LEBANON TRIBUNAL: BELLEMARE JUSTIFIES STAFFING

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 USUN NEW YORK 000551

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/24/2018
TAGS: PREL PTER UNSC SY LE
SUBJECT: LEBANON TRIBUNAL: BELLEMARE JUSTIFIES STAFFING
REQUEST

REF: A. USUN/IO EMAIL (WILCOX/MORRISON)-06/23/08

B. USUN/IO EMAIL (WILCOX/REINEMEYER)-06/18/08

C. USUN 468

Classified By: Minister Counselor Carolyn L. Willson, for reasons 1.4(b
) and (d).


1. (C) BEGIN SUMMARY: STL Prosecutor-Designate Daniel
Bellemare, who heads the UN International Independent
Investigative Commission (UNIIIC),briefed the Management
Committee for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) on June
19 on his request for 114 staff for the Office of the
Prosecutor (OTP). Bellemare justified his significant
staffing request, which includes numerous senior positions,
as necessary to attract the top-flight criminal investigators
and lawyers he needs to prosecute the sophisticated,
well-funded defendants that he expects to indict. He urged
the Management Committee not to try to lower costs for the
STL by reducing or downgrading the posts he has requested for
the OTP, arguing that his proposal reflects what is necessary
to ensure successful prosecutions. END SUMMARY.


2. (C) STL Prosecutor-Designate Daniel Bellemare briefed the
STL Management Committee on June 19 on his request for
staffing the STL Office of the Prosecutor. Bellemare pressed
the Management Committee to give him the flexibility to
recruit the best personnel, including investigators currently
working for the UNIIIC, and urged the Committee to accept his
proposal soon so he can begin planning for the transition
from the UNIIIC to the OTP. Pledging his willingness to
address any questions Committee members might pose, Bellemare
offered to travel to members' capitals to explain his
proposal.


3. (C) Bellemare cautioned that the Management Committee
should not refer to other international tribunals in
considering his staffing proposal, arguing that the STL, as
the first international anti-terrorist tribunal, is unique.
Unlike the defendants tried by the other tribunals, the
perpetrators of the attacks on Rafiq Hariri and others are
still part of an organized network that will use its
substantial resources to thwart convictions. In this way,
Bellemare said, the STL's trials will resemble Mafia
prosecutions. As a result, the best way to consider staffing
for the STL is to look at the experience gained during the
UNIIIC's three years of operations.


4. (C) Bellemare said he assumed the Security Council would
not extend the UNIIIC's mandate beyond December 31, but that
the STL would need staff to continue the investigation. As a
result, he said he planned to transpose key UNIIIC positions
and offices directly to the OTP. For example, Bellemare
explained that the Legal Advisory Section he envisions for
the OTP, which would provide legal advice and opinions on
general legal issues concerning the STL and on particular
cases under investigation and/or on trial to ensure that the
activities of the OTP are in full compliance with applicable
laws, currently exists within the UNIIIC. Similarly,
Bellemare proposed to move existing UNIIIC offices
responsible for analyzing communications data, other evidence
directly into the STL, as well as the offices of the UNIIIC
that handle case investigations, forensics, and evidence and
information management.


5. (C) Since the OTP will continue the UNIIIC's functions
and retain key offices and staff members, Bellemare urged the
Management Committee to provide current UNIIIC staff with the
same compensation and benefits when they join the STL. In
that regard, Bellemare said the D-1 Chef de Cabinet he
proposes for the Prosecutor's Front Office already exists
within the UNIIIC (albeit by a different name). Similarly,
the D-1 Chief of Prosecutions also is already part of the
UNIIIC.


6. (C) Predicting that the security-threat level would
increase after the STL becomes operational, Bellemare said he
must be able to offer competitive salaries to attract
experienced criminal investigators. In the last three weeks,
Bellemare complained that he had several "ideal" candidates
turn down offers to work for the UNIIIC in Beirut due to
salary and security concerns. To mitigate security risks in
part, Bellemare said he planned to base all but nine members
of the OTP in The Hague, although he stressed that OTP staff
members would still face a high security risk. The STL would
maintain a small office in Beirut to support investigators
traveling to Beirut, he said.


7. (C) Following his presentation, Bellemare responded to
initial questions from Committee members and agreed to
provide more detailed responses in writing. Several

USUN NEW Y 00000551 002 OF 002


Committee members commented that Bellemare sought many senior
positions; Bellemare responded that he needed to be able to
offer high salaries to attract high-caliber personnel.
(Note: On the margins of the meeting, USUN asked Bellemare
about his proposals to hire a Senior Political Officer and a
Public Information Officer, both at the P-5 level. Bellemare
explained that he had identified a candidate for the Public
Information Officer who would only accept the position if it
is graded at the P-5 level. End Note.)


8. (C) Several members also questioned why Bellemare
proposed that the Lebanese Deputy Prosecutor would be hired
at the D-2 level. He said the Deputy Prosecutor for the STL
differed from the Deputy Prosecutor Position in other
international tribunals, so the OTP would have to hire other
people to fulfill the functions that a Deputy Prosecutor
would normally handle. By statute, the Deputy Prosecutor
must be Lebanese and it is important to have a senior person
in the job who can coordinate with the Lebanese government on
key aspects concerning the investigation, Bellemare said.
When the new Lebanese government assumes office, the Deputy
Prosecutor's role will be particularly sensitive, Bellemare
said.


9. (SBU) The Management Committee meets again on June 26 to
continue to consider the staffing proposal. The Chairman
asked members to submit additional detailed comments in
writing by June 25.
Khalilzad