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Jordan Times
Sunday, December 28, 2003
600 lawyers sign up to defend former Iraqi president
By Alia Shukri Hamzeh
So when is Bush going to appoint his prosecutor?
Sunday, December 28, 2003
600 lawyers sign up to defend former Iraqi president
By Alia Shukri Hamzeh
AMMAN — More than 600 lawyers have signed up at the Jordan Bar Association (JBA) to form a team to defend former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, captured by US troops earlier this month and expected to face trial on criminal charges.
According to JBA President Hussein Mjalli, the number of lawyers volunteering for the defence team — which is expected to include local, Arab and international lawyers — is increasing daily. By Friday evening, 600 lawyers had signed up, he said.
The JBA, in cooperation with the Cairo-based Arab Lawyer's Union — grouping members from across the Arab world — started setting up an international team for Saddam's defence since his capture on Dec. 13.
The total number of lawyers in this international committee is still unknown.
Mjalli said the general secretariat of the Arab Lawyers Union would meet in Cairo today to discuss developments related to the defence.
“The intention is to form a higher committee for the defence of Saddam. One which will include legal experts from all over the world,” Mjalli told The Jordan Times.
The JBA president and several other local lawyers believe Saddam should not be tried because he was “unlawfully deposed and captured by US troops.”
Mjalli maintains that Saddam is Iraq's legitimate president, and the US-led occupation of the neighbouring country is illegal, thus any action or decision stemming from it should be considered null and void.
Mjalli reiterated earlier demands that Saddam not be tried, “because, in keeping with the Iraqi constitution and international law, a head of state is immune from prosecution.”
Members of the US-appointed Iraqi Interim Governing Council announced that Saddam would be tried in a special war crimes tribunal established with provisions taken from the International Criminal Court. The tribunal was appointed on Dec. 10, three days prior to Saddam's capture.
However, no decision has been taken yet on how or when Saddam will face trial.
Saddam's eldest daughter Raghad recently told satellite channels that his family would prefer that he be tried in an international court rather than by the Iraqi Governing Council because it was “appointed by US occupiers.”
Speaking in an interview with CNN from her residence in Amman, she asked that her father be given a fair trial outside Iraq.
“It remains too soon to decide on anything related to Saddam's trial,” said international law expert Walid Sadi. “The place or venue for the trial is not the issue, but rather the legal system that can apply,” Sadi said. However, Sadi, who is also the chief commissioner of the National Centre for Human Rights, said the former Iraqi leader should be tried by an Iraqi court which incorporates all the requirements of a fair trial. He said the trial should be held in Iraq where evidence is accumulated and a case can be prepared.
However, he said, Saddam's trial cannot take place in Iraq until after the Iraqi people regain sovereignty over their land and apply international law standards in their courts.
The issue of Saddam's trial has created widespread controversy as to where, and under what charges the former Iraqi leader should be tried.
According to Sadi, current international courts or tribunals lack the jurisdiction to try the deposed leader. Besides, he added, international courts are based on a “complementary” system, meaning that the priority for such cases is given to the local judiciary.
He noted that Saddam should not be the only person to face trial, rather any action should include all those who committed crimes against the Iraqi people.
Sadi described JBA attempts to defend Saddam as a show of solidarity, which politically aims to implicate the US of being party to crimes committed in Iraq. The team, he said, would go into the history of Saddam's relationship with the US and raise questions about Washington allegedly supplying the Iraqi leader with chemical weapons.
“According to the law he [Saddam] is innocent until proven guilty, no matter what we think of the man,” he added.
The JBA, which earlier called on UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to protect Saddam from US retribution and secure him a fair trial, also sent a letter to Arab League Secretary General Amr Musa urging him to ensure that Saddam is handed over to a neutral country or the Red Cross.
In the letter, Mjalli called on Musa to do everything possible to guarantee the safety of “the legitimate president of Iraq.” The JBA also urged the Arab League to allow Saddam's family and members of the association to visit him.
