Law Prof. To Lead War Crimes Tribunal

A visiting professor at Harvard Law School (HLS) will be the chief prosecutor for the first permanent international war crimes tribunal.

Professor Luis Moreno Ocampo was unanimously chosen Monday to be the chief prosecutor of the newly formed International Criminal Court (ICC).

The ICC, which is run under the auspices of the United Nations, was designed as a permanent replacement for the temporary ad hoc agencies that have prosecuted war crimes in the past.

As chief prosecutor, Moreno Ocampo, who is an Argentine national, will lead investigations and prosecute cases against suspected war criminals when national judicial systems are deemed unable or unwilling to pursue the case.

“Because of the exceptional character of the court, the absence of trials led by this court as a consequence of the regular functioning of national institutions will be its major success,” he told the Associated Press.

More than 200 complaints have already been filed with the tribunal—whose jurisdiction is limited to 89 signatory nations—but neither Iraq nor the United States are accountable to the ICC because they have not ratified its establishment.

Although the Clinton Administration supported the ICC during its formative stages, President Bush has declined to sign on to the court, arguing that the tribunal may castigate American soldiers and military officials with unwarranted or overblown charges brought by countries harboring hostility towards the United States.

But Moreno Ocampo said that with a responsible policy towards choosing cases and a sensible use of power, the tribunal will be able to gain legitimacy and win favor among the court’s opponents.

“We have to show how seriously we are working, and slowly people who today are reluctant will start to trust us,” Moreno Ocampo told the Associated Press.

With an extensive background in criminal and human rights law, the Argentinian professor’s career has been peppered with successful crusades against corruption and war crimes—most notably the prosecution of several members of Argentina’s military junta in the 1980s.

As a result of these prosecutions, several Argentine leaders were convicted for war crimes committed during Argentina’s “dirty war,” where more than 15,000 Argentinian civilians were brutalized.

Moreno Ocampo has also undertaken cases that attempt to curb corporate corruption and promote ethical practices in the business world. In addition to his current duties at HLS, Moreno Ocampo is currently the president of Transparency International for Latin America, which according to the organization’s website seeks to pinpoint and reform corrupted governments and corporations.

Ames Professor of Law Phillip B. Heymann a long-time friend of Moreno Ocampo who taught a class with him at HLS last semester, said that the visiting professor is an “excellent appointment,” and that because foreign ambassadors focused on selecting 18 judges for the ICC, Moreno Ocampo was not aware he was a top candidate until recently.

“If Moreno Ocampo can manage to convince a wide variety of countries that he’s behaving with neutrality and fairness, it will become a major institution. He’s the right choice,” Heymann said.

—Material from the Associated Press was used in the compilation of this article.