War Crimes Tribunal - Post-Conflict Justice and Reconciliation Processes - Essay Example

War Crimes Tribunal Name: Institutional Affiliation War Crimes Tribunal Introduction A tribunal refers to a forum of justice that decides and determines the course of justice. However, a war crimes tribunal is a unique type of tribunal [McM13]. These refers courts of law established to try persons that that have been accused of war crimes and other forms of crimes against humanity. These largely involves the crimes that individual commit during obstinate conflicts and these include; rape, torture and genocide. What is unique about this tribunal is that the accused always have the opportunity to explain their actions in the presence of the victims and their families and also the media fraternity [Fat00]. Over the years, the tribunal have replaced the former means of war crime justice which was mainly “retributive justice summary executions.” The war crime tribunal tend to base their justice upon the agreed the principles of acknowledged humanoid behaviour. War crimes tribunal are forms of justice that date back in the 15th Century where the first international war crime tribunal was carried out. This occurred in the Roman Empire and the person being tried was Peter von Hagen Bach by the adhoc tribunal of that time [Fat00]. Other famous war crimes tribunal include the Nuremberg Trials, Rwanda Tribunal and the Yugoslavia Tribunals. Nuremberg Trials These trials occurred in the year 1945 and the tribunal was formed to charge 24 persons who had committed various atrocities and those involved extermination of religious and racial groups, aggressive wars, mistreatment and murder of war prisoners, deportation of hundreds of thousands of inhabitants [Heb10]. The trial began in 1945 November and the Judgement was arrived at in October the following year, 1946 [Bow13]. This gives us a clear picture of how these tribunals take. Yugoslavian War crimes Tribunal The Yugoslavian tribunal was formed as a result of the massive war crimes in Yugoslavia that was mainly referred to as “ethnic cleansing” [Dev12]. This was mainly done by the Bosnian and Serbian Forces. This prompted the United Nations to form an International Criminal Tribunal to investigate into the killings that had occurred [McM13]. Rwandan Tribunal The Rwandan tribunal was formed because of one of the worst seen crimes against humanity in the recent history. This was after the famous Rwandan Genocide that involved the Hutus and Tutsis. The trial was carried out by the “International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda” [Fis04]. Significance of War Crimes Tribunal The above are just examples of the war crimes Tribunals that have occurred in the world. These give us a picture of the purpose and what the tribunals entail. The War Crimes Tribunals are always established following a conflict. The crimes that have been determined to exceed the normal restrictions of the war required behaviour [Fat00]. This must be carried out before the affected nation begins the whole process. The tribunals tend to offer the victims an opportunity to come face to face with those individuals that were responsible for what they went through the war since this enables them put the horrors of the war behind them [Bow13]. The Tribunals are also platforms of honouring the one who lost their lives in the war and punish the ones who were responsible of the afflictions. One of the most successful war crime tribunals in history are Tribunals of Tokyo and Nuremberg where the legal justice was used to discipline the kingpins of the Japanese and the German military after the world war II [Heb10]. They formed as criteria under which the War crime Tribunal should be carried out globally. The progressive and the democratic advancement of both nations after the tribunals acted as evidence of how effective War crime tribunals can be in helping the society that has undergone war crimes perpetration come back to attain stability in diplomatic relations and the path to peace [Heb10]. The Purpose and Role of the War crimes Tribunals The discussion above has enabled us understand the why countries that have participated in war, might require war crimes tribunals. However, what is of great importance is to understand how the War crimes tribunals undertake their activities so as to achieve the main purpose of its formation [Bow13]. To effectively understand this, we have to analyse how countries that formed the war crimes tribunals, undertook their activities. The assignment of dealing with perpetrators after mass conflict and atrocity is key in achieving justice and at the same time rebuilding a nation after the war crimes. This creates a whole system that entails reconstruction of the political machinery, prosecuting the perpetrators and also healing the victims of the war crimes [McM13]. The formation of the ad hoc tribunals in states such as Yugoslavia and Rwanda following the genocides that had occurred in those nations was perceived as one of the ways of maintaining international peace and ensuring accountability [Dev12]. Some of the organizations have raised questions as to whether the formed the war crimes tribunal tend to promote reconciliation. The truth of the matter is that they truly foster reconciliation by finding the facts and