HRW calls for justice and human rights in resolution

Justice for victims of the Saddam Hussein regime should be at the top of the agenda as part of Iraq's political transition, says Human Rights Watch (HRW), which has called, in a recent statement, for the UN Security Council to make reference to justice and human rights in a new resolution currently under debate. "The current draft resolution makes no mention of justice for serious past human rights crimes," Urmi Shah, spokeswoman for HRW in London, told IRIN on Wednesday. "There is insufficient policing and security and the processes of law need to be sorted out," she added. "President [George] Bush and Prime Minister [Tony] Blair placed great emphasis on the abuses Saddam Hussein committed against his own people as a justification for military action against Iraq, but what are they doing now to ensure justice and accountability for those terrible crimes?" Kenneth Roth, executive director of HRW, said in the statement. HRW says the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) failed to ensure those responsible received fair trials before impartial and independent courts. With the arrests of key Baath party members, such as 'Chemical Ali' or Ali Hassan al Majid, a cousin of Saddam Hussein, there are increasing calls for these people to be tried for crimes against humanity. Human rights groups say he was part of the brutal suppression of the uprisings that followed the Gulf War in 1991, which included mass executions torture and widespread destruction. "We propose they have a group of international experts to put together evidence," Shah said, adding that they would need to have experience in dealing with such complex issues. "The Iraqis do have experience in dealing with such issues but not such complex issues and there may not be the impartiality needed in this situation," she explained. HRW is currently trying to find out what the processes of law are in Iraq. "We are concerned about justice issues such as detention, access to lawyers and bail," Shah stressed. The rights body also wrote to British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, calling for human rights to be one of the main components of the resolution. "As president of the Security Council and a key partner for the United States in Iraq, the United Kingdom will play a central role in shaping the outcome of this debate. We welcome the United Kingdom's decision to make transitional justice the priority theme of its presidency and urge you to demonstrate this commitment during the forthcoming debate on Iraq," the letter said. The document stressed the need for protecting human rights in the country. "It is a sad irony that the United States and United Kingdom should be investing such effort in investigating and documenting Saddam Hussein's production and stockpiling of chemical and biological weapons, but at the same time doing so little with regard to justice for his crimes against his own people." These components are essential if Iraq is to have a prosperous future, says HRW. "The new resolution must include accountability for human rights if there is to be long-term stability in Iraq," Shah maintained. Meanwhile, the US-based NGO Refugees International (RI) called for the UN to have a larger role in Iraq, accusing the Bush administration of "remaining reluctant to relinquish control." It said the UN had been effective in stewarding post-conflict countries towards political stability and legitimacy when a peace agreement or an internationally endorsed plan had been in place. RI recommended that a new UN resolution on Iraq follow the "pillar approach" first used in the Kosovo mission, place control of the military aspect with NATO, and put policing under the control of the UN. The UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Iraq should initially be an American, followed by someone of British origin, it said. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan is meeting with the foreign ministers of the five permanent members of the Security Council on 13 September in Geneva to discuss and accelerate the restoration of Iraqi national sovereignty ahead of the announcement of the new resolution.