| The Daily Star |
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| Wehbeh Ayash, Najjar, Michel Elyan and Rachid Derbas spoke at the March 14 gathering at the Bristol Hotel. Mohamad Azakir - 7/27/2011 |
BEIRUT: Lawmakers of the March 14 coalition called Tuesday on United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Arab League Chief Nabil Elaraby to maintain their support for the U.N.-backed international court probing the assassination of former Prime Minister Saad Hariri.
The message to the international community was publicly announced during a conference organized by the March 14 coalition at the Bristol Hotel.
Dozens of lawyers, legal experts and politicians voiced their support for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, days before the court is likely to publicize the sealed indictment, which was submitted to Lebanese authorities earlier this month.
March 14 also announced at the gathering that they will establish a legal office to follow up on the course of the STL until the perpetrators of political assassinations are brought to justice.
In a statement released during the conference, lawmakers also called on the Lebanese authorities to bear their responsibilities toward the STL and commit to U.N. Security Council resolutions, especially 1757, which established the tribunal.
Speaking at the conference, former Justice Minister Ibrahim Najjar said “force cannot outdo the rule of law,” adding that the use of force would fail to get rid of justice.
“The reason why we are addressing the U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon today is because we are worried of the [developing storm] that could stop the work of justice,” said Najjar.
“This is what worries us as lawmakers … because the recent objections to the tribunal’s work may or may not be within the prerogatives of the Lebanese government” said Najjar in reference to the March 8’s stances toward the STL.
“Although Lebanese have waited for long time for the STL’s results … the coming few days will prove that justice is imminent,” Najjar noted.
Commenting on the work and the statute of the international court, Najjar described the STL as the most competent court in the history of international courts.
“I can tell you that the statute of the STL has reached the utmost level [of competency] on international standards of justice,” said Najjar, adding that the U.N. court on Lebanon has gained a lot of experience from international courts that preceded it.
“In the coming days, everyone will find out that the STL indictments arrived before the addressing of the false witnesses issue,” Najjar told The Daily Star.
However, Najjar said that it is up to STL judges to decide on the next steps in case the government of Prime Minister Najib Mikati fails to hand in the individuals wanted by STL’s indictments.
Last year, ministers of the March 8 coalition demanded former Prime Minister Saad Hariri place the alleged issue of “false witnesses” as the first item on his Cabinet’s agenda. According to the March 8 coalition, a group of false witnesses allegedly misled the U.N. investigation into Hariri’s assassination.
But months after the collapse of Hariri’s government, Mikati’s government has so far failed to explicitly address the issue of false witnesses.
At at Tuesday’s conference, March 14 legal experts also called for the spreading of a culture of rule of law and justice in the country. “Our gathering today is also to work on spreading the culture of questioning, reward and punishment through conferences and panels,” said the statement read by Future bloc’s lawyers’ coordinator Fadi Saad.
Saad also said that the Bar Associations of Beirut and Tripoli must work together to unify their historical stance and support the international tribunal.
Beirut MP Serge Torsarkissian said the legal office that is to be established will add more weight to the campaign of justice. Speaking with The Daily Star, Torsarkissian said that the campaign is a first step toward consecutive conferences “to reiterate March 14’s political and legal principles of justice.”
The message to the international community was publicly announced during a conference organized by the March 14 coalition at the Bristol Hotel.
Dozens of lawyers, legal experts and politicians voiced their support for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, days before the court is likely to publicize the sealed indictment, which was submitted to Lebanese authorities earlier this month.
March 14 also announced at the gathering that they will establish a legal office to follow up on the course of the STL until the perpetrators of political assassinations are brought to justice.
In a statement released during the conference, lawmakers also called on the Lebanese authorities to bear their responsibilities toward the STL and commit to U.N. Security Council resolutions, especially 1757, which established the tribunal.
Speaking at the conference, former Justice Minister Ibrahim Najjar said “force cannot outdo the rule of law,” adding that the use of force would fail to get rid of justice.
“The reason why we are addressing the U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon today is because we are worried of the [developing storm] that could stop the work of justice,” said Najjar.
“This is what worries us as lawmakers … because the recent objections to the tribunal’s work may or may not be within the prerogatives of the Lebanese government” said Najjar in reference to the March 8’s stances toward the STL.
“Although Lebanese have waited for long time for the STL’s results … the coming few days will prove that justice is imminent,” Najjar noted.
Commenting on the work and the statute of the international court, Najjar described the STL as the most competent court in the history of international courts.
“I can tell you that the statute of the STL has reached the utmost level [of competency] on international standards of justice,” said Najjar, adding that the U.N. court on Lebanon has gained a lot of experience from international courts that preceded it.
“In the coming days, everyone will find out that the STL indictments arrived before the addressing of the false witnesses issue,” Najjar told The Daily Star.
However, Najjar said that it is up to STL judges to decide on the next steps in case the government of Prime Minister Najib Mikati fails to hand in the individuals wanted by STL’s indictments.
Last year, ministers of the March 8 coalition demanded former Prime Minister Saad Hariri place the alleged issue of “false witnesses” as the first item on his Cabinet’s agenda. According to the March 8 coalition, a group of false witnesses allegedly misled the U.N. investigation into Hariri’s assassination.
But months after the collapse of Hariri’s government, Mikati’s government has so far failed to explicitly address the issue of false witnesses.
At at Tuesday’s conference, March 14 legal experts also called for the spreading of a culture of rule of law and justice in the country. “Our gathering today is also to work on spreading the culture of questioning, reward and punishment through conferences and panels,” said the statement read by Future bloc’s lawyers’ coordinator Fadi Saad.
Saad also said that the Bar Associations of Beirut and Tripoli must work together to unify their historical stance and support the international tribunal.
Beirut MP Serge Torsarkissian said the legal office that is to be established will add more weight to the campaign of justice. Speaking with The Daily Star, Torsarkissian said that the campaign is a first step toward consecutive conferences “to reiterate March 14’s political and legal principles of justice.”
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