U.S. Gets War Crimes Tribunal Exemption
UNITED NATIONS (AP) - The U.N. Security Council on
Thursday approved another one-year exemption for American
peacekeepers from prosecution by the new international war crimes
tribunal.
France, Germany and Syria abstained, apparently ignoring a U.S.
appeal not to further strain the bitter trans-Atlantic division over
the war against Iraq.
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan spoke out strongly against any
attempt to try to make the exemption permanent - which the United
States initially sought. He warned that this would not only
undermine the International Criminal Court but the authority of the
U.N. Security Council "and the legitimacy of United Nations
peacekeeping."
The resolution adopted by a vote of 12-0 with the three
abstentions, authorizes a yearlong exemption from arrest or trial
for peacekeepers from the United States and other countries that
have not ratified the Rome treaty establishing the court.
France and Germany, both members of the European Union, were in
the forefront of opposition to the U.S.-led war against Iraq. Last
week, the United States warned the EU that its criticism over the
exemption request was putting more strains on trans-Atlantic
relations.
But during an open Security Council debate before the vote,
Greece's U.N. ambassador Adamantios Vassilakis, speaking on behalf
of the 15-nation bloc, put the United States on notice that
"automatic renewal would be undermining to the letter and the spirit
of the Rome Treaty and its fundamental purpose."
All 15 EU nations are among the 90 countries that are party to
the court, which will prosecute cases of genocide, war crimes and
crimes against humanity committed after July 1, 2002. The court will
step in only when countries are unwilling or unable to dispense
justice themselves.
The court got another boost Wednesday when China's U.N.
Ambassador Wang Yingfan said his country was "positively
considering" ratifying the Rome Treaty. Beijing was one of seven
countries that voted against the Rome statute but in the last four
years has taken a more positive attitude.
"China's change reflects a growing support worldwide for the ICC
and international justice," said William Pace, who heads the
Coalition for the International Criminal Court, which represents
more than 1,000 organizations supporting the tribunal.
Then President Clinton's administration signed the 1988 Rome
treaty setting up the court, but the Bush administration has
rescinded the U.S. signature.
Bush contends that Americans could be subject to the court's
jurisdiction even if it is not a party to the pact. Washington
argues that the court could be used for frivolous or politically
motivated prosecutions of American troops.
During Thursday's debate, Canada's U.N. Ambassador Paul
Heinbecker appealed to the council to keep the exemption from
becoming permanent and emphasized that "the ICC is not a court for
frivolous prosecutions." He noted safeguards put in the treaty at
U.S. request to ensure that such prosecutions will be screened
out.
Last July, the council unanimously approved a one-year
exemption.
Seeking to avoid a replay of last year's confrontation,
Washington on Monday asked for a quick vote on its resolution. But
non-council nations asked for - and got - an open council meeting
before the vote.
During last year's battle, the United States threatened to end
far-flung peacekeeping operations established or authorized by the
United Nations - from Afghanistan and the Mideast to Bosnia and
Sierra Leone - if it didn't get an exemption.
The final deal dented the court's underlying principle that no
one should be exempt from punishment for war crimes, and it angered
court supporters and human rights groups.
Annan told the Security Council during Thursday's debate that
although he could accept that the request for a one-year extension
should be approved this year since the court is in its infancy, he
believes it should not become permanent and violates the Rome
statute.
U.S. deputy ambassador James Cunningham called the Rome Treaty
"fatally flawed" and said the resolution represented a compromise
that should be respected by all nations. He denied that it violated
the
treaty. 2003-06-12 16:51:42
GMT
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