War Criminals Beware

Travel Advisory: War Criminals Beware, Justice Ahead

JURIST Guest Columnists Amy Ross of the University of Georgia Department of Geography and Chandra Lekha Sriram, Chair of Human Rights at the University of East London School of Law (UK), say that former US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's quick exit from a Paris speaking event last week in the face of a torture lawsuit brought by human rights organizations in a French court shows that univeral jurisdiction laws are making an impact by limiting "zones of impunity," even if the most powerful often remain beyond the reach of actual prosecution...

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Donald Rumsfeld should be more careful about where he travels.

In Paris last week, Rumsfeld left a prestigious speaking event in haste, slipping out a side door to avoid the human rights lawyers and journalists waiting to confront him with criminal charges of torture. He reportedly avoided the confrontation by sneaking out a door that attached the conference venue to, of all places, the United States Embassy.

The charges have been filed in a French court by international human rights organizations. The claim is that France is under a legal obligation to investigate and prosecute Rumsfeld's accountability for alleged crimes.

The legal pursuits against Rumsfeld are the latest in a trend toward invoking universal jurisdiction.

The essence of the principle is that some crimes are so serious as to be of "international concern.” Hence torture in Guantanamo and Iraq is the business of all humanity, existing everywhere, and should be heard in the French courts. Indeed, any court in the world could host such a trial.

Rumsfeld’s presence on French territory last week sparked the demand that a judge investigate the charges. France must refuse to provide safe haven for torturers, the lawyers insist.

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