U.S. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR SPECIAL TRIBUNAL FOR

C O N F I D E N T I A L USUN NEW YORK 000789

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/24/2017
TAGS: KCRM KJUS LE PREL SY
SUBJECT: U.S. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR SPECIAL TRIBUNAL FOR
LEBANON JUDGES/PROSECUTOR/STAFF DELIVERED

REF: A. STATE 133859

B. WILCOX/REINEMEYER EMAIL--08/07/07

Classified By: Amb. Alejandro D. Wolff, for reasons 1.4(b) and (d).


1. (C) BEGIN SUMMARY: Mission Legal Adviser delivered
reftel names of individuals interested in working with the
Special Tribunal for Lebanon to UN Legal Counsel Nicolas
Michel and UN Assistant Secretary General for Legal Affairs
Larry Johnson on September 24. On the margins of the
meeting, Michel and Johnson also reported that the
Netherlands has sent the UN a draft Headquarters Agreement
for the Tribunal and said the UN is working to establish the
Management Committee for the Tribunal. END SUMMARY.


2. (C) Michel and Johnson thanked the United States for
providing names of potential candidates to serve as judges
and prosecutors of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, said
the UN had not received many names yet, and assured USUN that
they would hold the U.S. names in strict confidence. Note:
September 24 is the date by when the UN requested states to
submit names to the UN (ref B). End Note. Stressing the
need to identify qualified judges from the Middle East, they
asked if the United States could provide names of judges from
the region. Michel said he had spoken with Egyptian
Permanent Representative Maged Abdelaziz to ask him to
contact former Egyptian Permanent Representative and
International Court of Justice Judge Nabil al Araby, a jurist
who also previously represented Egypt in the UN General
Assembly's Sixth Committee.


3. (C) On the margins of the meeting, Michel and Johnson
also reported that the Netherlands has provided the UN with a
draft Headquarters Agreement for the Tribunal. The
Netherlands continues to insist on receiving prior assurances
that other states will take persons convicted by the Tribunal
"immediately" after their trials conclude. As drafted, the
Headquarters Agreement makes the Netherlands' agreement to
host the Tribunal contingent on receiving such assurances,
but Michel said he hoped the UN could reach an acceptable
compromise with the Dutch. Prime Minister Balkenende will
likely raise the issue when he meets with the
Secretary-General this week, Michel said.

SIPDIS


4. (C) Michel and Johnson also discussed the UN's work to
establish the Management Committee for the Tribunal.
Consistent with the Annex to resolution 1737 (2007),the UN
and Lebanon have agreed to establish a Management Committee
and the Lebanese have agreed that the UN would draft the
terms of reference for the Committee. The UN wants to
involve interested states, particularly Middle Eastern states
that expressed concern about the Tribunal, but avoid giving
such states a role in decision making or the opportunity to
block the operations of the Tribunal. The UN is considering
organizing a small (six to eight states) Management
Committee, along the lines of the Management Committee for
the Special Court for Sierra Leone, as well as a larger group
of interested states. The larger group would serve mainly as
a forum for providing information on Tribunal developments.
The UN Office of Legal Affairs will meet this week with the
Canadian chairman of the SCSL Management Committee to seek
his views on structure and operations of such committees.
The UN also has invited other members of the SCSL Management
Committee to share lessons learned.

KHALILZAD