Tribunal hits back

Officials at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) have hit back at a Law Society report criticising a lack of support for lawyers defending war crime suspects (see [2001] Gazette, 7 June, 6).

Alessandro Caldarone, chief of the tribunal's lawyers and detention facilities management section, told the Gazette that the ICTR 'assists counsel in a proper way' and that many defence lawyers have said they 'receive much more assistance' in Arusha, Tanzania - where the court was set up in 1994 - than at its counterpart tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague.In response to concerns that lawyers are unable to enter Rwanda to gather evidence, Mr Caldarone said: 'The ICTR offers all necessary assistance, such as military escort.

If a counsel does not go to Rwanda it is only his or her choice.'He added: 'To the best of my knowledge, counsel never had any problem in Rwanda and several of them wrote to us thanking the tribunal for the assistance they have received.' In addition to providing an office and transport, Mr Caldarone said the ICTR provides more than the 'reasonable facilities and equipment' required by the rules on assignment of counsel, such as a laser printer, fax, telephone lines, paper, maintenance of equipment, cleaning, no charge for electricity, and drinking water.

He did concede that computer equipment and office furniture could be improved.Sandy Ghandi, senior lecturer in law at Reading University and a member of the Society's delegation which wrote the report, said Mr Caldarone's comments were 'very, very good and favourable'.

He added: 'It's exactly the positive response we wanted.'Andrew Towler