Our April 2010 Issue: International Crime and Punishment
In this month’s issue of Foreign Policy Digest, we have looked at the different way states and institutions punish crimes that increasingly call for international solutions. Ranging from terrorism to sex crimes to commercial espionage, many of these crimes have powerful consequences for both individual and state actors and raise questions about the ability of any criminal justice process to overcome the priorities of state politics or economic gain. Yet, the stakes of criminal justice are too high to simply allow failure. Are Rwanda’s traditional courts capable of delivering justice to the thousands who suffered at the hands of genocidaires? Can the Catholic Church retain its diplomatic standing without properly addressing the persistent accusations of child abuse? Our contributors have shed some light on these provocative questions and the compelling human narratives that accompany them.
In Africa, Dr. Phil Clark of Oxford University examines justice responses to the Rwandan genocide. As international policymakers look for effective ways to help heal post-conflict societies, Clark focuses on the considerable achievements and enduring challenges of the community-based court system known as gacaca which, after nine years of operation, will soon conclude its daunting caseload.
For the Americas Section, Foreign Policy Digest columnist John Lyman and Editor-in-Chief Adam Benz discuss how the Obama administration’s tough stance on offshore tax havens coincide with Caribbean governments’ efforts to crack down on tax evasion.
In Asia, Elizabeth Lynch investigates China’s allegedly “trumped up” charges of bribery and international espionage against four employees of Australian corporation Rio Tinto. Her analysis suggests that Australia and Rio Tinto may have had compelling reasons to allow China to conduct a closed and, possibly, unjust trial.
Europe/Russia editor Matt Lamm takes a look at the Vatican sex abuse allegations rocking Europe and how the Holy See’s largely “moral” approach to investigating child abuse has affected its diplomatic relations and status within Europe.
In the Middle East section, analyst Victor Kotsev assesses the work of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, as it pursues its mandate to try those responsible for the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri in February 2005.
Working with these stories have caused all of us at Foreign Policy Digest to think deeply about the idea of “justice” and ask difficult questions about its role in the punishment of crimes which by their scope or nature transcend national borders. We hope that this issue has contributed to your understanding of some of these cases and hope that you, too, will grapple with these tough questions.
Jung Hwa Song is the Asia Pacific Regional Editor of Foreign Policy Digest.
