The arbitrary killing fields
-A human rights disaster.
A column by Michael Valbjorn
When a citizen is born, that child is to be born in a safe environment and it is to be born free. It is a human life and thus it is to be protected, as every human being has the right to live. In the UN’s Universal declaration of human rights it is written -“Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person”. These are beautiful words and intentions worthy of praise, and i doubt many people would disagree with them.
As a citizen i have a very clear understanding of these rights, and i expect to be granted these rights as a citizen of this planet. I also expect that authorities help facilitate these rights, so that anyone who would dare take them away from me or any other citizen, is procecuted for their crimes. The vast majority of citizens contribute to their countries in a positive way. We work, we love our families, have friends and are kind to strangers.
We trust in our governments and rely on them to be entities worthy of this trust. I also trust in my government to be just, and that my government in my name, does not engage in actions that would take away human rights from other people. I Trust in the international community to engage and intervene, if this situation should ever be realised. Lately however, i feels cracks creeping into the foundation, of the trust i have in the international community when it comes to justice. These cracks undoubtedly have to do with the level of absolute impunity, leaders of certain countries are allowed to arbitrarily kill civilian citizens, in the name of conflict.
These murders of citizens committed in the name of conflict, are not all done wittingly. However questions must be asked, in a time where targeting capability is so good, why apartment buidings and hospitals are hit as often as they are? Is it maybe about terrorizing the population of the opposing country? and are we to just accept this loss of life, and move on like nothing happened. The answer is: absolutely not. More can be done to protect civilians from acts of war, and we have to act.
Some numbers
The Ukraine-Russo war: from Feb. 22 – Aug. 24: 11.520 civilians dead
Israel Hamas conflict: from okt. 23 – Aug. 24 : UN casualty number, combattants and civilians : 40.000, Including more than 7700 minors.
Sudan war: 23-24: Between 20.000 – 150.000 killed, exact numbers are not accessible.
Myanmar 21-24: Death toll in the 10’s of thousands.
Sources: The United Nations, Ukraine, UK intelligence and The US.
So why is no one stepping in?
Thousands upon thousands of civilians die every single year, when more care to protect them should have been carried out. They are murdered while they sleep, on the way to the market, picking up children from school or while taking an afternoon walk. The people who will die next, are just like you or me, living everyday lives and trying to make a positive difference in this life. They have dreams, ideas & hopes for the future. These lives matter. So where is the international community?
Is the international community completely paralyzed when it comes to punishing world leaders, who through their respective armies have been attacking civilians in large numbers, showing a lack of care towards protecting them from harm during conflict? Why are leaders, who have an international arrest warrant at the ICC still at large, when they should be easy to find?
The investigation into and trials concerning among other catogories, crimes against humanity, are under the juristiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC). The ICC prosecutes crimes that fall into four main categories, that all relate to acts comitted during times of conflict, opression or agression, either by heads of state, or individuals commiting these crimes for instance on the battlefield. I have linked to the four categories below at the ICC (opens in a new tab).
Artistic AI rendering
But if the ICC investigates, and is charged with the responsibility of conducting trials and sentencing, why are the criminals charged still not arrested? In the Ukraine – Russo conflict alone, 6 persons have been charged for various crimes that fall under the courts juristiction, Vladimir Putin for one, is charged with alledgedly being responsible the illegal deportation of children from Ukrainian territory, a crime falling under the articles of crimes against humanity and genocide.
The answer to this question is both simple and complex at the same time. When the ICC issues a warrant for arrest, for instance for Crimes Against Humanity, it requires member states who are State Parties and have ratified the Rome statutes, to intervene and take action in arresting the defendant whenever possible. Russia has not Ratified the Rome Statutes, and thus there are no inner workings in the Russian government advocating to arrest Vladimir Putin, and i am quite sure that if there were, they would not be around for long. Furthermore it requires much strength for a member state much smaller than Russia, to act on a request to arrest a man like Vladimir Putin. Recently Vladimir Putin went on a state Visit to Mongolia, a nation that has ratified the Rome statutes, but chose to ignore the request to carry out the arrest procedure.
This all boils down to one grand problem. Arbitrary, senseless killings in the thousands, all in the name of conflict, with very little accountability and no justice for the family members left behind. The trust shown to the international community is not being fulfilled in the eyes of the public, and authoritarian states are getting more and more agressive, as they see the lack of accountability to fear from the ICC and its member states. To let statesmen kill civilians with impunity, is to destroy the public trust in the international justice establishment, and it is a clear signal to the war criminals of this world, that they can uphold the horrors of the arbitrary killing fields of conflict, without having to fear any punishment at all.