War Crimes Fugitive Goran Hadzic Arrested, Awaiting Transfer to ICTY

War crimes fugitive, Goran Hadzic on Mt. Fruska Gora, Serbia Wednesday July 20, 2011 upon his arrest by Serbian officials. Photo: AP / Politika

It has certainly been an eventful summer for International Criminal Law. If you looked on the docket list of the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY)[1] this past Spring, you would have seen the names of two war crimes fugitives: Ratko Mladic and Goran Hadzic listed as still “At Large” like they have been for nearly a decade. In May, however, Mladic, a lead architect of the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, perpetrated during the 1991-95 Balkan Wars, was arrested by Serbia and extradited to the ICTY in the Hague Netherlands. Yesterday, the last remaining fugitive, Goran Hadzic, 53, was arrested by Serbian officials after 8 years in hiding.

Prompted by the Mladic arrest, the ABA’s Section of International Law, International Human Rights Committee (IHRC) reached out to Colonel Linda Strite Murnane, ICTY’s Senior Legal Officer, for her insight into the Mladic Extradition. We requested Ms. Murnane speak in an IHRC Free Teleconference scheduled for Thursday July 21, 2011[2] along with Professor, William Dunlap of Quinnipiac University School of Law. In preparing for a teleconference on Mladic, we could not have asked for better timing of Hadzic's arrest, which came yesterday on Mt. Fruska in Serbia. Hadzic’s attorney, Toma Fila told reporters in Belgrade that his client had waived his right to appeal a Serbian war crimes court order allowing his extradition to the (ICTY). There is talk that Hadzic could arrive at the Hague as early as Friday July 22.nd


Per his June 4, 2004 ICTY indictment, Hadzic faces 14 counts of Crimes Against Humanity, and war crimes for the systematic murder and torture of Croatian civilians during the bloody 1991-1995 ethnic wars resulting in the break up of the former Yugoslavia. The ICTY has indicted 161 people since the court was established by the UN Security Council in 1993, mostly for war crimes ranging from Genocide to Grave Breaches of the Geneva Conventions of 1949.

Hadzic, will in all likelihood be the last accused to be tried by the (ICTY), perhaps marking the beginning of the end of the effort to bring justice to the victims. Now, with Hadzic finally in the dock, the ICTY may shut down in 2015 as scheduled, with no pending cases left behind. On Wednesday, Judge O-Gon Kwon, the acting head of the court, called the Hadzic arrest "a milestone in the tribunal's history."

Some are speculating that the two recent arrests of Mladic and Hadzic signal a turning point for Serbia’s ambitions to enter the European Union. In 2006, the E.U. suspended accession talks with Serbia over its lack of cooperation with ICTY, and kept them frozen for more than a year. Regardless of Serbia’s motivations, the judicial process, delayed by nearly a decade of Mladic and Hadzic on the lam, can now proceed. It is important to note that Hadzic and Mladic are presumed innocent until found guilty. The judicial process is integral to victims’ healing, to personal accountability, and to the future protection of human rights.

 
[1] See the ICTY website, www.icty.org
 
[2] To dial-in to the Teleconference, 1-877-464-2827, Code 84945474. A recording of the Teleconference will be made available for future listening on the ABA SIL website.

Free Teleconference: The Arab Spring and U.S. Government Policy

Please join us Thursday, July 28, 2011, from 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. EDT for a FREE teleconference on the Arab Spring and U.S. Government policy, proudly presented by the International Human Rights Committee of the ABA Section of International Law in cooperation with Human Rights Watch.

The Arab Spring is an explosion of human rights expression that has challenged the U.S. Government’s former strategy and alliances with former partners and enemies in the Middle East. This free teleconference will dissect the U.S. Government’s shifts in policy and recommendations on how the U.S. Government might deal with this unprecedented moment of regime change and interest in human rights.

Speakers include Joe Stork, Deputy Director, Human Rights Watch, Middle East and North Africa Division; Heba Fatma Morayef, Researcher, Human Rights Watch, Middle East and North Africa Division; and Gary Sick, Adjunct Professor, Columbia University of International and Public Affairs, Former White House National Security Adviser for Presidents Ford, Carter, and Reagan, Former White House aide on Iran during the Iranian Revolution (moderator).
The speakers are on the cutting edge of monitoring human rights in the Middle East and making policy recommendations to the U.S. Government and other sovereign nations. They will discuss how USG policy has shaped the Arab Spring, positive and negative; ways the USG has used its leverage to influence human rights, positive and negative; multi-country review of Human Rights Watch’s coverage; and Human Rights Watch’s recommendations to the USG.

