The International War Crimes Tribunal in The
Hague convicted three Bosnian Serbs this week of raping Muslim women and
children in the Bosnian town of Foca, thereby classifying rape as crime
against humanity, according
to BBC on February 22. The arrest, trial and conviction of these men
by an international court not made up of their peers should concern every
American. For this is exactly what is planned for the new International
Criminal Court (ICC), that will have jurisdiction in the United
States, even if we don't ratify the treaty.
The ICC was formed in 1998 as the first permanent
international court to try those accused of war crimes, genocide and
crimes against humanity. Only 28 of the 60 required nations have ratified
the court at this time, but 139 have signed it, including the United
States at the very last moment on December 31, 2000. The court's
jurisdiction will supercede national laws making every US citizen a
potential target for this Soviet style justice system. It is just one more
rung in the ladder to a one world government.
Alarmingly, the broad term "crimes against
humanity" has not yet been defined and can mean anything the judges
want it to mean. The treaty permits punishment for these crimes (again
determined by the judge) to override national law if the nation refuses to
prosecute or the penalty is not severe enough. This leaves the door open
to glaring abuses of power and loss of rights for citizens.
Although rape is an atrocious act that should be
dealt with harshly, it should not be classified as an international crime.
By eroding national sovereignty in issues such as this, the one world
government continues to gain strength and momentum. Another BBC
article on the same day said, "Once it is established, the
International Criminal Court will in principle be able to try rape as a
crime against humanity anywhere in the world."
The Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 already prohibits
the humiliating and degrading treatment of civilians in wartime, and
requires women to be protected against any attack on their honor -
especially rape, enforced prostitution and indecent assault. What it
didn't provide was an international means to bring cases of this type to a
court mandated resolution.
In order to grasp the significant danger posed by this
new verdict, let's bring the situation closer to home: Imagine that your
son is serving in the US military in Bosnia. He is away from home and
lonely. Succumbing to temptation and bad judgment, he has sex with a local
woman against her will. He is brought before the tribunal of the ICC as
his judge, jury and executioner. He has no civil rights, because under
this Soviet style justice system he is "guilty until proven
innocent." If he cannot prove himself innocent and is found guilty by
their standards, their verdict can prevent him from ever coming back to
the United States to receive a fair trial as guaranteed by the United
States Constitution. Even more alarming is the possibility that the woman
might have agreed to consensual sex, but falsely accused him of rape. An
innocent man could end up in jail in a foreign country with no hope of
being vindicated.
Initially, the ICC will be used just to prosecute
military men and women who commit "war crimes". But, there is
nothing in the treaty forbidding the court from accusing, prosecuting or
sentencing any civilian in the world. If a person in the US was found
innocent of a rape accusation in a US court, for instance, the ICC will
have the authority to try that person at the international level, because
they have arbitrarily determined that rape is a crime against humanity. In
other words, it trumps our Constitution and our entire judicial system. In
fact, whatever the ICC determines is a crime against humanity once it is
put into effect, the US will have to amend its own laws to conform
to it. It trumps not only our Constitution, but our sovereignty and makes
every citizen vulnerable to UN dictates.
Thankfully, President Bush has indicated he will not
send the ICC treaty to the Senate for ratification. But then, the US
ratification would be meaningless anyway. Once the treaty is ratified by
60 nations, it becomes international law and its jurisdiction includes the
US, even if we have not signed it. Interestingly, Daniel saw this beast
nearly 3,000 years ago. God showed him "‘The fourth beast is a
fourth kingdom that will appear on earth. It will be different from all
the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and
crushing it." The ICC will give the world government, this fourth
beast Daniel saw, the power to "devour the whole earth." V
bm & mc
