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British Justice,
War Crimes and
Human Rights Violations
Susan L. Kemp
British Justice, War Crimes and Human Rights
Violations
Susan L. Kemp
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer
Nature Switzerland AG 2019
This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the
Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights
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publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are
exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and
information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication.
Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied,
with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have
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This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature
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To my family.
Acknowledgements
Very special thanks are due to the group of experts listed below who
generously agreed to share their knowledge and perspectives on the chal-
lenges faced by the service and civilian justice systems, based on first-
hand experience.
I am also enormously grateful to David Benest, Alan Brecknell, Refik
Hodzic, Paul O’Connor, and Paul Seils. During the research phase, Iain
Cobain, Simon Fowler, Niall Murphy and the staffs of the Imperial War
Museum, the National Archive and Liddell Hart Library provided inval-
uable orientation on sources. Palgrave Macmillan provided generous
guidance throughout the process and their anonymous academic review-
er’s comments on the original proposal and final draft were very helpful.
Hugh Jackson’s meticulous editing and proofreading vastly improved the
text. Any remaining errors are of course my own.
I am greatly indebted to colleagues, clients and witnesses over the
years from whom I have learned and continue to learn. Finally, thanks to
my husband, Paul Seils, for his constant support, enthusiasm and insights
into armed conflict, human rights and peace building.
Unless attributed to others, opinions and recommendations on legal,
policy or factual matters here are my own and do not reflect the views of
any organisation for which I currently work or have worked.
Edinburgh, UK
2019
vii
viii Acknowledgements
Experts
The following group of experts provided insight and reflections on the
topics discussed in Chapters 5–7. Between 2016 and 2018 inclusive,
all except Interviewee 007 (see below) agreed either to an individual
semi-structured interview or to provide a written response to questions.
Several provided detailed responses to follow-up questions in writing.
Colonel (retired) David Benest OBE is currently a military histo-
rian specialising in counter-insurgency. He previously served as Deputy
Director at the Defence Leadership and Management Centre of the UK
Defence Academy and as Director of Defence Studies (Army). He served
for 37 years in the British Army and was the Commanding Officer of
2nd Battalion Parachute Regiment. He is a veteran of UK operations in
the Falkland Islands and Northern Ireland and was a counter-insurgency
adviser in Afghanistan (Cited as Interviewee 005).
Professor Charles Garraway CBE is a military and international law
expert. He served for 30 years in the UK Armed Forces as a legal officer
in Army Legal Services, including as a prosecutor and an adviser on
the law of armed conflict and operational law and was deployed in the
Balkans, Sierra Leone, Afghanistan and Iraq. He is currently a fellow at
the Human Rights Centre, University of Essex, and his most recent aca-
demic work focusses on international humanitarian and human rights law
in armed conflict (Cited as Interviewee 001).
Bruce Houlder CB QC DL is a Recorder of the Crown Court of
England and Wales (judge), Queen’s Counsel and Representative
Deputy Lieutenant for the London Borough of Hillingdon. He was
the first Director of Service Prosecutions (2009–2013) in the UK. He
is a Bencher of Gray’s Inn, a tutor judge for the Judicial College and
is currently a member of the Law and Criminology Advisory Panel for
Sheffield Hallam University (Cited as Interviewee 003).
Dr Alan Mitchell is a member of the European Committee for the
Prevention of Torture and a Commissioner of the Scottish Human
Rights Commission—part of the UK National Preventive Mechanism.
He is a specialist in torture prevention and human rights in places of
detention, and in medical evidence of torture and cruel, inhuman or
degrading treatment or punishment. He is a practising GP with NHS
Scotland and regularly appears as an expert witness in extradition cases
(Cited as Interviewee 009).
