PILPG Update: PILPG Establishes Program to Advise the Iraqi Special Tribunal Working with the Department of Justice Regime Crimes Liaison Office in Baghdad, PILPG has developed a program to provide legal assistance and training to the Iraqi Special Tribunal. The program consists of providing a series of detailed legal memorandum on questions of international law faced by the Tribunal, and participating in training sessions organized by the Liaison Office. In November, PILPG was able to provide to the Tribunal a detailed best practices analysis of the Rules of Procedure of the Yugoslav, Rwanda and Sierra Leone Tribunals prepared on a pro bono basis by the Covington & Burling London Office, and a detailed memorandum on the lessons learned from the experience of these Tribunals prepared by Case Western Reserve University Law School. At the request of the Special Tribunal, PILPG is now organizing a consortium of law firms and law schools to provide additional memoranda. Managing Director Michael Scharf recently served as one of five international experts to lead a training conference for the judges of the Special Tribunal in London. Michael led sessions on the definition of genocide and crimes against humanity, limits to the tu quoque defense, limits to the right to self-representation, and the proper use of plea bargains in war crimes cases. PILPG has also worked closely with the International Legal Assistance Consortium which has been providing training sessions for ordinary Iraqi judges, prosecutors, and defense counsel in the internationally recognized rights of the defense, human rights law, and international humanitarian law. PILPG Members Michael Scharf, Leila Sadat and Melissa Waters have each participated in one or more of the week-long training sessions, which are held every other month in Dubai, UAE. Media Commentary With the one year anniversary of the capture of Saddam Hussein, and the initiation of the investigative phase of the trial of Chemical Ali, PILPG members provided substantial media commentary. Professor Michael Scharf was recently interviewed on the Iraqi Special Tribunal by:
Professor Paul Williams was recently interviewed on the Iraqi Special Tribunal by:
About the Public International Law & Policy Group The Public International Law & Policy Group is a non-profit organization that operates as a global pro bono law firm providing free legal assistance to developing states and states in transition involved in conflicts. The Public International Law & Policy Group was founded by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and is a U.N.-designated Non-Governmental Organization. PILPG receives funding from a number of sources, including the Carnegie Corporation of New York, United States Institute of Peace, and the Ploughshares Fund. The Managing Board of PILPG includes
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