As the 2011 Commonwealth Prime Ministers
Conference was rounding up in Australia, the family of the
murdered Libyan leader, Colonel Abu Minyar Kaddafi, declared
that they would take the NATO to court in order to seek
redress for the murder of their father.
I shall examine the legal issues in the case later in this
epic narration. It will be purely academic in keeping with
the didactic code of BOSAS INTERNATIONAL LAW BUREAU, to
disseminate the tenets of international law and propagate
its cardinal objectives.
My assessment of the psychology of human intelligence in the
United Kingdom enriched my appreciation of the Concept of
Intelligence.
Intelligence in the German-speaking countries ranks very
highly. One cannot explain the reason why some earth people
are more advanced than others, except one studies and
understands the diligence that propels their forward march.
Time was when Britannia ruled the waves and was proud to
sing, “God save the Queen.”
Aware that their colonial empire, being a human contrivance
to lord it over nations in far-away-places, would inevitably
come to an end, British Intelligence designed a
geo-political outfit called the British Commonwealth of
Nations. Britain was the Head of this Commonwealth.
“ The term Commonwealth was given to Cromwell’s government
of 1879-52 and more loosely to the whole of the period from
the execution of Charles 1 in 1649 to the restoration of
Charles11, in 1660.
It next appeared in British history as the name given to the
Federation of Australia states in 1900-1. The term
“Commonwealth of Nations” of the British empire by Lord
Roseberry in 1883. It was General Smuts, who invented the
term “British Commonwealth of Nations in 1919, as a suitable
description of self-governing countries of the British
empire and this conception was defined by the Imperial
Conference of 1926.As a result the Dominion Office was
renamed the Commonwealth Relations Office.”
The name Commonwealth was cleverly used to give the
impression that the wealth of members was common to all.
This was false and it is still false. During one of the
London talks for Nigeria’s independence, was it Sir Winston
Churchill or Harold Wilson, who said” What we have we hold.”
Mazi Mbonu Ojike was reported to have replied, “When what
you have is hot, you will drop it.” Nigerian nationalists
were stern in their attitude to preserve human dignity and
never responded with grinning from ear to ear, with a bovine
stare and hanging lips.
After the independence of many British colonies, the British
Commonwealth was then simply called, “The Commonwealth of
Nations”, which was a misnomer because those nations had
become independent, sovereign states which were now equal in
international law.
So, the organization became known as “The Commonwealth”. The
Queen was no longer the de jure Head of the organization,
but a titular head.
The British Commonwealth is a geo-political institution,
which enabled Britain to maintain it post-colonial relations
with its former colonies. She generously allowed an Indian
and a Nigerian diplomat to become the Secretary-General of
the Organization.
Unified by the English language and culture, ex-colonial
states were able to relate to each other through the
Commonwealth Relations Office. Britain established the
British Council and High Commissions throughout its former
empire. It also exported the Chatham House intellectual
concept, of which, in Nigeria, the Nigerian Institute of
International Affairs stands proud.
The Nigerian Institute of International Affairs has always
managed to assemble some bright scholars, but the various
Heads of States, have not given the Institute the necessary
funding to enable its scholars to perform.
Let us hope that under the administration of my friend, the
Sorbonne-trained international affairs scholar, Professor
Bola Akinterinwa, the intellectual rigour of the “Nigerian
Chatham House” will return.
The Commonwealth is gradually losing its relevance because
most of the ex-colonials have adopted independent attitudes.
Also, the old colonially-trained officials of the Oxbridge
genre have left office through inevitable retirements and
other forces of nature.
The present Nigerian universities do not produce useable
intellectual trading post agents, suitable for recruitment
into the old-boy network.
The business thrives elsewhere, where drop-outs are
available for use against their countries and people.
The relevance of the Commonwealth has declined since British
immigration policies are no longer as liberal, when the
Commonwealth was British. As a student , the British
immigration officer, politely ushered me into Britain,
without even opening my green passport.
Now, “it is easier for the camel to pass through the eye of
the needle than for Nigerians to enter Britain”. The last
time, the immigration officer let me travel to Cambridge
University’s Lauterpatcht Centre for international Law; I
was grilled for sometime before I was admitted.
One may not blame the British for having adopted a stricter
immigration rules. At the rate people, entered Britain,
after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the stay-put
attitude of casual tourists, Britons are beginning to ask
“Who owns “MAMA’s land?