Acknowledgements ix
1 Introduction 1
Who Is This Book For? 1
What Is Accountability? 2
Why Investigations? 3
Why Focus on Military Misconduct? 4
A Note on Materials 5
2 The UK at a Crossroads 11
The ECHR: In, Out or On the Fence? 11
Repealing the Human Rights Act 12
A British Bill of Rights? 14
Withdrawal from the ECHR? 15
Widening the Accountability Gap 16
The Accusation of “Judicial Creep” into Military Affairs 17
The ICC and Alleged UK Crimes 22
The UK Reputation as a Rule of Law Exporter 24
xi
xii Contents
Detention 55
The UK Approach to IHL and War Crimes 56
The Future of IHL Compliance 57
International Criminal Law 58
Unlawful Killing and Mistreatment in Armed Conflict
and Military Occupation 59
The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court 62
Torture as an International Crime 63
Can the UK Derogate from Its Humanitarian
and Criminal Law Obligations? 65
International Human Rights Law 65
Unlawful Killing and Mistreatment as Human Rights
Violations 68
Not All State Killings Are Unlawful 69
A Free-Standing Obligation to Investigate Certain
Pre-EHCR Deaths 70
Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment or Punishment 71
The “Hooded Men” Case 72
Human Rights in Armed Conflict and Occupation 74
What Does the Principle of Lex Specialis Mean for Human
Rights During War? 76
Can the UK Derogate from Its Human Rights Obligations? 78
What about peace-keeping operations 81
Would Derogation Affect Reparations for Victims? 83
Duties to Investigate 83
Sources 83
When Is the Duty to Investigate Triggered? 85
The International Law of State Responsibility 86
Legal Requirements for Investigations 89
The ECHR: Effective Investigation 89
Other Human Rights Instruments and the Accountability
Gap 91
Useful International Guidance 91
Do Victims Have a “Right to Truth”? 93
The Reasonableness Standard for Seeking and Securing
Evidence 94
Investigating in Challenging Circumstances 96
A Way Forward After the Jaloud Decision? 101
IHL and ICL Investigation Requirements 103
Contents xiii
Appendix 425
Index 479
About the Author
Susan L. Kemp has investigated war crimes and genocide in the field
acting on behalf of victims bringing private prosecutions in Guatemala
and as a criminal investigator with the International Criminal Court
during her legal career. She has also represented victims of war crimes
in domestic criminal and international human rights litigation. Later
she was employed by the United Nations in New York, as well as state
donors and nongovernmental organisations to provide technical assis-
tance on investigating and prosecuting armed conflict-related crimes to
police, prosecutors, judges, defence lawyers and victims groups in coun-
tries emerging from or enduring conflict.
xix
Abbreviations and Acronyms
xxi
xxii Abbreviations and Acronyms
xxv
CHAPTER 1
Introduction
data protection and official secrets. Chapter 5 takes a tour of the roles
and powers of the individuals and institutions involved in criminal inves-
tigations, from commanding officers to specially trained civilian and mil-
itary police. Newly declassified documents (reproduced in the Appendix)
show the guidance given to investigators. We also look at what h appens
after the investigation, including decisions not to prosecute. In
Chapter 6, the real-life challenges of investigation are discussed, with
input from UK experts, including former senior military and civil-
ian prosecutors, who provide reflections on the obstacles and advances
of recent years. We also look at some of the major investigations of the
post-1945 era, from post-war Germany to Iraq. We close with Chapter 7,
reflecting on the issues most likely to determine whether the UK can
meet the challenge of investigating these crimes.
What Is Accountability?
Accountability is common shorthand for responses to crimes and human
rights violations, but it has no universally accepted definition. It can be
seen variously as a legal, moral and practical concept. At its narrowest,
it means holding individuals legally responsible for their behaviour and
imposing some form of sanction on them if that is warranted. In its wid-
est sense, it is sometimes used to express any concept of institutional
and even societal recognition of harm caused. In practice, the search for
accountability usually involves diverse official and unofficial mechanisms
to understand, expose, sanction and prevent further wrongdoing.
When dealing with war crimes and crimes against humanity (includ-
ing genocide), accountability is frequently described as “the absence of
impunity”, largely because a working definition of impunity exists, thanks
to Louis Joinet and his Set of Principles to Combat Impunity adopted by
the United Nations General Assembly in 1977 and updated in 2005:2
Why Investigations?
