Human Rights, Civil Rights, The Hague, The World Court, & Crimes Against Humanity.

The International Criminal Court – ICC
The ICC - International Criminal Court - was established in The Hague on July 1, 2001 as a result of the Rome Statute. It was established in order to try those guilty of genocide (murdering groups of people in a country), war crimes, or other crimes against humanity and to enforce those international laws that were agreed to at the end of WWII in 1945. The ICC is known as the World Court.

While the World Court is geographically situated at The Hague, legal proceedings can take place in any geographical location in the world. There are 114 states who are members of the ICC and another 34 member countries who have not signed the Rome Statute which is the founding treaty of the court. The United States signed it in 2002 but then withdrew its membership under George Bush Snr. China and India have not agreed to the Rome Statute either. This means that individuals in these countries can never be tried for crimes against humanity in the World Court.

As at January 2011, only five court cases have been tried at the ICC. All five situations took place in Africa. The countries involved are the Congo, Uganda, Dafur, and Kenya. Sixteen people have been found guilty, of which two have died, four are imprisoned, seven are fugitives, and three are free but attend the court when they are required to do so.

Most people have read, from time to time, about the World Court at the Hague. They have also read about war criminals being tried for crimes against humanity. The World Court comprises The International Court of Justice, The International Criminal Court, and the Permanent Court of Arbitration. However, when people are tried for human rights violation, i.e. crimes against humanity, then they are tried in the International Court of Justice

Is the Expense of the ICC Justified
Some might ask if the expense of the International Criminal Court is justified as it costs many millions (Member nations each contribute to its upkeep). In order to answer that question, one needs to understand what human rights are, and where they come from.

Mother Nature Never Gave You Any Rights
Whenever I hear the phrase, “You have a right to….” I am half amused, half bemused. Nobody has any rights. There are, of course, legal rights in which the law permits certain things. But Mother Nature does not endow anyone with a right to anything. It is the implementation of human law that gives people human rights and civil rights.

The word, ‘right’ is a short form of the words, ‘legal rights.’ In other words, the phrase, “You have a right…” has derived from, “You have a legal right.” And, of course, that means that the ‘right’ was granted through law. If there is not a law conferring a ‘right’, then there is no right.

So, in order to be familiar with what one’s rights are, one needs to be familiar with what rights the law gives us.

Many assume that a right is something comes with being human and is enshrined in some mystical way in Mother Nature. This is not so. However, Mother Nature didn’t give anyone any rights. The law of nature is simply that the best adapted – be that the strongest, the swiftest, or the wiliest – will survive. Man has, however, legislated laws that enable him to respect others. These laws work to keep people in peace and a state of well being. Laws are for the Greatest Good.

Your Civil Rights are Given to You by Law
Civil rights are those rights conferred by the government of a country onto a citizen of a country. Civil rights are rights that are written into law. Generally, when something becomes a civil right, it does so because the people in that nation have collectively agreed that it is important. Of course, civil rights are more likely to happen in a democracy where people can vote their rights into law than in a tyranny of some sort where the laws are made by the current tyrant. It is important to remember that Mother Nature has not endowed human beings with any right to fairness, to justice, to freedom of speech, to a safe environment, or anything else. These rights only come as a result of law and of courts that enforce those laws. The reason it is important to remember is that in order to ensure fair and workable laws, the price is eternal vigilance by people.

Civil rights, like all other rights, are legislated by law. Civil rights are different in different countries In America, one will be guaranteed a trial if caught in criminal activity (unless you’re a terrorist, in which case you go to Guatemala). In countries like Zimbabwe, Mugabe sends his personal hit squad if you’ve decided to say that he is not a nice person. In South Africa, if you murder somebody, the pay off costs about $1.50 to let you go. I recall, in Lesotho, about 35 years ago, it cost me a bottle of whiskey to get my work permit. Different countries protect different aspects of community life through legislation (or not), and these are called civil rights.

By the same token, when citizens of one country are traveling in another country, they do so without the protection of the laws of their home country – unless they are in a country which has agreed with one’s home country, to honor those laws. Generally, tourists traveling in countries where there is no such agreement have no protection under the law. American or European civil rights and human rights do not apply in Africa. Thus, more than one Brit has found himself languishing in a far-away prison in a far-away land for carrying drugs. It’s best, when traveling in a country that doesn’t have the same civil rights as one’s own country to find out exactly what those rights are, and to obey the letter of the law.

Ironically, the World Court has tried more people from Africa than any other place in the world.

Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Human rights are a completely different kettle of fish. These are rights that are given to everybody human and are legislated by a court of law. The idea of human rights arose at the Nuremberg trials and the formation of the United Nations at the end of WWII that. Human rights were legislated into existence by the United Nations General Assembly on December 10^th, 1948. They were called, “The Universal Declaration of Human Rights." It is when presidents, prime ministers, generals, and other leaders impinge on human rights that they are tried at the World Court or International Court of Justice in The Hague.

According to the European Human Rights Charter, human rights do not change from country to country. So a child born in the dark heart of Africa has as much right to shelter, food and water as a king in Saudi Arabia or a farmer in the Mid-West. Examples of human rights are the right to life, education, freedom of expression, a fair trial, protection from torture, freedom from slavery, and the right of freedom of movement. It is under these laws that heads of governments can be held accountable for crimes against humanity in the World Court in The Hague, the capital city of the Netherlands.

in short, rights are a legal construct and an agreement by people who are free to make those agreements. Where that freedom doesn’t exist, there are no rights. Mother Nature does not endue human beings with rights, only a greater or lesser degree to adapt to the environment.

With that in mind, it becomes vital to be an active citizen in whatever country one lives in to make sure that rights are enshrined in law, and that the law is vigilantly guarded by people. When people are too busy with their own lives, there will always be those that will change the law, and when the laws are changed, certain rights fall away. The price of both civil rights and human rights are eternal vigilance by ALL the people. And if that eternal vigilance is not considered important, then very soon,we will have no rights. Essentially, while the leaders of the world can be tried at the World Court or ICC if they abuse human rights, it is the citizens of any nation to vigilantly guard that their leaders do so.

The World Court was created in order to ensure human rights and justice for very person in the world, regardless of which country they live in. The International Criminal Court at the Peace Palace in The Hague in the Netherlands enables leaders everywhere to understand that they are not beyond the law. Crimes against humanity would be punished and while they mgiht get away with it for a while, but at some point, they face the strong possibility of having to face charges for crimes against humanity.