrence and spread of genocide crimes,” the representative of the United Republic of Tanzania said. The records and archives of the tribunals and the Mechanism belong to the United Nations and should be managed as such. The history of genocide crimes must remind all of the suffering that, mostly women and children, went through in the past.
Rwanda’s delegate noted that these archives hold decades of critical testaments, records and evidence. Their custodianship and management must be carried out in Rwanda, either by Rwanda or the UN, on Rwandan soil, and with Rwanda guaranteeing accessibility and confidentiality of the information contained therein. He called on those Rwandans who have been acquitted and released by the courts to come back to Rwanda to live peacefully side by side with survivors.
The representative of the Russian Federation, agreeing with other delegates on archival importance, noted however that there was no impartiality in the work of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. “It refused to consider NATO [North Atlantic Treaty Organization] war crimes committed during the military aggression against the former Yugoslavia, despite the publicly available facts confirming intentional attacks on civilians and civilian objects,” she said. Double standards were used to prosecute some while “turning a blind eye” to other “monstrous acts”. Still, the archives should be publicly available, and its materials should be declassified. “This is important for history,” she added.
Japan’s delegate observed that, even though the “indispensable role” of the Mechanism continues, its activities and size should be narrowed over time in a manner commensurate with the reduction in its functions.
Focus on Western Balkans
Regretting Serbia’s failure to cooperate with the Mechanism after “many years of requests”, the United Kingdom’s representative called on that country to constructively engage with the entity to arrest and transfer former Serbian parliament members Petar Jojic and Vjerica Radeta. He expressed concerns about the perpetuation of hate speech in the Western Balkans and called for time for the Mechanism “to complete its work, in a way that supports and respects international law”.
Slovenia’s delegate regretted that there are still thousands of unresolved cases before national courts involving alleged perpetrators of horrible crimes that need to be investigated and prosecuted and underscored the importance of continued accessibility of archives for their “lasting value”. Albania’s speaker expressed deep concern about ongoing incitement to violence, distortion of historical facts, glorification of war criminals as well as a denial of atrocities committed in the Balkans. “Such actions jeopardize the reconciliation process and the peaceful coexistence,” she warned and called for investment in justice systems and the rule of law.