Former JBA Chief Saleh Armouti recently announced that he and French attorney Emmanuel Ludot are trying to obtain US permission to visit the captured leader.
According to JBA President Hussein Mjalli, the number of lawyers volunteering for the defence team — which is expected to include local, Arab and international lawyers — is increasing daily. By Friday evening, 600 lawyers had signed up, he said.
The JBA, in cooperation with the Cairo-based Arab Lawyer's Union — grouping members from across the Arab world — started setting up an international team for Saddam's defence since his capture on Dec. 13.
The total number of lawyers in this international committee is still unknown.
Mjalli said the general secretariat of the Arab Lawyers Union would meet in Cairo today to discuss developments related to the defence.
“The intention is to form a higher committee for the defence of Saddam. One which will include legal experts from all over the world,” Mjalli told The Jordan Times.
The JBA president and several other local lawyers believe Saddam should not be tried because he was “unlawfully deposed and captured by US troops.”
Mjalli maintains that Saddam is Iraq's legitimate president, and the US-led occupation of the neighbouring country is illegal, thus any action or decision stemming from it should be considered null and void.
Mjalli reiterated earlier demands that Saddam not be tried, “because, in keeping with the Iraqi constitution and international law, a head of state is immune from prosecution.”
Members of the US-appointed Iraqi Interim Governing Council announced that Saddam would be tried in a special war crimes tribunal established with provisions taken from the International Criminal Court. The tribunal was appointed on Dec. 10, three days prior to Saddam's capture.
However, no decision has been taken yet on how or when Saddam will face trial.
Saddam's eldest daughter Raghad recently told satellite channels that his family would prefer that he be tried in an international court rather than by the Iraqi Governing Council because it was “appointed by US occupiers.”
Speaking in an interview with CNN from her residence in Amman, she asked that her father be given a fair trial outside Iraq.
“It remains too soon to decide on anything related to Saddam's trial,” said international law expert Walid Sadi. “The place or venue for the trial is not the issue, but rather the legal system that can apply,” Sadi said. However, Sadi, who is also the chief commissioner of the National Centre for Human Rights, said the former Iraqi leader should be tried by an Iraqi court which incorporates all the requirements of a fair trial. He said the trial should be held in Iraq where evidence is accumulated and a case can be prepared.
However, he said, Saddam's trial cannot take place in Iraq until after the Iraqi people regain sovereignty over their land and apply international law standards in their courts.
The issue of Saddam's trial has created widespread controversy as to where, and under what charges the former Iraqi leader should be tried.
According to Sadi, current international courts or tribunals lack the jurisdiction to try the deposed leader. Besides, he added, international courts are based on a “complementary” system, meaning that the priority for such cases is given to the local judiciary.
He noted that Saddam should not be the only person to face trial, rather any action should include all those who committed crimes against the Iraqi people.
Sadi described JBA attempts to defend Saddam as a show of solidarity, which politically aims to implicate the US of being party to crimes committed in Iraq. The team, he said, would go into the history of Saddam's relationship with the US and raise questions about Washington allegedly supplying the Iraqi leader with chemical weapons.
“According to the law he [Saddam] is innocent until proven guilty, no matter what we think of the man,” he added.
The JBA, which earlier called on UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to protect Saddam from US retribution and secure him a fair trial, also sent a letter to Arab League Secretary General Amr Musa urging him to ensure that Saddam is handed over to a neutral country or the Red Cross.
In the letter, Mjalli called on Musa to do everything possible to guarantee the safety of “the legitimate president of Iraq.” The JBA also urged the Arab League to allow Saddam's family and members of the association to visit him.
Former JBA Chief Saleh Armouti recently announced that he and French attorney Emmanuel Ludot are trying to obtain US permission to visit the captured leader.
So when is Bush going to appoint his prosecutor?
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