| Justice and Vengeance |
21 July 2003
|
Let Iraqis Try Iraqis
The Iraqis who form the council that almost runs Anglo-American occupied Iraq has decided to hold war
crimes trials under Iraqi authority. The human rights lobby has already demanded that no such thing
occur on the grounds that the victims should never try their accused oppressors. Almost sixty years after
the Nuremberg and Tokyo tribunals, it is amazing that the world still has the stomach for show trials at all.
However, as staunch defenders of international law, maybe the opponents of the idea should re-read their
legal texts and then shut up before they embarrass themselves further.
One of the basic precepts of international territorial sovereignty, as handed down to us from the Treaty of
Westphalia in 1648, is the idea that crimes committed inside the territory of the country should be
punished by that country's authorities. Thus if a Frenchman robs a Spaniard in Ireland, the Irish get first
crack at providing justice. There are legal grounds for the other two countries to get involved, but they
do not have primary jurisdiction in the case. The reasons are largely practical, the evidence in this
hypothetical case is all in Ireland, the witnesses are there, and the criminal and the victim are there. It is
convenient for all parties.
The human rights people are justly concerned that those accused of human rights violations, war crimes
and genocide might not get a fair trial in Iraq because the people of Iraq may not be able to rationally
assess the facts. After decades of oppression, reasoned application of justice is likely come a distant
second to revenge.
Yet consider the alternatives: no trial at all or a trial in some far off location like the Hague in the
Netherlands or Brussels in Belgium. No trials would create a situation like Argentina's, where the
perpetrators of the "dirty war" that killed thousands 20 years ago have been immune from prosecution,
and where justice has yet to be done. However, a trial outside Iraq is not without difficulty: witnesses
will have to travel a great distance, and at great expense. Files and other documentary evidence will have
to be transported as well. Above all, defendants will have to be moved, and escape is easiest then.
Perhaps, the real problem is the squeamishness many have regarding Iraqi punishments for the appalling
crimes committed by Iraqis against Iraqis in Iraq. They should respect the Iraqi people enough to let them
run their own affairs.