.
Security Council Resolution Silent
on Human Rights
International Justice Needed for Past Abuses
(New York, May 20, 2003) (HRW)- The new U.N. draft resolution on
Iraq contains
no explicit plans for protecting human rights or setting up an
international
tribunal for past abuses. These defects will make it much more
difficult to
establish peace and security in Iraq, Human Rights Watch said today.
The resolution gives a proposed U.N. Special Representative for
Iraq only
vague responsibilities for human rights and humanitarian issues and
fails to
address many important questions, including justice for past abuses
and the
need to preserve forensic and documentary evidence.
"As more and more mass graves come to light, it's appalling
that the
Security Council would remain silent on past abuses in Iraq,"
said Kenneth
Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch. "Ensuring justice
for these
crimes will be essential to breaking with impunity in Iraq and
restoring the
rule of law."
As a first step, Human Rights Watch urged the Security Council
to appoint a
commission of experts, as it did for the former Yugoslavia, to
recommend the
best option for an internationally- led justice process. In the
meantime,
Human Rights Watch called for urgent steps to protect mass graves and
archives to preserve crucial evidence for any future trials. This
evidence
is also necessary to ensure that families can establish the fate of
their
loved ones.
Human Rights Watch also urged the Security Council to establish
a human
rights monitoring presence inside Iraq under the authority of the U.N.
High
Commissioner for Human Rights.
"The Security Council has put human rights monitors on the
ground in many
other post-conflict situations," said Roth. "As violence and
instability
continue in Iraq, monitors could help deter abuses and make
recommendations
for longer-term reforms."
Human Rights Watch criticized the resolution for ignoring the
silent threat
that landmines and unexploded ordnance pose to Iraq's people. This
concern
has been compounded by the recent use of cluster munitions by U.S. and
U.K.
ground and air forces; new laying of landmines by Iraqi forces; and
very
large numbers of abandoned Iraqi weapons caches.
Human Rights Watch called on the Security Council to give high
priority to
mine action activities (survey, marking, risk education and
clearance).
Coalition forces should also provide detailed information on the
types,
numbers and locations of munitions used, in order to facilitate
effective
warnings to civilians and rapid clearance.
To read Human Rights Watch's previous letter to the United
Nations Security
Council dated May 13, 2003, please see:
http://hrw.org/press/2003/05/unsc051303ltr.htm
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