During the last meeting of the Conservative Party, Mrs.
Theresa May, the Secretary of Internal Affairs, was
absolutely furious about the immigration situation in
Britain. However, she cannot be seen to violate provisions
of the European Human Rights Convention and the British
Human Rights Act.
It was not reported that Commonwealth Prime Ministers took
her to task about her position or did they?
The Commonwealth did not seem to have taken a concerted
resolution on the Libyan crisis. However, some Commonwealth
commentators have examined the positive and negative aspects
of the era of Murmmar Abu Minyar al-Kaddafi.
At BOSAS INTERNATIONAL LAW BUREAU, Fugar, Edo State,
Nigeria, we took an academic interest in examining the
alleged acts of Kaddafi against his people and the alleged
merits of Kaddafi, in order to give a clearer picture of the
man. We also reviewed NATO/s role in Libya.
The independent scholar and the independent judge everywhere
stand on a footing of manifest equality because, unlike
hired writers and propagandists, who later claim
vindication, the scholar and the judge know that whatever is
written is for the whople world to see, till time
indefinite.
It was said that Kaddafi was high-handed in dealing with his
opponents, but all leaders do, if and when they feel
threatened, otherwise, why do they call out the police in
all Commonwealth states and in other states? That Kaddafi
was arrogant and acted like a Pharaoh, who often defied
Western Powers in annoying fashion. He was intolerant and
thought too much of himself.
Some other leaders do. That he stayed in office for too
long, but this happens in states governed by Kings and
Queens, descendants of Royal families take over from each
other. He was accused of orchestrating the bombing of a
discotheque in Berlin, where American soldiers entertain
themselves. He also orchestrated the Lockerbie bombing in
which over two hundred people died. That he exported
terrorism world-wide. He was also hated for seeking to
create the United States of Africa.
It is very remarkable that after its historic meeting in
Brussels last week, the European Union is considering
setting up a United States of Europe!
According to Timothy Bancroft Hinchey, “Muammar Abu Minyar
el-Qathafi “inherited the poorest country in the world and
turned it into one of the richest in Africa. He provided
Libyans with literacy and a free education and then paid for
university grants. Ten per cent of Libyans studied abroad in
Europe and America, paid by the state in board and lodging.
He gave each married couple US 50,000, to settle down. He
paid half the price of the first car. He provided
interest-free bank loans. He provided free medical care. He
built the world’s most advanced irrigation system, bringing
water to most of Libya across the desert. He provided
farmers with seeds, land, tools and instruction. He
constructed free high-ways.
In the height of the civil war, when Tripoli, Misrata and
Sirte were under heavy bombardment “to defend the Libyan
people”, the electricity was defiantly on.
Although he inherited the poorest country in the world from
King Idris, he gave it the highest Human Development index
in Africa. He provided African states with free loans in
order to free them from the debts peonage .He paid funds
from oil into the bank account of Libyans.”The international
community she check out these claims!!!
He wrote an inchoate, philosophical treatise, without much
intellectual range, in which he enunciated his Jamahiriya
ideology.”It is the attempt and not the deed that confounds
us.” The thoughts in his Green Book, must have etched the
idea in Libyan psychology that any attack on Libya has
always been associated with the quest for Libyan oil.
Experts estimate that Libyan oil production for marketing
might take, quite a while. So, from where will Libyans find
the resources to re-build their Carthage?
The Romans chanted the mantra “Carthage must be destroyed”
and was indeed destroyed.
Since its destruction, Carthage lays in ruins, so is Kosovo
and other war-ravaged entities around the globe.
The Commonwealth, which could have assisted Libya in its
reconstruction efforts, is having economic problems.
If Timothy Bancroft Hinchey’s expose on Libya under Qathafi
are true, the people of Libya in Tripoli and Benghazi would
for a long time lament their Paradise Lost.
I have observed that each time the US tries to bring about
democracy in foreign states, it backfires. For example, when
the US combated communism in the Soviet Union for over thiry
years, the idea was to liberate East European states from
communism. When in 1989 the Soviet Union collapsed, the East
European states did not embrace America. Its plans in Poland
did not materialize.
After all the efforts to turn Iraq into a democratic state,
the efforts pushed Iraq into the Shitte orbit, with Iranian
influence now obvious.
