August 31, 2009 - Daily Star - Bellemare to return to tribunal duties

Politicians urged to avoid speculation

By Patrick Galey

BEIRUT: Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) chief prosecutor Daniel Bellemare is set to return to The Hague to resume his duties in the investigation into the assassination of former Premier Rafik Hariri, according to his official spokeswoman. In an interview with the LBC on Sunday, Radhia Ashouri said that Bellemare was expected back in the coming few days following time off in his native Canada for health reasons.
Ashouri urged Lebanese political figures to refrain from making predictions as to the outcome of any investigation, asking them “not to jump to conclusions, predict dates for an indictment or predict the content of such indictment.”
The STL was set up following the killing of Hariri on February 14, 2005, in a massive car bomb attack which left 22 others dead and wreaked widespread destruction in Ain al-Mreisse, Beirut.
Many have laid responsibility for the attack at Syria’s door. Although Damascus has repeatedly denied involvement, Hariri’s assassination prompted the withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon after 29 years.
The STL has been plagued by controversy since its inception in 2007 and has been a key polarizing issue between Lebanon’s March 14 and March 8 political coalitions.
In an interview published in the pan-Arab daily Ash-Sharq al-Awsat on Sunday, Lebanon First bloc MP Okab Sakr said that the STL was a key factor delaying the country’s government formation.
“Impeding the cabinet formation is linked to the progress of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon,” the MP was quoted as saying.
“All indicators show that discussing the outcome of the STL trials is back in the spotlight,” he said.
He added that “targeting the STL, in addition to the [parliamentary] minority’s demand for the Telecommunications Ministry, which is connected to the investigations being carried out, proves that the tribunal is the most significant difficulty preventing the cabinet formation.”
Chafik Masri, Professor of International Law at American University of Beirut, told The Daily Star that he didn’t believe political wrangling was behind the tribunal’s apparently sluggish progress.
“The political implications or complications are not within this story because [Bellemare] seems to be a very professional and discrete man,” he said.
Political interests are not being served, according to Masri, because “the investigation is in the hands of 100 experts and the investigation is still going on. Before the conclusion there will be no political intervention.”
Bellemare’s absence had led to speculation that the prosecution’s progress would be further hindered. Earlier this month it was announced that a new deputy state prosecutor had been appointed to ensure the STL’s continuation while Bellemare was recuperating.
In spite of renewed media attention following the release of four Lebanese generals – each held for four years – by Bellemare in May this year, insiders in the international justice community have said that any potential verdict could be years away.
Earlier this month, the tribunal sustained another blow as Judge Howard Morrison resigned from his position, although the STL at the time issued a statement stressing his “departure will not affect the day to day operations of the STL and will not result in any delays to the judicial process.”
Ashouri repeated her previous comments that the tribunal was “top secret” and refused to provide any information on how the prosecution’s case was progressing.
“There is no set deadline for an indictment. But this does not at all mean that the prosecutor does not see a need to inform the Lebanese public on whether there is one or not,” Ashouri said.
Masri said Bellemare’s verdict “will be issued based on sound evidence. If there is no evidence, he will not issue anything.”
He expected some conclusion to be reached by the start of next year, given the STL’s initial three-year jurisdictional lifespan. A prosecution case could be brought “toward the end of this year,” said Masri.
“The court has a period of three years and there should be a tangible result as a prerequisite for a trial. Of course, everything should remain secret until it is committed to the court.”
Masri pointed to several complicating factors that could be behind the tribunal’s difficulties in building a tangible prosecution. “The complications of this case are that the assassins are not mere individuals, they are within a tightly organized group,” he said. “We have [to find] not just the perpetrators but also those who financed and arranged the operation.”
He added that “the crime itself could be tightly connected with other crimes in Lebanon. The technique in this crime was very professional and [committed by] an organized group,” making it difficult for a straightforward line of prosecution to emerge.
Ashouri also denied accusations that the STL’s investigation had become politicized.
“We are not a political side and we have never and will never be influenced by politics,” she said.