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OO RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHBW RUEHDA RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA
RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHTRO RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUCNDT #0468/01 1482316
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 272316Z MAY 08
FM USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4331
INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RUEHGG/UN SECURITY COUNCIL COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 USUN NEW YORK 000468 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PTER UNSC SY LE
SUBJECT: LEBANON TRIBUNAL:  MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE DISCUSSES 
STAFFING AND FUNDING ISSUES 
 
REF: A. USUN/IO EMAIL (WILCOX/REINEMEYER)-05/27/08 
     ¶B. USUN 171 
     ¶C. STATE 1170 (2007) 
     ¶D. USUN 1185 (2007) 
     ¶E. USUN 384 
 
¶1.  (SBU)  BEGIN SUMMARY:  Robin Vincent, Registrar of the 
Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), told members of the STL 
Management Committee on May 22 that he is finalizing the 
initial budget for the STL's first year and hopes the 
Committee can approve it by July 11.  Vincent estimated the 
budget would be USD 52 million, more than half of which will 
be devoted to costs for staff and judges, but said those 
figures could be reduced depending on how fast the STL fills 
posts.  Committee members also discussed draft staff 
regulations for the STL, continued to consider draft 
financial regulations for the STL, and agreed that the 
Committee Chairman would inform contributors and other 
interested states that the Committee would brief them soon on 
its activities.  END SUMMARY. 
 
Initial Draft Budget Near Completion 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶2.  (SBU) STL Register Vincent briefed members on his plans 
for submitting the proposed budget for the STL's first 
financial year for the Management Committee's approval and 
circulated a handout providing details (ref A).  Vincent said 
his projections reflected his "worst case scenario" and said 
he was working to ensure that the figures were as accurate as 
possible.  Although Vincent did not explicitly say when the 
STL's financial year would begin, he predicted that the STL 
would begin operating on January 1, 2009. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Vincent estimated USD 29.9 million in costs for 
staff and judges, consistent with the Committee's earlier 
decision on staffing (refs B-D), which would form 58 percent 
of the draft budget.  That figure is in line with comparable 
costs of other international tribunals, Vincent said, and 
reflects UNIIIC Commissioner and STL Prosecutor-Designate 
Daniel Bellemare's request for staffing the Office of the 
Prosecutor.  Vincent expected that the STL would have 310 
staff and judges (109 in the Office of the Prosecutor, nine 
in the judges' Chambers, five in the Defense Office, and 187 
in the Registry).  Although most of the staff of the Office 
of the Prosecutor will be in place when the UNIIIC's mandate 
expires (assuming the Security Council extends it until 
December 31), Vincent expected that recruitment for other 
posts would be delayed, depending on external events.  If the 
STL fills posts more slowly, first-year costs would be 
reduced, Vincent said.  Vincent also estimated that only two 
judges would need to work full-time during the first year. 
The budget also reflects USD 13.5 million for the building 
construction project and USD 8-9 million for operational 
costs, consistent with the Committee's earlier decisions on 
the building (ref E). 
 
¶3.  (SBU) To maximize financial flexibility, minimize costs, 
and ensure accuracy, Vincent asked the Committee to approve 
the budget in two stages.  First, Vincent said he hoped the 
Committee would approve the initial budget by July 11. 
Second, after he and his advance team move to The Hague and 
have concrete experience to draw from, Vincent said he would 
reassess the budget, particularly the projected operational 
costs, and resubmit a revised budget for the Committee's 
approval by October 31.  Vincent said his two-step approach 
aimed to avoid some of the problems experienced by other 
international tribunals, which initially presented low budget 
estimates that later had to be augmented significantly. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) USUN questioned whether Vincent's two-step process 
might confuse donors and make the budgeting process more 
cumbersome.  Many Committee members welcomed Vincent's 
proposal as a pragmatic approach.  Committee members also 
said they would be willing to meet with Daniel Bellemare in 
early June, as he has requested, so Bellemare can justify his 
staffing requests. 
 
Draft Financial Regulations Near Completion 
------------------------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Committee members commented on a revised draft of 
the financial regulations and rules for the STL, which 
incorporated new language from the UN Comptroller-General.  A 
revised draft will be prepared and circulated to the 
Committee soon for final approval.  Most of the discussion 
focused on language in the draft concerning audits of the 
STL's accounts and how best to provide for audits by the 
Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS).  Vincent said 
 
USUN NEW Y 00000468  002 OF 002 
 
 
he had discussed the issue with the OIOS's chief auditor, who 
did not object in principle provided the STL reimbursed the 
OIOS for its services.  The draft regulations will be revised 
to reflect the possibility that OIOS will provide audits. 
 
Staff Regulations Considered 
---------------------------- 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Committee members also commented on the draft staff 
regulations for the STL, which the Secretariat prepared using 
the UN Staff Regulations and Rules as a model.  USUN 
questioned whether a provision to allow the Management 
Committee to supplement or amend the regulations without 
prejudice to staff members' acquired rights should be amended 
to refer instead to "vested rights" or the principle of the 
prohibition of retroactivity.  UN Assistant Secretary-General 
Larry Johnson expressed concern that departing from the 
language in the UN Staff Regulations and Rules might 
interfere with the STL's application to join the UN Joint 
Staff Pension Fund and said he would refer that suggestion to 
the UN lawyers who drafted the regulations. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) The Committee meets again on May 29. 
Wolff