Comments on: Let justice be done?

By: MFB

MFB — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 12:54:21 +0000

I’m afraid that our Archbishop Emeritus has been saying more or less whatever the ruling class in the Western World wants for quite a while. (Incidentally, if you look at the actual record of the South African TRC, it let absolutely all the biggest crooks off the hook while taking ferocious swipes at the anti-apartheid movement—so maybe dear Tutu has been on the Western corporate payroll for quite a while.)

Look on the bright side, folks. Making a silly song and dance about how we’d jolly well like to string up Mr. Bashir (but we can’t, so we’ll write about it) is a whole lot better than firing Cruise missiles into Khartoum or actually invading, which the British government was talking about doing last year IIRC.

By: dsquared

dsquared — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 10:03:55 +0000

12: I am not yet sure what’s really going on there – throwing a tantrum and threatening to chuck out the NGOs is pretty common behaviour for Bashir and he hasn’t yet actually gone through with the threat.

13, 14: Good point, but if you look at the Tutu editorial, a one-size-fits-all approach is exactly what Tutu was advocating, and he specifically rejects the idea that there should be any tailoring to local conditions. That’s what struck me as so odd.

By: Katherine

Katherine — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 18:28:33 +0000

Also, the transitional situation in SA was entirely different to the current situation in Uganda. A one-size-fits-all approach to transitional justice w0uld be entirely inappropriate.

By: Katherine

Katherine — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 18:19:35 +0000

I suggest that Desmond Tutu wouldn’t think of the SA TRC as a denial or abrogation of justice. It depends, for a start, on how you define “justice” – retributive or restorative for example – is just the start of a very long discussion on the subject.

By: michael mouse

michael mouse — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 07:57:52 +0000

The heavens are looking a little shaky,with NGOs all expelled. Empirically it’s looking pretty bleak so far. But at least suffering folk in Darfur can rest easier in their selves knowing that the West places such a premium on Justice.

By: John Quiggin

John Quiggin — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 05:08:08 +0000

I haven’t got a good answer to this, but:

(1) It doesn’t seem as if a truth and reconciliation commission is an option in a case against a current head of state.
(2) Given the increasing frequency of charges against former heads of state, there’s no easy way of promising a dictator thinking of going quietly that charges are laid now.

That seems to point to DDs “world’s biggest plea bargain” idea. If the charges are laid now, they could potentially be settled by some sort of agreement, combining a political settlement with a personal plea bargain. As you and DD say, not exactly justice at its most majestic, but maybe a step forward.

By: Toaf

Toaf — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 00:32:01 +0000

An interesting post. I don’t see the relevance of questioning Tutu’s “selection” to comment on the issue (especially given Graham has also been invited to weigh in). That said, it’s a valid point concerning the path taken in South Africa. Keep in mind, though, that context is important, and the course of justice that works (or doesn’t work) in one country (say, Rwanda or South Africa) need not be applied in Sudan. There is a unique set of issues in the Sudan conflict(s) and their resolution will likely require a unique approach.

By: P O'Neill

P O'Neill — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 22:23:13 +0000

Bashir can go to any Arab country except Jordan and Djibouti without endangering ICC commitments.

By: The Sudanese Thinker

The Sudanese Thinker — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 17:38:05 +0000

It’s issued. Question is, will the international community simply issue verbal support or will it actually enforce the warrant.

I fear it’s the former.

And if that’s the case, then we could be in for a ride of instability, which would suck big time.

Would love to see the bastard go down but not at the risk of watching my country descend into chaos and instability. The last thing we want is another Somalia-like scenario.

By: DC

DC — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 16:38:03 +0000

You might be interesteed in this interview with Jose Ramos Horta in today’s Irish Times: http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/world/2009/0304/1224242231350.html

From which:

“While he supported calls for a truth and reconciliation commission in the North, he stressed that he did not support calls for criminal prosecutions, such as the prosecution and imprisonment of the British soldiers who fired on Bloody Sunday or of paramilitaries not yet charged with unsolved murders.

His insistence that the truth and reconciliation process in his country not include prosecutions has been unpopular with many Timorese and human rights groups. He dismissed as meddling and counterproductive a United Nations resolution calling for an international tribunal for war crimes in East Timor.

“I feel it would create a backlash,” he said. “I think it would destabilise the country and our relations with Indonesia. We have a good friend in the Indonesian president. And it would be exploited by Islamic radicals and other outside forces. The pursuit of justice cannot be so blind as to ignore the fragility of states, resulting in the unravelling of a fragile peace.”

He said the prosecution of human rights abusers in post-conflict societies too often amounted to selective prosecutions, what he called “victor’s justice”, which fed resentments and grievances that did more harm than good to the prospects of lasting peace and reconciliation. He pointed to the way South African blacks resisted the urge to prosecute and imprison those who used terror to maintain apartheid as an example of a more effective approach.

“The greatest gift for them was freedom,” he said. “They did not need revenge.””

By: Daniel

Daniel — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 16:03:53 +0000

No, couldn’t have been that “No Future Without Forgiveness” was published in 2005. If something’s happened in the last four years to make him change his mind, one might have thought this worth noting in his article on Darfur.

By: DC

DC — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 15:03:03 +0000

Maybe Tutu changed his mind on the basis of the South African experience? Just a suggestion.

By: john b

john b — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 14:57:54 +0000

I suppose future negotiations could take place in the US…?

By: Daniel

Daniel — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 13:59:32 +0000

I would presume so, and therefore that it won’t; this will put a bit of a crimp in peace negotiations for simple logistic reasons (the JEM won’t travel to Khartoum[1] and it’s difficult to have peace talks in a war zone). The last round of talks happened in Cairo and Qatar, both of which I think are ICC signatories.

[1] except for the occasional trip to fire mortars at the Presidential palace, obviously.

By: hardindr

hardindr — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 13:56:17 +0000

Re Update: Now that the warrant is out, how will it be enforced? Presumably, Bashir will not be stupid enough to travel to any country that will detain or extradite him to the ICC.