Karadzic and our broken system
Bryan
Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic (left) as he looked in 1996, and as he looks now. He was apprehended in Belgrade on Monday where, with glasses, long white hair and a beard, he had forged a new existence for himself under the name of Dragan Dabic.
You would think that I’d be happy about Radovan Karadzic’s capture, but that’s not the case entirely. A big part of me is annoyed. The former Bosnian Serb leader is accused of war crimes and genocide in Bosnia. Specifically, he is thought to have ordered the killing of over 7,000 men and boys from Srebrenica in July 1995 as well as the shelling of Sarajevo.
Karadzic went into hiding in 1995 and has evaded capture for over a decade. He is still seen as a hero by some Serb nationalist. That support explains how he was able to evade capture for so long. While ‘in hiding’, it seems he lived and moved about freely and even had a book published. And how was he eventually captured? According to some speculation, the better question is why?
Apparently, the desire for EU integration has now overtaken loyalty to Karadzic from some in Serbia. Far from being a victory for humanity and international justice, Karadzic’s arrest may really be a testament to the power of money and economic growth.
Sadly, that means that although Luis Moreno-Ocampo, the International Criminal Court prosecutor, has sought an arrest warrant for Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, little is likely to happen. If Serbian nationalists could protect Karadzic for 13 years, I don’t think al-Bashir will be having many sleepless nights. He has at least one superpower on his side. Besides, people have been dying in Darfur for a long time and the world has learnt to live with it. Unless someone overthrows him and hands him in, al-Bashir will be perfectly safe from any high minded concepts of international law.
Taking a look at how broken and corrupt the system of International and Human Rights law is can be incredibly frustrating and heart wrenching.
Like you Bryan I have very mixed feeling about this. Obviously, it is a good day for Bosnians, a good day for the Hague Tribunal, a good day for the future stability and economic development of the region. We all want peace but I wonder if prosperity often creates more peace than mere talks.
The 11 years it took to capture Karadic shows the disappointing side of Int Human Rts. The problem with Int Human Rights is that it is often looked at in the same light as domestic legal systems. For me, the biggest restriction in acheiving International Justice is in fact the founding principle upon which International Public Law is based; State Sovereignty. Political will is thus the real force when it comes down to capturing war criminals. If there are more effective systems out there I would love to hear them.
You’ve hit the nail on the head Michael. I think the brocken system is the best we have.
I don’t want to scrap the nation state because I think we need the accountability that comes from their various interests. Iraq demonstrated the dangers of having a nation or a small group of nations go at it alone. And the UN doesn’t work. It’s like a family too dysfunctional to get much done.
I can’t think of a viable alternative to what’s there. I wish though that bodies like the UN and ICC and others would stop being smug and stop pretending that they actually practice their noble values. Especially when at the end of the day they are at the mercy of the political will of those nations who pay their salries.
Bryan, I have always liked the word “microcosm”. Our country is run by a very small group of people and it is a very small country. Our media community is smaller still; similarly, our financial community.
Is there any reason to think that the WORLD community ( and it IS a small world, now, after all) is not run by a very small group?
Look at Mbeke and Mugabe. Look at Bush’s quote that “Democracy is fine but dictatorship is alot easier”.
Don’t you think that empathy might exist among these leaders?
We certainly have it here (in microcosm), among our trade union officials.
I don’t share your mixed feelings Bryan. Being encouraged to adopt higher ethics to enjoy the benefits of a community have raised the standard of human rights in Europe for over fifty years. Certain countries need outside pressure to “do the right thing”, ours being no exception. To quote Braveheart, peace is made in such ways.
France and Germany are allies today because they realised the economic and stabilising realities of forging a partnership against their natural inclinations. The same goes for Serbia, and membership of the EU will advance rights causes in that country.
The South of the United States was forced to accept desegregation, and would be a lot more racist today if it were not for being coerced. But this is a part of how relationships work, have always worked. And while it may not be a Hollywood ending for justice, it’s a good one.
Tim – Unfortunately, I think you may be partially right. It’s probably a small group of people who wield a huge amount of influence over the rest of us.
Steve – I am glad that prosperity can be used as a carrot. It is so effective, I think the EU is the model for development out there. But… I wish that the right thing was pursued even in the absence of that carrot. I’m not upset that Eu entry was a factor in Karadzic’s apprehension. Rather, I’m mad about the fact that without it, he would probably still be living his normal life in Belgrade.
I’m not upset that Eu entry was a factor in Karadzic’s apprehension. Rather, I’m mad about the fact that without it, he would probably still be living his normal life in Belgrade.
I think this is a characteristic of basically any human community. The EU focus on human rights could maybe be looked at in the context of having been involved in the enlightenment and the fact that we nearly wiped ourselves out and the world with it – so quite a big carrot there. Other countries are being forced to adopt higher ethics to join a community that has high ethics because it nearly wiped itself out. So if you wanted to follow that slightly absurd yet tantalising argument you could say it’s self-interest all the way. I don’t think that’s cynical, I think that’s the way we are as humans.
Fair enough Steve. But this isn’t just about other countries. The reason why Karadzic could commit that genocide in the first place was that there was not the political will from Nato and the UN Security Council to put a stop to the genocide.
The fact that money or power trump decency is sad. It might be fact of life right now, but I don’t have to like it.
Bryan i share your disappointment how ineffective the UN is right now but not the fact that it is at the mecry of national interests. It can certainly be improved theoretically and i had hoped the Balkans war would have been a watershed; unfortunately not. I would like to know what you mean about the smugness of the ICC. This is an institution which tries its best to be independant of politics but it inevitably cannot be. I don’t know exactly how it can become more effective (apart from the length of proceedings) but it is an incredibly young institution and it will develop over time. I support it’s stance on the Sudan president and hope it can become a serious deterrent and source of justice over time. Do you feel it is targeting African countries?