Special Tribunal for Lebanon Goes to Work
U.N. Sponsored Court Looks into Hariri Assassination
Mar 2, 2009
The opening ceremony for the court began with a solemn moment of remembrance for Prime Minister Hariri and those who were killed alongside him during the infamous 2005 attack in Beirut. Robin Vincent, Court Registrar, lead the ceremony at the court´s headquarters on the outskirts of The Hague, The Netherlands.
Four pro-Syrian Lebanese generals are believed to have ordered the assassination, and are currently detained in Lebanon. Other suspects were detained, but they were subsequently released by a local judge. The surrender of the generals to the tribunal, and the detention of other suspects, will be formally requested by Court Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare (a Canadian) within the coming weeks.
Robin Vincent told those attending the ceremony that: “Whilst the tribunal exists for many reasons, we should never lose sight of one of the principle reasons for its existence: the suffering of the victims and their families. In the end, we are not here for the United Nations, nor are we here for the international community, but for Lebanon. We are not here for the perpetrators of crimes, but for the victims of crimes. And, above all and very simply, we are not here for ourselves, we are here for others...”
Background
Lebanon and Syria have had a painful relationship over the past few decades, even to the extent that Syrian troops had at one time assumed de facto control over Lebanon. On February 14, 2005, a suicide bomber killed Mr. Hariri and 22 others on the main seaside boulevard in Beirut. Anti-Syrian political forces in Lebanon later blamed Syria for the attack and asked for the full withdrawal of Syrian troops from the country. The resulting popular outcry over the assassination was eventually successful in forcing Syria to remove all of its troops from its smaller neighbor. Lebanon´s government then formally asked the United Nations to investigate this crime, along with 20 other political attacks that may have been related.
Lebanon and the United Nations agreed to establish a special tribunal pursuant to Security Council resolution 1664 (2006); and the statute of the tribunal entered into force on June 10, 2007. The mandate of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon is to prosecute persons responsible for the attack that resulted in the death of Rafiq Hariri and in the death or injury of other persons. However, it is also able to prosecute crimes that are considered to be significantly related. Readers are directed to visit the tribunal’s official website for more information.
The Politics
Stability in the Levant region of the Middle East depends greatly on political stability and democratic developments within Lebanon and Syria. International observers have mixed feelings about this trial because it may have both positive and negative effects on the relationship between Syria, Lebanon, and the greater international community. Many member states of the United Nations (including the United States) are attempting to support democratic, usually anti-Syrian, politicians within Lebanon; but they are also trying to develop constructive diplomatic relations with Syria.
On this issue, Reuters reported on March 1, 2009, that: “The United States, other Western countries and anti-Syrian Lebanese politicians initially viewed the tribunal as a potent weapon against Damascus. Syria displayed corresponding anxiety…U.S. President Barack Obama is exploring a possible detente with Syria, raising fears among anti-Syrian Lebanese politicians that the tribunal might lose its teeth as part of a deal with Damascus. However, Obama marked the anniversary of Hariri's assassination by reaffirming U.S. support for the tribunal in bringing justice to those behind [this crime].” Unfortunately, the long-term political and diplomatic effects of this process cannot be predicted until it gets into full swing.
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