Why do investigations matter? In recent decades, there has been an
unprecedented proliferation of international criminal law and institu-
tions and of human rights litigation before domestic courts and regional
bodies.6 The level of knowledge and expectation among victims and
their representatives is also increasing, meaning not only more but bet-
ter-prepared claims against state institutions worldwide. Legal claims and
journalistic coverage are now aided by scientific advances from mobile
phone camera apps7 to social media platforms to satellite imagery, all of
which make it easier to document and share potential evidence of war
crimes and human rights abuses—even in the midst of war. The use of
drones presages an era of automated warfare in which human decisions
may become ever more physically remote from the battlefield.8 When
allegations of crimes arise, armed forces, justice systems, policymak-
ers, victims and civil society groups must navigate this complex, ever-
changing landscape. States with a reputation for upholding international
law will be constantly working to clarify what that law requires of them and
finding appropriate domestic laws and mechanisms with which to do so.
Investigation of alleged wrongdoing is pivotal to their success or failure.
Our discussion focusses on alleged killings and mistreatment when
they amount to war crimes, or torture and other cruel inhuman or
4 S. L. KEMP
A Note on Materials
Early studies of the obstacles that states encounter when responding to
the atrocities of their own officials focussed on transitions from repressive
regimes, mainly in Europe,11 but in recent decades the bulk of scholarly
analyses have targeted “developing countries”. This is unsurprising per-
haps, given the current docket of the International Criminal Court,12 the
location of recent armed conflicts, and the surge of interest in domestic
prosecutions of war crimes, truth commissions and reparations initiatives
across Latin America.13
Independent analyses on “developed countries” meanwhile tend to
focus on crimes of foreign nationals particularly during World War II
and the conflict in former Yugoslavia, or the pros and cons of univer-
sal jurisdiction over foreign perpetrators of crimes as far afield as Chile
and Chad.14 Political attention in European states to investigation of
crimes committed by their own nationals is, with some exceptions,15
dominated by the terrorist offences of non-state agents. Nonetheless,
academic scholars have provided useful and publicly accessible materials
on Western countries’ misconduct and specific investigations. The collec-
tion of papers on investigating in operational military contexts published
by the Australian National University in 2012 includes two incidents
involving the UK—“Bloody Sunday” and Basra, Iraq, alongside inci-
dents involving Australian, Canadian and United States armed forces.16
The Israeli government’s Turkel Commission used questionnaires to
gather expert views about the domestic criminalisation of war crimes
in countries including Australia, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands,
the UK and the US: these and Peter Rowe’s 2011 entry on the UK are
available online.17 The 2015 collection of academic papers Military Self-
Interest in Prosecuting Core International Crime18 includes a chapter on
the UK by the former chief military prosecutor Bruce Houlder.
When it comes to alleged UK crimes, independent studies are avail-
able on individual cases,19 crime types such as torture,20 colonial
contexts,21 specific armed conflicts (particularly Iraq22), the “war on
terror”,23 the Northern Ireland “troubles”,24 counter-insurgency since
190025 and whether the UK has done enough to prevent the ICC open-
ing an investigation into alleged war crimes in Iraq.26 Academic Kate
Grady meanwhile points out that the military justice system attracts little
scholarly attention in the UK in her examination of its response to the
common crimes that make up the vast majority of its caseload.27
6 S. L. KEMP
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Fig. 1.1 Geography and terminology: GB and UK (Note The land forces of the
UK are commonly termed the “British Army”. Certain regiments or corps within
the current Army are called “Royal” having been originally raised by or at the
request of the monarch, e.g. Royal Artillery. Source Ministry of Defence http://
www.army.mod.uk/infantry/23301.aspx)
Notes
1. These are often referred to in the UK as “British” forces; see Fig. 1.1.
2. E/CN.4/Sub.2/1997/20/Rev.1, Annex II, 26 June 1997, para. A., and
E/CN.4/2005/102/Add.1.
1 INTRODUCTION 7
3. A. Cayley and B. Houlder, in Bergsmo and Tianying (eds.), Military Self-
Interest in Accountability for Core International Crimes, Introduction and
Chapter 6 available at http://www.toaep.org/ps-pdf/25-bergsmo-song.
