Society demands war crime help for defence lawyers

RWANDA: facilities not available to provide a proper defence

Defence lawyers working on trials conducted by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) are not receiving the necessary support or facilities, a Law Society report has concluded.The report, following a visit to the court by a three-person delegation last year, said that because defence lawyers are from a variety of different legal backgrounds across the globe, they require significant institutional support from the ICTR - which was apparently not being provided.Sandy Ghandi, a member of the delegation and senior lecturer in law at Reading University, said: 'Due to the serious nature of the allegations against the accused, it is imperative that they receive a defence from a counsel afforded all the facilities that should be available to them.' The report called for an office for the defence and for defence counsel to be given a more formalised position within the tribunal so their collective voice could be heard.'Defence investigators are unable to travel into Rwanda as it is considered a risk to their safety,' said Lisa Gormley, legal adviser for Amnesty International and delegation member, adding that this made it impossible to obtain sufficient evidence.She said the prosecution was supported fully by the UN and had a back-up team of well-established investigators and experts, giving them an unfair advantage.Other recommendations included calls for further transparency, improved communication, the establishment of performancecriteria and freedom for the accused to talk to the press.

It is hoped the report will influence the rules ofprocedure to be drawn up for the planned International Criminal Court.Andy Unger, senior law lecturer at South Bank University, was the other member of the delegation.The ICTR was set up by the UN in November 1994 in Arusha, Tanzania, following the mass genocide and gross violation of human rights in Rwanda.Andrew Towler