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DE RUCNDT #0987/01 3072226
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R 032226Z NOV 09
FM USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
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RUEHVB/AMEMBASSY ZAGREB 3320

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 000987 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL UNGA UNGA
SUBJECT: REPORTS ON INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL TRIBUNALS FOR 
RWANDA AND THE FORMER YUGOSLAVIA 
 
¶1. Summary: On October 8 the Presidents of the International 
Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) and International 
Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) reported 
to the U.N. General Assembly (UNGA) on the progress of their 
respective courts.  Interventions followed from ten Member 
States (Sweden on behalf of the E.U., Canada on behalf of 
CANZ, Serbia, Norway, Croatia, Kenya, Rwanda, Albania, 
Russian Federation, and Tanzania).  End Summary. 
 
¶2. Judge Dennis Byron, President of the ICTR, noted that 
although 2009 marks the fifteen year anniversary of the 
genocide in Rwanda, it also commemorates the fifteen year 
anniversary of the establishment of the ICTR.  Since then, 
the ICTR has rendered final judgments on eight cases 
involving eleven accused and he expects fourteen more trials 
against twenty-four accused.  Recently, two "high rank" 
suspects were arrested and successfully brought before the 
tribunal.  Byron advocated for judge's pensions and for 
assistance in dealing with attrition within the ICTR.  He 
expressed his concern over the transition from the ICTR, as 
it begins to close down, to national jurisdictions saying 
that the closure must not send the wrong signal to fugitives 
at large.  Byron exhorted national jurisdictions to ensure 
that genocide suspects are unable to find sanctuary.  He 
closed by thanking Member States for their support over the 
last fifteen years. 
 
¶3. Judge Patrick Robinson, President of the ICTY, expressed 
his gratitude to the General Assembly for its support.  He 
reported that three appeal judgments were rendered along with 
three trial judgments with all but four trials set to 
conclude by 2010.  Radovan Karadzic will be tried by 2012. 
Robinson lamented that two fugitives, Ratko Mladic and Goran 
Hadzic, remain at large.  He, too, said he was concerned with 
retaining staff while ICTY wraps up its work since it is 
increasingly difficult to find qualified staff, let alone 
train them. He called for Member State support in finding a 
solution.  Robinson raised the issue of compensating victims 
for their suffering and asked for Member State assistance, 
stating that "justice is not only about punishing 
perpetrators but also about restoring dignity to victims." 
 
- - - - - - - - 
INTERVENTIONS 
- - - - - - - - 
 
¶4. Ambassador Anders Liden of Sweden, on behalf of the E.U., 
commended the work of both tribunals and stated that they 
"prove that international criminal law is an enforceable body 
of law."  He welcomed the ICTY's publication of a manual of 
best practices for domestic and international courts. 
 
¶5. Keith Morrill of Canada, representing Canada, New Zealand, 
and Australia (CANZ), lauded the ICTR/ICTY and said the 
lessons learned should be applied to courts on Sierra Leone, 
Cambodia, and Lebanon.  Canada offered its full support and 
cooperation to the tribunals in their closing stages. 
 
¶6. Ambassador Feodor Starcevic of Serbia pledged his full 
commitment and cooperation to the ICTY as Serbia has in the 
past such as access to archives, witness protection, and 
waivers.  He promised to exert all efforts to track down the 
last two fugitives. 
 
¶7. Norwegian Ambassador Morten Wetland urged Member States to 
honor their obligations and to provide full support 
(witnesses, financial and material support, and assistance in 
enforcement of sentences).  While he welcomed the recent 
arrest of Idelphonse Nizeyimana, remaining fugitives need to 
be apprehended.  Finally, he urged the Security Council to 
resolve the residual issues after the completion of terms of 
the tribunals. 
 
¶8. Ambassador Ranko Vilovic of Croatia stated that the arrest 
and trial of the remaining ICTY fugitives was a priority and 
that he regretted that Karadzic was only in the pre-trial 
stage.  While closure of the tribunals is legitimate, Croatia 
does not want it done at the expense of fair trials.  He 
called for a strategy to manage residual issues. 
 
¶9. Kenyan Ambassador Zachary Muburi-Muita said he was worried 
about the enforcement of sentences by the ICTR and called on 
 
 
Member States to help host persons convicted by the 
tribunals.  Muburi-Muita appreciated the training provided by 
the E.U. on International Criminal Law and observed that both 
tribunals have contributed immensely to the development of 
International Criminal Law. 
 
¶10. Rwandan Ambassador Eugene Gasana thanked the Democratic 
Republic of Congo, Uganda, and Interpol for their efforts in 
the recent arrests of two ICTR fugitives.  Rwanda stated that 
there should be no residual mechanism with trial capacity 
past 2010, as fugitives should be tried in national courts, 
countries where they were arrested, or in any member state 
willing to try them.  Gasana refuted suggestions that the 
Rwandan justice system was below standards. 
 
¶11. Albanian Ambassador Ferit Hoxha affirmed his country's 
support to strengthen international criminal law and justice 
and called on the Security Council to help the tribunals 
prosecute the remaining fugitives.  He called on states where 
fugitives are suspected to reside to cooperate with the 
tribunals. 
 
¶12. Gennady Kuzmin of the Russian Federation noted the 
considerable work accomplished by the tribunals but said the 
tribunals should not replace national courts.  He advised 
that the tribunals should stick to their original time frames 
and not "drag out" their work due to outstanding fugitives. 
Kuzmin suggested bringing in national courts to take over the 
remaining cases. 
 
¶13. Tanzanian Ambassador Augustine Mahiga praised the ICTR 
and the ICTY for fighting impunity and promoting rule of law. 
 He said Tanzania, as host of the ICTR, would continue its 
duties until its completion.  Mahiga urged Member States to 
offer their detention facilities and to cooperate in the 
search for remaining fugitives.  He stated that Tanzania 
should continue to host the ICTR archives as it would help 
with capacity building and training. 
Rice