4. On 14 December 2017, the Assembly of States Parties voted to acti-
vate the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court over the crime
of aggression as of 17 July 2016. On UK political accountability, see
P. Rowe (2016), Chapters 2–5.
5. On international law and practice and (non-UK) case studies, see P. de
Grieff (ed.), The Handbook of Reparations, New York, ICTJ, 2008;
C. Evans, The Right to Reparation in International Law for Victims
of Armed Conflict, Cambridge, CUP, 2012; and A. Mayer Reich,
“Guarantees of Non-Repetition: An Approximation”, HRQ (2017) 39:
416–448.
6. A. Cassese, “From Nuremberg to Rome: International Military Tribunals
to the International Criminal Court” in A. Cassese, P. Gaeta, and
J. Jones (eds.), The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court:
A Commentary, Oxford, OUP, 2002; N. Roht-Arriaza (ed.), Digest of
Latin American Jurisprudence on International Crimes, Washington, DC,
DPLF, 2010; and G. Bekker, “The African Commission on Human and
Peoples’ Rights and Remedies for Human Rights Violations”, HRLR
(2013) 13 (3): 499–528.
7. Such as “eyewitness”.
8. See P. Scharre, Army of None: Autonomous Weapons and the Future of
War, New York, Norton, 2018.
9. For analysis of how some military justice systems have modernised over
the years: A. Duxbury and M. Groves (eds.), Military Justice in the
Modern Age, Cambridge, CUP, 2016.
10. These are defined as attacks by Afghan security, police and army forces
on ISAF personnel and contractors; see Clive Williams in D. Lovell (ed.),
Investigating in Operational Contexts: Law, Justice, Politics, Leiden,
Brill–Nijhoff, 2014 at 147.
11. G. O’Donnell, P. Schmitter, and L. Whitehead (eds.), Transitions
from Authoritarian Rule: Comparative Perspectives, London, Johns
Hopkins Press, 1986; N. Kritz (ed.), Transitional Justice: How Emerging
Democracies Reckon with Former Regimes, Washington, DC, USIP, 1995.
12. At the time of writing, the ICC is investigating eight situations, two of
which the Prosecutor initiated propio motu under Articles 13(c) and 15 of
the Rome Statute: Kenya and Cote D’Ivoire. Of the remaining six, two
were referred to the Prosecutor by the United Nations Security Council,
Sudan and Libya, and four by African governments Uganda, DRC, CAR
and Mali. The Prosecutor has an additional eight situations under prelim-
inary examination: Palestine Ukraine and Iraq in phase 2 (subject matter)
8 S. L. KEMP
Trim into well-shaped cutlets, which should not be very thin, the
remains of a roast loin or neck of mutton, or of a quite underdressed
stewed or boiled joint; dip them into egg and well-seasoned bread-
crumbs, and broil or fry them over a quick fire that they may be
browned and heated through without being too much done. This is a
very good mode of serving a half roasted loin or neck. When the
cutlets are broiled they should be dipped into, or sprinkled thickly
with butter just dissolved, or they will be exceedingly dry; a few
additional crumbs should be made to adhere to them after they are
moistened with this.
MUTTON KIDNEYS À LA FRANÇAISE. (ENTRÉE.)
Skin six or eight fine fresh mutton kidneys, and without opening
them, remove the fat; slice them rather thin, strew over them a large
dessertspoonful of minced herbs, of which two-thirds should be
parsley and the remainder thyme, with a tolerable seasoning of
pepper or cayenne, and some fine salt. Melt two ounces of butter in
a frying-pan, put in the kidneys and brown them quickly on both
sides; when nearly done, stir amongst them a dessertspoonful of
flour and shake them well in the pan; pour in the third of a pint of
gravy (or of hot water in default of this), the juice of half a lemon, and
as much of Harvey’s sauce, or of mushroom catsup, as will flavour
the whole pleasantly; bring these to the point of boiling, and pour
them into a dish garnished with fried sippets, or lift out the kidneys
first, give the sauce a boil and pour it on them. In France, a couple of
glasses of champagne, or, for variety, of claret, are frequently added
to this dish: one of port wine can be substituted for either of these. A
dessertspoonful of minced eschalots may be strewed over the
kidneys with the herbs; or two dozens of very small ones previously
stewed until tender in fresh butter over a gentle fire, may be added
after they are dished. This is a very excellent and approved receipt.