Dial-in Details:
U.S. and Canada Dial-in #: 877-464-2827
International Dial-in: 706-643-9966
Passcode #: 80960731

Free Teleconference - The Extradition of Ratko Mladić to the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY)

Join us by telephone on Thursday, July 21, 2011, from 2:00 - 3:00 p.m. EDT for a free teleconference on the extradition of Ratko Mladić to the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY). The program is sponsored by the International Human Rights Committee and co-sponsored by U.S. Lawyers Practicing Abroad Committee.

The recent arrest of Mladić in Serbia and his extradition to the Hague to stand trial for war crimes has provided new work for the ICTY and affected its forecasted budget.

Linda Murnane, Chief of Court Management and Support Services, ICTY, will provide discussion, and William Dunlap, Professor, Quinnipiac University School of Law, will moderate. Ms. Murnane will discuss the arrest of Mladić; obligation of States to cooperate; legal process of transferring the accused; impressions of ICTY at time of capture; how Mladić's capture has affected ICTY's budget; and what happens next.

Ms. Murnane will also discuss her experience serving as ICTY’s Senior Legal Officer, Chief of Court Management and Support Services, and former Acting Head of Chambers. She will describe the different approaches to criminal conduct in war that are handled at ICTY and the U.S. Air Force where she previously served for ten years as a military judge.

A 30-minute question and answer period will follow Ms. Murnane’s presentation.

Ms. Murnane’s views do not represent the official position of the United Nations or the ICTY.

To register and obtain call-in information, please visit the following link: https://apps.americanbar.org/aba_timssnet/meetings/tnt_meetings.cfm?action=long&primary_id=IC10159&webtextid=59984&Subsystem=MTG&related_prod_flag=0.

In the Wake of Griswold v. Driscoll: A Present Day Discussion on Recognition and Remembrance of the Armenian Genocide

Join us for the following FREE teleconference on Thursday, July 14, from 12:00 - 1:00 p.m. EDT, presented by ABA Section of International Law International Human Rights Committee.

The Armenian Genocide has remained a powerful topic for people of both Armenian and Turkish decent for nearly 100 years. This topic has gained additional focus in the wake of Griswol...d et al v. Driscoll.

Griswold, filed in October 2005 by the Assembly of Turkish American Associations (ATAA) alongside two high school teachers and a student, alleged certain educational materials limited free speech by not including resources that presented “contra-genocide” viewpoints. In August 2010, the First Circuit of Appeals upheld a US District Court ruling that prevented the case from moving forward after a five year battle.

In March, lead attorney Harvey Silverglate argued before a three-judge panel that the educational curriculum in question amounted to a “21st-century library” and should be protected from censorship. On behalf of the panel, retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Souter, did not directly address the issue of the Armenian Genocide in his opinion. Instead, Souter focused on whether the issue fell under free speech protection and the panel’s ultimate decision that the case could not go forward.

“The Court of Appeals’ decision is a major victory for sound education on the Armenian Genocide,” Van Krikorian of the Armenian Assembly of America, said in a statement. “The Court defended free speech … and struck a blow to the spurious tactics used by genocide deniers to engage under the pretext of debate.”

This teleconference will provide an overview of the issues dealt with in Griswold et al v. Driscoll and a brief overview of the history of the Armenian Genocide and the state of recognition both domestically and abroad.

Speakers include Mark Fleming, Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP; Sonya Nersessian, Immediate Past Chair, Armenian Bar Association; and Professor Peter Rosenblum, Columbia Law School (moderator).

Dial-in Details:

U.S. and Canada Dial-in #: 877-464-2827
International Dial-in: 706-643-9966
Passcode #: 81684988

Free Teleconference - The Arab Spring: Documenting Human Rights Abuses

Please join us Thursday, July 7, from 12:00 - 1:00 p.m. EDT for a free teleconference, "The Arab Spring: Documenting Human Rights Abuses," proudly presented by the ABA Section of International Law International Human Rights Committee in cooperation with Human Rights Watch. The Arab Spring is an explosion of human rights expression but, at the same time, it has led to brutal crack-downs against human rights activists, journalists, and civilians by regimes with a vested interest in the status quo. This free teleconference will provide a first-hand look at what is happening on the ground. The speakers, Sarah Leah Whitson, Executive Director, Human Rights Watch, Middle East and North Africa Division; Nadim Houry, Senior Research and Beirut Director, Human Rights Watch, Middle East and North Africa Division; and Peter Rosenblum, Professor, Columbia Law School, are on the cutting edge of collecting facts in human rights crises in the Middle East. They will discuss methods for documenting human rights abuses; perils of gathering facts during regime change; multi-country review of Human Rights Watch’s coverage; relevant international laws; challenges and opportunities; and Human Rights Watch’s strategy and advocacy.

Dial-in Details:
U.S. and Canada Dial-in #: 877-464-2827 International Dial-in: 706-643-9966 Passcode #: 80956720