the truths about the crimes that have been committed, ensuring justice, individualizing the crime [Fis04]. Both tribunals, in Yugoslavia and Rwanda, were perceived as being important in maintaining security and peace after the conflict, yet in the present day it seems that the criminal prosecutions that are carried out are not enough to handle the state of delinquencies since they are insufficient and frail [Fis04]. This therefore proved that it is crucial to look into the demands of the victims, reconstruct the rule of law and understand that the restorative justice has the ability to ensure reconciliation compared to retributive justice. Using Rwanda Yugoslavia and Cambodia as case studies, it can be argued that the war crimes Tribunals have made contributions to retributive justice and international law in furthering reconciliations in regards to other forms of peace and justice building [McM13]. In addition it is important to consider the impact, the war crimes tribunals have had in those affected countries. This is following the recent case at the extraordinary Chamber of the Cambodian Courts highlighted the disparity that exists between the international and local views of justice [Dev12]. The perceptions of justice tend to be affected by various factors that make it impossible to have a consensus on whether justice has been delivered and thus whether peace has been attained since there is no specific formula of justice in different situations. Promise of Justice Since the establishment of the war crime tribunal in the former Yugoslavia in the year 1993, judiciary and tribunals have become increasingly vital to reconciliation and reconstruction of post conflict situation [Dev12]. The war crime tribunal in Rwanda was created a year later after the international community and the Security Council saw it imperative to prevent a cycle of violence that would have otherwise occurred in the absence of an independent body to provide justice. The war crimes tribunal are crucial in preventing culture of impunity and hence return the rule of law [McM13]. The formed war crimes tribunal played a significant role in limiting renewed prosecutions and violence and this is vivid since it deterred future abuses of the human rights in those countries [McM13]. The very establishment the courts sends a message to the general public that that those who plan and participate in such atrocities will never go unpunished. The international war crimes tribunal in Rwanda and Yugoslavia were also met with various scepticism since various human right bodies believed that the reason why the Security Council advocated for the formation was to relieve the International Community from guilt of not acting promptly while individuals were being slaughtered [Fis04]. In the long run, the scepticism and the doubts were greatly overshadowed by the strong belief that retributive justice is vital for addressing the needs of the victims and also rebuilding the society. During the establishment of both the ICTR and the ICTY there was great hope that the two tribunals would hold those involved accountable for their actions in mass crimes [McM13]. It is important to however understand the International war crimes Tribunal’s success is greatly dependent on a nation’s social and political factors. This is because both bodies faced various social and political challenges that in one way or the other hampered the efforts to prosecute the perpetrators hence the reconciliation process. Challenges Faced by the war crimes Tribunal Addressing the issues of justice and the state crime after a conflict are really contentious and accompanied with numerous dilemmas. This greatly depends on the social and political factors since they influence how effective justice offered in reconciling both individual and collective grievances [Bow13]. The much anticipated results of the Rwanda and Yugoslavia war crimes tribunal were greatly hampered due to working in areas where there was highly charged situations. This led to the procedures of justice being marred by the fact that they were being carried out in neighbouring states and not the states in which the atrocities took place [Fat00]. In the case of Rwanda, its tribunal took place in Arusha, Tanzania which is their neighbouring country whereas those of the Yugoslavian nation took place in Netherlands. The reason why they took place outside the affected states is because the conflicts had left the affected country’s judicial system, understaffed, corrupt and dysfunctional. The government of Rwanda which was led by President Kagame and the former Rwandan Patriotic Front refused to cooperate with the war crimes Tribunal not unless the reconciliation process was brought to their country [Fis04]. This was the case despite the leaders of the tribunal assuring them that justice could be achieved regardless of the region. What is even worse is that Kagame and the government have continuously obstructed the tribunals attempt to try the Rwandan Patriotic Front members for the crimes they committed during the 1994 genocide. This shows the extent to which the whole system of justice can be greatly affected by political factors [Fat00]. Political interference has been a constant issue in delivering Justice in Rwanda hence reflecting the delicate balance that the tribunals face