Let’s Take Trump To The Hague?

Several months ago I suggested that Trump be charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court at The Hague. At that time I was told that since the United States was not a signature to the ICC, The Hague had no jurisdiction. Since that time there have been several developments. Ohio Representative Tavla Golanski is exploring bringing charges against trump to The Hague. https://youtu.be/czA6G9XDkI8

According to Forbes, March 3, 2018, Americans can possibly be tried at the ICC

“Even though the US is not a member of the Court, the ICC claims to have jurisdiction over crimes committed on the territory of a member nation such as Afghanistan.  Adding to the drama, the prosecutor also seeks permission to investigate related crimes in Poland, Romania and Lithuania, which would raise questions of detention and torture in the interrogation of prisoners there.”

According to the charter, The International Criminal Court at The Hague can prosecute individuals for crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes “when certain conditions are met, such as when national courts are unwilling or unable to prosecute criminals or when the United Nations Security Council or individual states refer situations to the Court.”

The Prosecutor may open an investigation under three circumstances:

1.     when a situation is referred to him or her by a state party; (consider Rep Golanski’s efforts to bring trump to the ICC)

2.     when a situation is referred to him or her by the United Nations Security Council, acting to address a threat to international peace and security; or

3.     when the Pre-Trial Chamber authorises him or her to open an investigation on the basis of information received from other sources, such as individuals or non-governmental organisations.”

These are the crimes for which an individual can be charged:

1.     genocide (defined in article 6),

2.     crimes against humanity (defined in article 7), 

3.     war crimes (defined in article 8), and crimes of aggression (defined in article 8 bis) (which is not yet within the jurisdiction of the Court; see below).[65] In addition, article 70 defines offences against the administration of justice, which is a fifth category of crime for which individuals can be prosecuted.

Genocide Article 6 defines the crime of genocide as "acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group".[66] There are five such acts which constitute crimes of genocide under article 6:[67]

1. Killing members of a group (consider ICE practices at the Southern border)

2. Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group  (consider ICE practices at the Southern border)

3. Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction  (consider ICE practices at the Southern border)

4. Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group  (consider ICE practices at the Southern border)

5. Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group  (consider ICE practices at the Southern border)

Crimes against humanity Article 7 defines crimes against humanity as acts "committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack".[68] The article lists 16 such as individual crimes:[69]

1. Murder (consider trump’s killing on 3 January 2020, of an Iranian major general Qasem Soleimani of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) while he planned to meet Iraqi PM Adil Abdul-Mahdi in Baghdad, this may meet the foreign soil requirements ).

2. Extermination

3. Enslavement

4. Deportation or forcible transfer of population  (consider ICE practices at the Southern border)

 5. Imprisonment or other severe deprivation of physical liberty  (consider ICE practices at the Southern border)

6. Torture  (consider ICE practices at the Southern border)

7. Rape  (consider ICE practices at the Southern border)

8. Sexual slavery

9. Enforced prostitution

10. Forced pregnancy  (consider ICE practices at the Southern border)

11. Enforced sterilization

12. Sexual violence  (consider ICE practices at the Southern border)

13. Persecution  (consider ICE practices at the Southern border)

14. Enforced disappearance of persons  (consider ICE practices at the Southern border)

15. Apartheid

16. Other inhumane acts

Summary:

There are several crimes under which Trump can be tried. They are:

Genocide: 

1. Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group

2. Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group

Crimes against humanity:

1. Deportation or forcible transfer of population

2. Imprisonment or other severe deprivation of physical liberty

3. Persecution

4. Enforced disappearance of persons immigrants on the Southern Border

War crimes:

1. Denying a fair trial-murder of the Iranian General

2. Unlawful deportation and transfer

3. Unlawful confinement

It seems clear that Trump is eligible for prosecution by The Hague for crimes against humanity. The next step is to explore how we can get the United Nations to press charges. I think there are many members of the international community who would be happy to work on this project. I also think there may be several attorneys specializing in International Law who would be happy to assist.