Harris Institute the e-Newsletter FALL 2012 The Harris Institute Congratulates Fatou Bensouda, FOCUS: Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court NTERNATIONAL I This year, the International Criminal CRIMINAL Court (ICC) celebrates ten years since its creation, but there is another reason for LAW celebration at the first-ever permanent court with jurisdiction to try the international crimes of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. On June 15, 2012, the second Chief INSIDE: Prosecutor of the International Criminal The Harris Institute Court, Madame Fatou Bensouda of The Congratulates Fatou Gambia, was sworn in. Bensouda, Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Mme. Bensouda’s distinguished career named one of Time Magazine’s 100 most Court in the field has equipped her with tools influential people. needed to fulfill the responsibilities of this critical role in international At a time when the ICC has come under Harris Institute Launches criminal law. Prior to her election to close scrutiny for limits on the charges it Inaugural Benjamin B. ICC Chief Prosecutor, Bensouda worked has brought against accused Ferencz Essay Competition as Head of the Legal Advisory Unit, genocidaires and for appearing to target Senior Legal Advisor and Trial Africa – the region with the most Attorney at the International Criminal members of the Court – in its The Harris Institute’s Crimes Tribunal for Rwanda. Bensouda then investigations, Bensouda has emerged Against Humanity Initiative served as ICC Deputy Prosecutor from as a leader at the International Criminal November 1, 2004 until her election to Court. Chief Prosecutor Bensouda has Broadens its Reach Chief Prosecutor in December of 2011. responded to criticism, redirecting the focus to the Prosecutor’s goal of seeking ICC at Ten Conference at Chief Prosecutor Bensouda’s visionary justice for the victims. Washington University Law work in the field of international criminal law has been internationally Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda is the recognized. She won the International first woman to serve as chief prosecutor Sixth Annual International Court of Justice International Jurist of the International Criminal Court. Humanitarian Law Dialogs Award in 2009, and the Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute’s World For a personal account of the swearing- Peace Through Law Award in 2011. in ceremony by Special Advisor to the Professor Sadat Invited to Join She was also unanimously elected by all Prosecutor and Washington University the Prestigious Council on 120 (then) member states of the School of Law Professor Leila Nadya Foreign Relations International Criminal Court. This Sadat, please visit Windows on the year, Chief Prosecutor Bensouda was World. The Institute would like to publicly thank Oyinlola (Lola) Oguntebi, outgoing Harris Institute Fellow, for her wonderful service during the 2011-2012 academic year. The Harris Institute is also pleased to welcome Jing Geng as its fellow for the 2012-2013 academic year. the Harris Institute e-Newsletter Page 2 The Whitney R. Harris Institute Launches the Inaugural Benjamin B. Ferencz Essay Competition The Harris World Law Institute, named a passionate advocate for the international for leading advocate of modern rule of law and for the International international criminal law and Nuremberg Criminal Court, and a firm believer in the Prosecutor Whitney R. Harris, recognizes philosophy of former U.S. President a colleague of its namesake with the Dwight D. Eisenhower, that: “In a very launch of the Benjamin B. Ferencz Essay real sense, the world no longer has a choice Competition. Benjamin B. Ferencz served between force and law. If civilization is to as Chief Prosecutor in the Einsatzgruppen survive it must choose the rule of law.” Case, a landmark case at Nuremberg, in which 22 defendants were convicted for The competition asked writers to grapple the brutal murder of more than a million with the tension between crimes against “IN A VERY REAL SENSE, innocent men, women and children. He humanity and crimes of aggression, both THE WORLD NO LONGER was 27 years old at the time. jurisdictionally and in terms of subject HAS A CHOICE BETWEEN matter. The winner of the essay FORCE AND LAW F . I Having seen the horrors of war first-hand, competition will receive a prize of $10,000. CIVILIZATION IS TO Ferencz agreed with the characterization SURVIVE IT MUST of aggressive war-making as the “supreme Please visit the competition’s website for international crime.” Ferencz has more information on the Benjamin B. CHOOSE THE RULE OF dedicated his life to seeking a more Ferencz Essay Competition and to read the LAW.” humane and just legal order. He has been winning essay in November 2012. — DWIGHT D. The Crimes Against Humanity Initiative