Fried 6 minutes.
BROILED MUTTON KIDNEYS.
Split them open lengthwise without dividing them, strip off the skin
and fat, run a fine skewer through the points and across the back of
the kidneys to keep them flat while broiling, season them with pepper
or cayenne, lay them over a clear brisk fire, with the cut sides
towards it, turn them in from four to five minutes, and in as many
more dish, and serve them quickly, with or without a cold Maître
d’Hôtel sauce under them. French cooks season them with pepper
and fine salt, and brush a very small quantity of oil or clarified butter
over them before they are broiled: we think this an improvement.
8 to 10 minutes.
OXFORD RECEIPT FOR MUTTON KIDNEYS. (BREAKFAST DISH,
OR ENTRÉE.)
This should be laid to a clear brisk fire, and carefully and plentifully
basted from the time of its becoming warm until it is ready for table;
but though it requires quick roasting, it must never be placed
sufficiently near the fire to endanger the fat, which is very liable to
catch or burn. When the joint is served, the shoulder should be
separated from the ribs with a sharp knife; and a small slice of fresh
butter, a little cayenne, and a squeeze of lemon juice should be laid
between them; if the cook be an expert carver, this had better be
done before the lamb is sent to table. The cold Maître d’Hôtel sauce
of Chapter VI. may be substituted for the usual ingredients, the
parsley being omitted or not, according to the taste. Serve good mint
sauce, and a fresh salad with this roast.
A leg, shoulder, or loin of lamb should be cooked by the same
directions as the quarter, a difference only being made in the time
allowed for each.
Fore quarter of lamb, 1-3/4 to 2 hours. Leg, 1-1/2 hour (less if very
small); shoulder, 1 to 1-1/4 hour.
Obs.—The time will vary a little, of course, from the difference in
the weather, and in the strength of the fire. Lamb should always be
well roasted.
SADDLE OF LAMB.
Wash the joint, and wipe it very dry; skewer down the flap, and lay
it into a close-shutting and thick stewpan or saucepan, in which three
ounces of good butter have been just dissolved, but not allowed to
boil; let it simmer slowly over a very gentle fire for two hours and a
quarter, and turn it when it is rather more than half done. Lift it out,
skim and pour the gravy over it; send asparagus, cucumber, or
soubise sauce to table with it; or brown gravy, mint sauce, and a
salad.
2-1/4 hours.
LAMB OR MUTTON CUTLETS, WITH SOUBISE SAUCE.
(ENTRÉE.)
Follow exactly the receipt for mutton cutlets dressed in the same
way, but allow for those of lamb fifteen or twenty minutes less of
time, and an additional spoonful of liquid.
CUTLETS OF COLD LAMB.
Pork.
No.
1. The Spare Rib.
2. Hand.
3. Belly, or Spring.
4. Fore Loin.
5. Hind Loin.
6. Leg.
Strip the skin from the inside fat of a freshly killed and well-fed pig;
slice it small and thin; put it into a new or well-scalded jar, set it into a
pan of boiling water, and let it simmer over a clear fire. As it
dissolves, strain it into small stone jars or deep earthen pans, and
when perfectly cold, tie over it the skin that was cleared from the
lard, or bladders which have been thoroughly washed and wiped
very dry. Lard thus prepared is extremely pure in flavour, and keeps
perfectly well if stored in a cool place; it may be used with advantage
in making common pastry, as well as for frying fish, and for various
other purposes. It is better to keep the last drainings of the fat apart
from that which is first poured off, as it will not be quite so fine in
quality.
TO PRESERVE UNMELTED LARD FOR MANY MONTHS.