Read the article below, and then consider the following fictional case: The Case of Togoland

INT R OD UC T I ON T O

INT E R NA T I ONA L

CRI M I N AL LAW

MOOC taught by Professor Michael P. Scharf

Module #2: Peace verses Justice

War Crimes, Crimes Against Humanity and Genocide

International Criminal Law Module #2

Peace verses Justice

Read the article below, and then consider the following fictional case: The Case of Togoland

1. The African country of Togoland has a population of four million people, comprised of two main ethnic groups, the Tumani (45 percent of the population) and the Hottami (55 percent of the population). Its main export is the rare mineral cobalt, which is mined throughout the country. From March 2008 through May 2013, Togoland was ruled by a democratically elected President, George Humbarty, who was a member of the minority Tumani tribe.

2. During his last few months in office, Humbarty was under investigation on charges of embezzlement of government funds by the Togoland Peoples’ Congress. On May 1, 2013, President Humbarty died of a heart attack while in bed with his mistress. Humbarty’s Vice President, Jean Erickson (also a member of the Tumani tribe), was attending a meeting of the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva at the time. Under the Togoland Constitution, the Vice President is to automatically assume the Presidency upon the death of the President.

3. A few hours after Humbarty died, a military faction seized power in a bloodless coup. The military regime is led by General Thomas Cederick (a member of the majority Hottami tribe), who was the former Chief of Staff of the army in the Humbarty Administration. General Cederick has vowed to turn the government back over to a democratically elected President after he has cleansed the Executive Branch of corrupt officials.

4. General Cederick’s subordinates immediately rounded up the members of the Humbarty Administration and subjected them to extraordinary interrogation methods, including “water boarding, ” in order to induce them to confess to their acts of corruption. General Cederick then convened a special emergency tribunal to rapidly try such officials. To date, two thirds of the former officials of the Humbarty Executive Branch have been summarily tried and executed for corruption by the Special Tribunal, which Human Rights Watch has characterized as “a political weapon, not a real court.” The day after he seized power, General Cederick publicly warned Madame Erickson that if she returned to Togoland she would be charged, convicted, and executed for being an accomplice to Humbarty’s illegal schemes.

5. In the days after the coup, Madame Erickson appeared on CNN and the BBC, and met with numerous United Nations and foreign government representatives in an effort to gain support for international action to depose the military regime and install her as rightful President of Togoland. In her media appearances, she urged her followers in Togoland to go on strike and demonstrate for democracy.

6. By May 15, 2013, supporters of Madame Erickson launched a series of employment strikes in the Cobalt mines and street demonstrations in the cities of Togoland. On June 17, 2013, ten thousand people, mostly members of the Tumani tribe, gathered in front of the Capital building at Togoland Square, chanting “Bring back democracy, turn government over to Madame Erickson.” Several hundred of the protesters were armed with rifles, which they periodically fired into the air.

7. General Cederick ordered the Togoland army to “wipe out” the protesters at Togoland Square. Without warning, the Fourth Armored Division of the Togoland army circled the protesters and mowed them down with machine gun and mortar fire. Some shots were fired by the armed protestors in a futile effort to combat the army. Seven thousand civilians were killed in fifteen minutes. There were no army casualties. After that overwhelming show of force, there were no more protests and the Cobalt miners went back to work.

8. In response to the massacre at Togoland Square, on May 20, 2013, the United Nations Security Council adopted a Chapter VII Resolution imposing a world-wide embargo on imports of cobalt from Togoland and the freezing of General Cederick’s assets in offshore banks. In addition, the Security Council threatened the military regime that it would authorize use of force by a coalition of African States to topple the regime unless the regime turned power over to Madame Erickson by the end of June.

9. On May 25, 2013, General Cederick agreed to participate in peace negotiations with Madame Erickson at Kinvasa, the capital of the neighboring African Country of Maulitania. The negotiations are being mediated by Larry Johnson, the UN Under-Secretary General for Legal Affairs. According to press reports, General Cederick may be willing to relinquish power to Madame Erickson if the UN revokes its sanctions, unfreezes his assets, and promises not to authorize an invasion, and if he and the other military leaders are given asylum in Maulitania and/or a complete amnesty in Togoland. The negotiations were scheduled for July 7, 2013.

10. Maulitania and Togoland are both parties to the United Nations Charter, the Genocide Convention, the 1949 Geneva Conventions, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Maulitania, but not Togoland, is a party to the Torture Convention. Maulitania, but not Togoland, is a party to the International Criminal Court.

mines

Cobalt

mines

Cobalt mines