Fast-track Georgian investigation at ICC
Eric Witte October 29th, 2008
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili is denying indications from BBC reporting in South Ossetia that Georgian forces committed war crimes during their short-lived August offensive to establish control over the break-away region. The BBC found that Georgian forces used indiscriminate force, and may have deliberately targeted civilians.
In cases such as this, where war crimes accusations are leveled against the side that was eventually most wronged in the conflict (in this case by Russia’s savaging of Georgia), it can be tempting for international diplomats to attempt a whitewash. It is refreshing then to see UK Foreign Minister David Miliband’s reaction to the BBC allegations:
Mr Miliband - normally a strong supporter of Georgia - told the BBC: “I think the Georgian action was reckless, I think the Russian response was disproportionate and wrong.
“And that is the series of events that have landed us where we are.
“On my visit to Tbilisi of course I raised at the highest level in Georgia, the questions that have been asked and raised about war crimes and other military actions by the Georgian authorities.
“We have acted in this without fear, without favour.”
Blind support for Saakashvili in Washington may have encouraged him to blunder into a war he could not win. It will be interesting to see whether the British reaction to indications of Georgian war crimes has any echo in Washington.
BBC reporting from South Ossetia also strongly indicated that ethnic Georgian villages were targeted by Ossetian and Russian forces. President Saakashvili says he is open to any kind of investigation. With all of Russia’s bluster about “genocide” in South Ossetia (which seems an immense stretch, even if war crimes were committed), the International Criminal Court should be encouraged to launch a full investigation. Who would dare oppose it? Georgia is a signatory to the Rome Statute, the ICC prosecutor has said that the situation is “under analysis”, and both the Georgian and Russian governments have sent information to The Hague. But why not raise the stakes and have the Security Council formally refer the Georgia conflict to the ICC? It may not be legally necessary, but it would be useful to put Russia on the spot to formally sign on to an independent investigation through the Security Council. Such an investigation may well find that Georgia did commit war crimes, but is likely to find at least as much evidence of Russian culpability.