in addressing the mass atrocities and promoting peace and reconciliation [McM13]. Despite both tribunals in Rwanda and in Yugoslavia having been affected greatly by political factors, they have on the other hand contributed in a big way towards peace and justice by ensuring that the crimes don’t go unpunished hence establishing the very truth in the historical records. Acknowledging Crime One of the greatest contribution by the war crimes Tribunal is the fact that they have been able to come out and referred the crime by its proper name which is genocide. The naming of the crimes that have occurred in the past as genocides have had a great impact in the local and international views [Bow13]. This has the effect of making it difficult for the affected nation to deny the stated atrocities hence giving recognition to the suffering and pain that affected victims go through in those nations. As a result, many of the senior perpetrators have also been able to be held responsible, for example in Rwanda some of the most senior perpetrators have been able to be caught and this include the former prime minister and the high ranking military officials [Fat00]. In fact the first person to be found guilty was “Jean-Paul Akayesu” who was a senior person in the Rwandan government [McM13]. The inclusion of rape as a genocide weapon and also as crime against humanity has been significant since it has led to the conservation of the post conflict collective memory. This has played a significant role in ensuring that crimes have been acknowledged as punishable acts that the voices of the victims must be heard [Dev12]. There have been cases of stigmatization and marginalization to individuals that have come forward to testify about rape and has had a negative impact of discouraging the witnesses to testify. This has brought about a debate that has also changed the process of war crime tribunal since it has led to the issue of witness protection. For the witnesses to come forward and testify against the incidences of killing and rape, there should be declaration as to whether the victim will be safe after the testimony [Heb10]. Presently before the whole process of the tribunal starts, the justice system ensures that those who will be used as witness in the whole process are ensure security , not only to them but to their entire family. Advantages of War Crimes Tribunals One of the advantages of the War crimes tribunal is that they are a barrier to the possible war criminals. This is what has facilitated the greater need to establish a permanent war crimes tribunal which is presently the International Criminal Court [Dev12]. Before its establishment most of the tribunals globally were being sponsored by the United Nations organizations or the government of the affected country. The other advantage is that it offers a unique chance for the global leaders and the citizens to examine the terrible decisions made by the specific perpetrators and the violence carried out by the military and the agents of the named leaders. Without these forums there would no other option of ensuring that the masterminds and the main perpetrators behind the war criminalities against humanity are punished justly [Dev12]. The third advantage is that the war crime tribunals gives the victims and their affected families a chance to once again, develop a sense of power that they may have lost as a result of the war crime. This is because it is very empowering for the victims to go in front of the court and identify the individuals that wronged them [McM13]. The tribunal also has the power to infer that the forgotten atrocities be restated by the survivors. This will enable the criminals that are living free to be forced to acknowledge responsibility of the actions they committed hence be given judgement according to the law [Bow13]. For a nation that is trying to make a shift from a suppressive government to a democratic one, the war crime tribunal offer the leaders and the citizens an opportunity to put their belief to an impartial justice system. For the countries that aim to embrace modern democracies must first accept the stated rule of democratic law hence apply it to their greatest and powerful criminals. Despite the process consuming significant efforts, countries that have effectively applied these procedures have greatly benefited from its fruits to this date [McM13]. Conclusion From the discussion above it is vivid that that the war crime tribunal have a positive impact on the country especially one that has already experienced conflict. To ensure its success, it is important that a nation follow the procedures that the nations such as German, former Yugoslavia and Rwanda have carried to ensure healing in their society. Most of the stated countries have now gotten over the violence and if keenly observed, they are now performing well socially and economically. Despite there being various scepticism about the war crimes tribunal, its benefits are much greater to a nation than anyone can imagine. An effective and fruitful tribunal allows for the past events to be put aside and a path to a peaceful future stated and followed. References McM13: , (McMorran, 2013), Fat00: , (Fatić, 2000), Heb10: , (Hebert, 2010), Bow13: , (Bowcott, 2013), Dev12: , (Devitt, 2012), Fis04: , (Fisanick, 2004), Read More