EISENHOWER Broadens its Reach The Crimes Against Humanity Initiative, a In the past groundbreaking rule of law project of the y e a r , t h e Whitney R. Harris World Law Initiative, Crimes Against has continued to make headway in raising H u m a n i t y awareness of the need for an international Convention convention against crimes against has assembled humanity and garnering support for the an Advisory Proposed Convention the Crimes Against Council of Humanity Initiative has drafted. r e g i o n a l l y - diverse and In the four years since Professor Leila prominent figures in their respective Nadya Sadat, Director of the Whitney R. governments and in international law, to Harris World Law Institute at Washington aid in promoting the Proposed Convention. University School of Law, embarked upon a To further widen its reach, the Crimes project to study the need for a Against Humanity Initiative has released comprehensive convention on crimes translations of the Proposed Convention in against humanity, the project has convened Spanish and Arabic. German, Russian and a Steering Committee of leading scholars Chinese translations are forthcoming. WHITNEY R. HARRIS and jurists in international criminal law, WORLD LAW INSTITUTE The Crimes Against Humanity Initiative and drafted an award-winning book has received strong support from the containing a Proposed International international legal community. For more WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY Convention on the Prevention and SCHOOL OF LAW information on the Initiative, please visit Punishment of Crimes Against Humanity in http://crimesagainsthumanity.wustl.edu/. English and in French. the Harris Institute e-Newsletter Page Fall3 2012 ICC at Ten Conference at Washington University School of Law The Whitney R. Harris World Law Sadat, a prolific scholar in international Institute will host a major conference in criminal law predicted that the ICC international criminal law to commemorate would permanently alter the course of ten years since the coming into force of the international criminal law. Rome Statute for the International Criminal Court. The ICC at Ten conference, Since the entry into force of the Rome co-sponsored by the American Society of Statute of the International Criminal International Law, the American Branch of Court on July 1, 2002, the ICC has the International Law Association, and the opened investigations into seven International Association of Penal Law will situations, three of which were referred feature leading scholars and practitioners to the Court by the state parties themselves. The ICC has publicly indicted 29 individuals for international crimes, and issued 20 warrants for arrest. This year, the Court handed down its first judgment. In the case of Prosecutor v. Thomas Dyilo-Lubanga, the ICC found a military commander and minister of defense who had founded a rebel group, the Union of Congolese Patriots, guilty of massive human rights violations, including ethnic massacres, murder, torture, rape, mutilation, and forcibly conscripting child soldiers. The symposium, which will be open to the public, will focus on the Court’s who have been instrumental in the achievements and challenges to date, development of international criminal law including the Lubanga judgment, in and the ICC. Confirmed speakers include addition to early jurisprudence, the U.S. ICC judges, ambassadors, current and position toward the Court, and the former prosecutors of the ad-hoc Court’s future. The conference will also international criminal tribunals, and several feature a special performance Sustenazo leading scholars whose research has shaped (Lament IV) by internationally the field. For a list of confirmed speakers acclaimed artist Monika Weiss, in collaboration with Sam Fox School of and conference agenda, visit the conference website. Design & Visual Arts. WHITNEY R. HARRIS For more information and to register for Professor Leila Nadya Sadat, Director of WORLD LAW INSTITUTE the ICC at Ten Conference at the Whitney R. Harris World Law Washington University School of Law, Institute, has been a prominent proponent WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY please visit the conference website at of the International Criminal Court from its SCHOOL OF LAW http://law.wustl.edu/harris/iccat10/. inception. Before the Court was established, the Harris Institute e-Newsletter Page 4 Sixth Annual International Humanitarian Law Dialogs The Harris World Law Institute is a co- sponsor of the annual International Humanitarian Law Dialogs, held in late August at the Chautauqua Institution near Jamestown, New York. Honoring the Nuremberg legacy and the pursuit of international justice and peace, the Dialogs are a historic gathering of international prosecutors, learned scholars, and human rights activists.