16 June 09 - A new report – 'Suspected War Criminals and Genocidaires in the UK: Proposals to Strengthen our Laws' –published today by the Aegis Trust brings together, for the first time, details of people entering the UK who are suspected of war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide, some of whom cannot be prosecuted here due to legal loopholes – but cannot be easily returned home or extradited either, due to the risk of unfair trial or torture.
The report examines 18 cases, including those of suspected genocidaires from Rwanda, alleged torturers from Zimbabwe, Iraq, Liberia and the Congo, and alleged war criminals from Afghanistan, Sudan, Sierra Leone and Sri Lanka. They include such people as a Lieutenant Colonel from KHAD, the Soviet-era Afghan government’s secret police; an alleged Tamil Tiger assassination hit squad driver, and a member of Sierra Leone’s ‘Mosquito’ rebel group, which was notorious for murder, rape, looting, burning, sexual slavery and forced amputations.
Government statistics reveal that since 2004 immigration action has been recommended for 138 suspects, and 22 cases have been referred to the police.
“There are two ‘impunity gaps’ in UK law which preventing prosecution for international crimes,” says the report’s editor, Nick Donovan, Head of Research, Policy and Campaigns for the Aegis Trust. “Those suspected of genocide, crimes against humanity and most war crimes cannot be prosecuted in the UK if they committed those acts before 2001. And non-residents such as students, tourists or asylum seekers without residence status can’t be prosecuted even if those acts were committed after 2001.
“This report shows that this not a hypothetical issue. It’s about individuals suspected of the most heinous crimes anyone can commit; individuals that this country needs to bring to justice if we do not want to remain a safe haven for war criminals.”
The report contains proposals for strengthening UK law, including proposed amendments to the International Criminal Court Act that would close the loopholes currently benefitting war crimes suspects in the UK.
Parliament debates legal changes, but Government’s position unclear
It comes at a time when Parliament is already considering such changes to the law, in the form of a amendment tabled by Lord Carlile QC (the Independent Reviewer for Terrorism Legislation) to the Coroners and Justice Bill. During the Bill’s second reading in the Lords on 18 May, powerful speeches in support of the planned amendment were made by Baroness D’Souza, former Lord Chancellor Lord Falconer QC, Lord Goodhart QC, Lord Lester QC, Baroness Cathain, Lord Mayhew QC and Lord Alton, among others.
“We need to change the law.... I will strongly support the amendment ... [and] do not believe for a moment that it would divide any feeling in this House at all,” commented Lord Falconer QC from the Labour benches. No-one spoke in opposition to the amendment. As Lord Goodhart QC of the Liberal Democrats noted, the proposed reform “seems to have the almost complete support of Members of your Lordships’ House.” Lord Mayhew QC, a former Conservative Attorney General, called on the Government to support the amendment: “I hope that, when it comes to be debated in Committee, Ministers will support it.”
The former Director of Public Prosecutions, Sir Ken Macdonald QC has also publicly supported such reforms in evidence to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights; as has one of the candidates to be the next Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow MP.
However, the Government’s position is currently unclear. Responding for the Government on 18 May, Lord Bach, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Justice, stated: “We are actively considering this issue, and I have no doubt that we shall have an interesting debate in Committee on this very important area of concern.”
If the Government were to support only a partial closure of existing loopholes in the law, war crimes suspects such as those detailed in the new report could continue to find safe haven in the UK.
http://www.article19.org/pdfs/publications/uk-unhrc-submission.pdf
ARTICLE 19 urges UN Committee to address free speech concerns in the United Kingdom
Today, the UN Human Rights Committee begins its audit of the United Kingdom’s compliance with its obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). ARTICLE 19 has submitted a Report calling on the Committee to question the British Government on a range of issues, including its plans to reduce use of the Freedom of Information Act, the ban on unauthorised demonstrations near Parliament Square and the high cost of defending libel suits in the UK.
While the ARTICLE 19 Report finds that respect for freedom of expression in Britain is generally good, it points to an erosion of the right to protest as well as a failure to address a number of long-standing issues. The United Kingdom is yet to act on problems identified by the UN several years ago in the UK’s Freedom of Information Act and Official Secrets Act. Instead, steps are being considered to curtail access to information.
The report warns that the vaguely defined offence of ‘encouragement of terrorism’ enacted after the 2005 terrorist attacks discourages the peaceful expression of extreme views, making it more difficult to confront and moderate them. The terrorist threat has provoked excessive responses, such as a six year prison sentence for protestors who chanted fundamentalist slogans and a ban on demonstrations outside Parliament without prior leave from the police.
Another problem identified by ARTICLE 19 is the high cost of defending, or even settling, libel suits in the UK. Contingent fee arrangements have made it easy to sue the media, aggravating existing procedural disadvantages which the defendant faces, and discouraging critical reporting.
NOTES TO EDITORS
The UN Human Rights Committee will be meeting on 29 October to draw up a list of ‘issues of concern’ on Britain’s implementation of the main UN human rights treaty, the ICCPR, and ARTICLE 19’s report supplements the official UK government report. The Committee will be meeting in July 2008 for a question and answer session with British officials, at which time we will supply additional information.
For more information, please contact Daniel Simons, Legal Officer, at daniel@article19.org or +44 20 7239 1192
The Report can be downloaded at http://www.article19.org/pdfs/publications/uk-unhrc-submission.pdf. The UK government report is available at http://daccess-ods.un.org/access.nsf/Get?Open&DS=CCPR/C/GBR/6&Lang=E.
ARTICLE 19 is an independent human rights organisation that works globally to protect and promote the right to freedom of expression. It takes its name from Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which guarantees free speech.