La justice belge face au génocide rwandais : la symbolique de la compétence universelle en question (Belgian Justice facing the Rwandan Genocide: the Symbolism of Universal Jurisdiction in Question)
Keywords:
Compétence universelle, génocide, justice pénale internationale, procès d’Assises, symbolique pénale, Universal jurisdiction, genocide, international criminal law, assizes trial, criminal law symbologyAbstract
En 2001 eut lieu à Bruxelles, en Belgique, un procès d’Assises au terme duquel quatre citoyens rwandais furent condamnés pour crimes de guerre commis dans le cadre du génocide qui s’est déroulé au Rwanda en 1994. Instruit sur la base d’une loi de «compétence universelle» de 1993 - loi qui sera révisée ultérieurement en 1999 puis en 2003 -, ce procès sera l’occasion de soulever divers enjeux éthiques et politiques liés au principe d’une justice déterritorialisée. Symbole d’une justice cosmopolite fondée sur la défense de valeurs universelles pour les uns, traduction d’un néocolonialisme masqué derrière la promotion des droits de l’homme pour les autres, le procès de Bruxelles montrera toutes les ambiguïtés de la justice pénale internationale. De même, il sera l’occasion de souligner l’importance de la dimension symbolique de la justice pénale.
In 2001, in Brussels, Belgium, a trial of Assises was held, in which four Rwandan citizens were sentenced for war crimes committed during the genocide that took place in Rwanda in 1994. They were investigated on the basis of the law of universal jurisdiction of 1993 - a law that would be revised later in 1999 and then in 2003 - this trial was an opportunity to raise various ethical and political issues related to the principle of deterritorialized justice. A symbol of a cosmopolitan justice based on the defense of universal values for some, a translation of a masked neocolonialism behind the promotion of human rights for others, the Brussels trial showed all the ambiguities of international criminal justice. Similarly, it is an opportunity to highlight the importance of the symbolic dimension of criminal justice.
En 2001, se celebró un juicio penal en Bruselas (Bélgica), al término del cual cuatro ciudadanos ruandeses fueron sentenciados por crímenes cometidos durante el genocidio de Ruanda de 1994. Se les investigó en base al principio de Jurisdicción Universal de 1993 –ley que sería revisada después, en 1999 y también en 2003. Ese proceso dará la oportunidad de reflexionar sobre varios temas éticos y políticos relacionados con el principio de justicia extraterritorial. Símbolo de justicia cosmopolita basada en la defensa de los valores universales, para algunos, traslación del colonialismo enmascarado tras la defensa de los derechos humanos, para otros, el juicio de Bruselas expuso todas las ambigüedades de la justicia penal internacional, pero también permite destacar la importancia de la dimensión simbólica de la justicia penal.
Available from: https://doi.org/10.35295/osls.iisl/0000-0000-0000-0939
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