Pakistan receives a lot of assistance to fight radical
groups. The story that the radical groups receive help from
PAKISTAN is going the rounds. After nine years of fighting
the Taliban in Afghanistan, there does not seem to be
progress.
The Kaddafi’s substitutes in Libya have declared that Sharia
Law will be state law. The Muslim brotherhood may find good
allies in Libya. The West has heard and they are abashed.
The United Nations Security Council has ended NATO
operations in Libya and the NTC is abashed.
It is a fact that there are many deadly weapons in the hands
of the pro-Kaddafi insurgents, who will now be the new
rebels. The NTC rebels seem to have wasted their bullets in
celebrating the death of Kaddafi.
The Tuareg fighters are reported to be ready for armed
struggle. With a lot of money and weapons in their arsenal,
the future of Libya is an open question.
In all these events, the Commonwealth did not seem to have
played any role, although some of its members gave moral and
material support to the NTC rebels.
Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting 2011
The Commonwealth Heads of Government and Business Leaders
met in Perth, Australia and took constructive decisions on
instituting an Infrastructure Fund for Africa. A
Commonwealth Business Council would oversee the plan’s
implementation. The business cooperation between
Commonwealth states could facilitate Africa’s international
economic relations.
What worries me is the habit of making grandiloquent
speeches at such venues, only to find little or no action on
the ground years after ebullient proclamations.
At the UN, Nigeria is canvassing for preventive diplomacy.
Unfortunately, African states and other states always suffer
and the concept cannot be applied to big powers. The
Commonwealth did not implement a balanced policy of
engagement, with its leaders blaming leaders they do not
like.
Hate was an excuse for the Libyan tragedy. What and who is
next?
Kaddafi Vs NATO
It has been announced that the family of Murmar Kaddafi has
filed a petition/suit against NATO for events that
culminated in the brutal death of Colonel Murmar Abu Minyar
el-Kaddafi, at the ICC in the Hague.
The Libyan War and the International Law of Armed Conflict
The family has to establish that the Libyan war led to the
sum of human misery and destruction of property and
infrastructure in Libya. That Col Kaddafi was murdered as a
result of NATO military operations, which were prosecuted
through the excessive use of force, excessive bombardment of
homes, and car convoys in which Kaddafi was travelling. That
NATO bombardment of Sirte was in violation of the rules for
the conduct of hostilities and this led to the death of
Kaddafi on 20th of October, 2011.That excessive force was
used against civilian populations and combatants.
Those NATO military operations violated the following
Treaties, Conventions and Declarations, thereby violating
the norms of jus covens and international law of Armed
Conflicts.
1. American Convention on Human Rights, “Pact of
San Jose. Costa Rica, 22 November, 1969.
2. European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental
Freedoms, Rome, 1950.
3. Convention for the Protection of War Victims, (Sick and
Wounded Armed Forces in the Field)
-Prisoners of War
Geneva-Civilian Persons, Geneva, 12 August 1949.
4. Convention on Prohibitions and Restrictions on the Use of
Conventional Weapons which May be Deemed to be Excessively
Injurious or to Have Indiscriminate Effects (protocol) 10
October, 1980.
5. Declaration concerning the Prohibition of Using
Projectiles the Sole Object of which is the Diffusion of
Asphyxiating or Deleterious Gases, The Hague, 29 July, 1899.
6. Declaration concerning the Prohibition of using Bullets
which Expand of Flatten easily in the Human Body. The Hague
29 July, 1899.
7 Convention Relative to Opening of Hostilities- The Hague,
18 October, 1907.
8. Convention Respecting Bombardment by Naval Forces in Time
of War- The Hague, !8 October,
9. Rules of Air Warfare The Hague, December, 22- February
1923 ( as authoritative guide.)
10. Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in
the Event of War (with Annexes: Regulations and Protocol),
The Hague 14 April, 1954.
11. Protocol Relating to the Protection of Victims of
International Armed Conflicts, Geneva 8 June, 1977
12. Universal Declaration of Human Rights, New York, 10
December, 1948.
13. Principles of International Law Recognised in the
Charter of the Nurnberg Tribunal and in the Judgment of the
Tribunal (United Nations International Law Commission), June
–July, 1950.
14. Convention on Non-Applicability of Statute of Limitation
to War Crimes and Crimes against Humanity UN General
Assembly Resolution 2391(XXX111), 26 November, 1968.
15. Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from being
Subjected to torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or degrading
Treatment or Punishment. UN General Assembly Resolution3452
(xxx) 9 December 1975).
16. Convention Against the taking of Hostage. UN General
Assembly Resolution 34/169, 14 December, 1979.
It is hereby declared that the war in Libya was an
international armed conflict because a group of states
invaded Libya in order to overthrow a government that was a
bona fide member of the United Nations Organisation, in
order to aid and abet a rebel group to overthrow the
existing government known as the Jamahiriya Libya Republic.,
in the full view of members of the United Nations
Organisation, whose mandate was wantonly disregarded by the
military organization, The North Atlantic Treaty
Organization.
The NATO Secretary –General, Mr A.F Ramussen is ready to
disprove these observations. The lawyer to the Kaddafi
family of whas accused NATO of crimes against the Libyan
people and the destruction of the State of Libya.
That reparations should be paid by NATO to the people of
Libya and the family of Col Muamar Kaddafi. This deposition
is on all fours with the judgment of the Nurnberg Trials.
Saif Kaddafi Vs the ICC
Around June, 2011, the ICC framed charges against Saif
Kaddafi, but could not execute the processes to bring him to
trial. It can be argued that the leaders of the NTC
committed war crimes and they too, should be probe by the
ICC.
There is evidence of criminal negligence by the NTC,
whereby, a soldier under its authority captured alive, but
summarily executed Col. Kaddafi and was seen to admit and be
proud of his act. There is evidence of excessive bombardment
for a period of over one month of Sirte, without caring
whether civilians were killed or not and firing bullets in
the air to terrorize Sirte civilians killing many citizens
in the process.
ICC and Nigeria.
The ICC made sweeping generalizations about human rights
violations in Nigeria, without specifics. The law does not
thrive on generalizations.
A statement by the ICC Prosecutor said” The office made its
examination of the situation in Nigeria public on October
18, 2010. Nigeria is a State Party to the Rome Rome Statute
since September 21, 2001.”
The big and overwhelming question, which the ICC must
clarify is , is Libya a State Party to the Rome Statute and
if not, what justification propels sending the Libya case to
the ICC?
It is very curious for the ICC to base its investigations
about Nigerian internal affairs on an inchoate report, which
should have exhausted internal judicial procedures before
the cases were externalized. If the matters are already in
Nigerian courts, they should not be admissible at the ICC
because of the principle of Litispendency.
I have continue to marvel at a judicial system, which has
extended its jurisdiction to even states that are not State
Party to the Treaty of Rome
This was why I had advocated that the TREATY OF ROME should
be revised. I am of the same opinion still. We are waiting
to see how the ICC will deal with the case of Kaddafi Vs
NATO. It will make or mar the ICC.
The Ghoulish Enterprise in Libya
There are demoniacs in every culture, who are always
enamoured by sadistic, ghoulish and satanic horrors. They
relish the most wanton destruction of the Sons and Daughters
of God in the name of geopolitical struggles, wars and other
events that debase the human soul.
There were sophomore diplomats, who relished the death of
Kaddafi as “vindication “of their diplomatic
miscalculations. As it happened throughout the unfortunate
incident, they would later somersault to look good.
Any state that does not see the injustice in the decimation
of another because of the hatred of their leader must be
candidates for insipid metaphors. They must be capable of
enjoying the ruins of Vietnam, the skulls of Pol Pots
irreverent killings, the horrors of Rwanda, the Holocaust,
the killings at Odi, the Hitlerism at Leningrad, the ruins
of Warsaw, which saw war and was no more, the killings in
Mexico and Columbia.
Those, who applaud the death of any man or woman, are sick
in the soul,a God-forsaken lot, who cannot enter the
Paradise of the most High God, whose creatures, the
Luciferian hierarchy emboldens the agents of the anti-christ
to decimate, during wars, muggings and sinister engagements.
JEHOVAH ADONI is sounding the End-TIME warnings through the
winds, the rains, thunders, hurricanes, monsoons,
lightenings that JESUS is coming soon. When will the
celestial light descend on the black race?
Professor Dr. Emmanuel Omoh Esiemokhai is the Academic
Chancellor, BOSAS INTERNATIONAL LAW BUREAU, New Covenant
House, Fugar, Edo State, Nigeria.
Published
November 1st, 2011
