“Hunger for Justice:” A Tale of Three Cities

 

Berlin, Germany—September/October 2007

It is the most indescribable feeling to walk on the same cobble-stoned streets where soldiers once marched to the cry of Heil Hitler! over sixty years ago as you make your way to the Berlin Parliament—the quietly grand and beautiful Abgeordnetenaus—to participate in a conference dedicated to the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) fight against impunity for the world’s worst crimes. It is nothing short of marveling awe as you recall the recent history of today’s breathtakingly diverse, bold, and beautiful Berlin—a city once torn in two with a divisive, glaring Wall separating East and West after World War II. It is simply astounding to see this city—once the headquarters of the Nazi government responsible for the calculated mass slaughter of millions—now the proud and deserving second home of international justice (IJ). For those of you who asked me why the conference on the ICC’s challenges and successes was being held in Berlin (as opposed to IJ’s first home—The Hague), I can only say that Germany’s capital city is living proof of the advancement of international law and justice.

And where are we—Americans—on the advancement of IJ? Has the U.S. shifted its reactionary and counterproductive policy toward a now adolescent ICC? That was, essentially, the topic of my speech at the Berlin Conference. Imagine trying to explain to a hall full of international organizations, civil society leaders, and German officials why the U.S. government, once responsible for the Nuremberg Trials prosecuting Nazis for their crimes, is now a challenge to a Court that is the natural and necessary evolution of Nuremberg. Not a simple task. Far less simple with only twelve minutes at the podium.

As promised, I emailed a number of you snippets of my speech. I will not regurgitate it here—I have made my position and supporting analysis of whether the U.S. is in fact shifting its policy toward the ICC clear in previous blog entries. Sufficed to say that my goal in Berlin surpassed a simple explanation of U.S. foreign policy. I was far more eager to articulate a fundamental truth that seldom makes it past the alienating foreign policies our government enforces in the IJ world: when it comes to the American public, there is majority support for the ICC. There is recognition of our moral backsliding, in particular in the years following September 11, 2001. And above all else, in the moving and eloquent words of ICC Judge Hans Peter Kaul on the last day of the Berlin Conference, there is a hunger for justice.

As I said in Berlin, I believe the American people are not only passionate but equally compassionate. We too are showing a ferocious appetite for peace, justice, and accountability. Engage us on the crises Darfur or Northern Uganda and you will experience our resolve and compassion. Galvanize us through targeted advocacy and you see our empathy and action. Challenge us and behold a people who are not willing to give up on their country’s once proud commitment to the rule of law. After trekking through the political analysis, I wanted the audience to know that if our current Administration has thus far failed to grasp the common goals and values that the United States has historically shared with those of the ICC, this has been far less the case with the American people, and increasingly, members of the 110th Congress who represent them.

Washington, D.C.—November 2007

Fall is by far the most beautiful season in Washington, D.C. One need only take in the rich colors of falling leaves amidst the dizzying aesthetic juxtaposition of national monuments, quiet, rowhouse-lined streets, a bustling downtown, and an ever calm Potomac River to see why this short lived season beats a universally admired, cherry blossom-adorned spring.

Never has there been a more exciting fall in D.C. for an IJ advocate. In Berlin I had announced to the audience that the 110th Congress was on fire. Upon my return to D.C., I was happy to see I had not overstated the case to my European peers. All year we have seen Congressional leaders push for a number of bills including but not limited to the Child Soldier Prevention Act, the Darfur Accountability and Divestment Act, and the Genocide Accountbility Act; introduce and co-sponsor a resolution calling for the recognition of the Armenian Genocide (more on this soon); and hold a slew of Congressional hearings tackling questions such as, why are such a large number of war criminals (that’s right—war criminals) living and prospering in the U.S.? (my guess: palm trees + no domestic laws to end impunity = great place to retire).

Regardless of which side of the Atlantic we’re on, it looks like this fall the prevailing trend is a renewed call to fight the good fight: the fight against impunity. In the equally eloquent words of Senator Dick Durbin who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Human Rights and the Law Subcommittee,

“Repressive regimes that violate human rights create fertile breeding grounds for suffering, terrorism, war, and instability. In our time, the world is a much smaller place, and the social ills caused by human rights abuses know no borders. We will never be truly secure as long as fundamental human rights are not respected.”

New York, New York—December 2007

Comprised of one delegation from each country that has joined the Court, the Assembly of States Parties (ASP) currently boasts 105 ICC member states and serves as the Court’s oversight body. Since the Court’s inception in 2002, the annual ASP meeting has been held in The Hague, Netherlands, where the Court sits. This year it’s being held in right here in the U.S., at the United Nations (U.N.) in another seminal IJ city: New York. For the next two weeks, my IJ colleagues and I will join government delegates from over 150 countries to participate in an ambitious agenda adopted by this 6th ASP. From the election of three new judges to kick-starting the work of the Trust Fund for Victims, preparing for the highly anticipated Review Conference to take place in 2009, and fittingly, addressing US-ICC relations, this ASP embodies the urgent energy we all feel as the Court grows, Americans prepare to vote, and the world waits to welcome a new year with the greatest promise of justice yet.

Before the holiday rush sets in and dinner parties take precedence over political will, I hope you take a moment and reflect on the significance of this past year. With the imminent arrival of 2008, we will once again have the opportunity to demand our voices be heard on Capitol Hill and at the White House. If we are sincere in our efforts to end the genocide in Darfur—if we are genuine in our outrage when we see children with amputated limbs in war-torn Congo—if we truly believe that the U.S. must contribute to future IJ successes, not challenges, then we need to ensure that this hunger for justice we feel does not fall to the wayside amidst the frenzy of elections and party politics next year. Many of the presidential candidates have made positive and promising references to justice, accountability, and the ICC—let’s make sure these references turn into an unwavering resolution to reunite us with the rest of the world on a cause that we should have been championing all along.

I wish you all a safe, peaceful, and beautiful fall.