MCLC: Spanish judge seeks Tibetan genocide charges

[Denton, Kirk]

MCLC LIST
From: Joseph Alvaro <joseph.alvaro at my.cityu.edu.hk>
Subject: Spanish judge seeks Tibetan genocide charges
***********************************************************

This sweet little article is from the Guardian, but I have not seen it
elsewhere.  

Joe Alvaro
City U Hong Kong

===========================================================

Source: The Guardian (2/10/14):
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/10/spanish-judge-tibet-genocide-c
hina-jiang-zemin-li-peng
 

Spanish judge seeks Tibet genocide charges for former Chinese leaders
Judge cites universal jurisdiction to issue orders for detention of former
president Jiang Zemin and ex-premier Li Peng
By Reuters

A Spanish judge is seeking the arrest of China's former president and
premier over eight-year-old accusations of genocide in Tibet.

High court judge Ismael Moreno asked Interpol to issue orders for the
detention of former Chinese president Jiang Zemin, ex-premier Li Peng and
three other officials for questioning on charges brought by Tibetan rights
groups in Spain.

However, the case may not progress as Spain's ruling People's party is
pushing rules to limit judges' ability to pursue cases under universal
jurisdiction – the principle that crimes against humanity can be
prosecuted across borders.

This is the same concept used by former judge Baltasar Garzón to bring
about the arrest of Chile's ex-dictator Augusto Pinochet in London in
1998. Pinochet was eventually allowed to return to Chile for health
reasons.

"Jiang exercised supervisory authority over the people who directly
committed abuses, which makes him responsible for acts of torture and
other major abuses of human rights perpetrated by his subordinates against
the people of Tibet," Moreno wrote in the order, citing lawyers for the
Tibetan plaintiffs.

Moreno asked Interpol to issue the arrest order seeking Jiang's detention
for genocide, torture and crimes against humanity. He issued similar
orders for Li and other Chinese officials in the 1980s and 1990s.

Interpol, the international police organisation, issues "red notices" for
wanted persons, based on judicial orders from courts in its 190 member
countries. Police in member countries can detain wanted persons on their
soil based on the alerts.

China's foreign ministry called on Spain to prevent further lawsuits that
seek to investigate alleged rights abuses in Tibet.