The reform on the law of universal jurisdiction was approved in theSpanish Congress.
History has shown that when atrocities linked to crimes against humanity are committed and intimidation and violence are used to avoid punishment, many crimes go unpunished in the nations where they were committed.
For two decades, however, a weapon began to be used to break that pattern. It is an international justice system to bring the most serious cases of crimes against humanity to court.: the so-called law of international jurisdiction.
The law allows judges of any nation to pursue such cases even when the crime was not committed in the national territory or when it was allegedly perpetrated by those who have held important positions or governed other countries..
And those who have so far used this instrument most actively are the Spanish judges.
However, This Tuesday the Congress of Spain voted - by fast track- limit the ability of Spanish judges to investigate and prosecute crimes under the law of universal jurisdiction. Now the processing begins and in less than four months it will come into force.
"The reform will close the doors of the Spanish courts to those who have been victims of serious human rights violations and who have not been able to obtain justice within the jurisdictions of their own countries.."
Lydia Vicente Marquez – Rights International Spain
Judge Baltazar Garzón used it in 1998 to prosecute and extradite de facto ruler Augusto Pinochet from the United Kingdom. The case never went to court but had wide legal and public impact..
More recently, universal jurisdiction was applied to present a complaint before the National Court of Spain against several officials of the Israeli government for their alleged responsibility in the launching of a bomb on the Palestinian neighborhood of Al Daraj where they died. 15 personas.
Also in Spain, complaints were filed against US officials and lawyers for the alleged legal framework of Guantanamo..
And this Monday a judge issued an arrest warrant against Chinese leaders, including former president Jiang Zemin, for alleged crimes of torture and genocide committed against the Tibetan people during the years 80 and 90.
clic Read too: Spanish judge orders arrest of Jiang Zemin
Reform
A Spanish judge recently ordered the arrestof former Chinese president Jiang Zemin for alleged
crimes of torture and genocide.
Although in 2009 a reform to the law had already been approved, There were some legal loopholes that allowed the last complaints to be filed.
But the new reform approved this Tuesday with the help of the votes of the ruling Popular Party, the concept of universal jurisdiction ends, according to what lawyer Lydia Vicente Márquez told BBC Mundo, international human rights consultant and executive director of the organization Rights International Spain:
"La nueva reforma significa que ya no habrá jurisdicción universal, que los casos que han sido presentados hasta ahora deberán cerrarse y que será imposible presentar nuevas querellas".
"La reforma cerrará las puertas de las cortes españolas a quienes han sido víctimas de violaciones graves de derechos humanos y que no han podido obtener justicia dentro de las jurisdicciones de sus propios países".
"There is no doubt that this reform has as its substantial and underlying reason the pressure from both China, as from Israel and the United States. "
Antonio Remiro Brotons – Autonomous University of Madrid
The Popular Party justifies the proposed changes by indicating that the current universal jurisdiction laws are being used in an exaggerated and inappropriate way..
But as Professor Antonio Remiro Brotons explains to BBC Mundo,, Professor of Public International Law at the Autonomous University of Madrid, behind the reforms presented by the PP there are many diplomatic interests, political and economic: "No hay duda de que esta reforma tiene como razón sustancial y de fondo la presión tanto de China, como de Israel y Estados Unidos".
The reform was presented shortly after the National Court requested the arrest warrant of senior Chinese leaders, including Jiang Zemin. On Monday a judge ordered his arrest.
"Lo mismo ocurrió en 2009, durante la primera reforma que ocurrió poco después de que se pidió el arresto de militares israelíes por el bombardeo en Al Daraj", explains Lydia Vicente, "y la presión de Estados Unidos fue similar cuando se presentó la querella de Guantánamo".
annoying law
So far the crusade of Spanish judges to apply international justice has not been successful., in practice, in which cases are brought to trial in Spain.
But the instrument has had wide legal repercussions and has influenced the prosecution of cases in other countries., particularly in Latin America, as explained by Professor Antonio Remiro Brotons.
"España durante dos decenios ha sido modelo en la persecución de los derechos internacionales. And the instrument of universal jurisdiction has been very useful, como ocurrió en Argentina".
in 1988, the Spanish judge Baltazar Garzón usedthis instrument to process and extradite
a Augusto Pinochet.
"Cuando los jueces españoles comienzan a solicitar el procesamiento de supuestos criminales latinoamericanos la justicia local muchas veces aplicaba legislaciones protectoras a esos supuestos criminales", says the expert.
"Pero la aplicación española de la jurisdicción universal hizo que con esa legislación los jueces locales asumieran un papel protagonista".
She further , The legislation also creates enormous inconvenience for anyone named in a complaint under universal jurisdiction..
"Impide el libre desplazamiento de la persona fuera de las fronteras del país en que se encuentra", says the expert.
"Ahora que un juez español ordenó el arresto de exdirigentes chinos, It is evident that it will be very difficult, or even impossible, that these individuals end up in a trial before a Spanish judge, pero está claro que esas personas no podrán salir de su país sin temor de que sean detenidos o implicados en un proceso de extradición", add.
"Paja en el ojo ajeno"
Critics say, however, that Spain, with its own problems, is not the most suitable nation to raise the standards of international law and human rights.
In October 2013 The United Nations reminded the nation of the old claim about the alleged impunity in cases of forced disappearances during the civil war and the Franco regime.
"It is true that Spain has been accused of seeing the speck in another's eye and not seeing it in its own. But it is also true that the only way for universal justice to prosper is for a country to be able to apply it without political or economic costs."
Antonio Ramiro Brotons, Professor of Public International Law at the Autonomous University of Madrid.
And now, under the law of universal jurisdiction, an Argentine judge is investigating from 2010 what happened in Spain.
"Es cierto que se ha acusado a España de ver la paja en el ojo ajeno y no verla en el propio. Pero también es cierto que la única forma de que prospere la justicia universal es que un país pueda aplicarla sin costes políticos o económicos", says Antonio Ramiro Brotons.
"Y si no son los países desarrollados o democráticos los que pueden encargarse de que prospere ¿who is going to do it?".
"Ahora parece que la persecución de criminales o delincuentes de cuello blanco en países desarrollados quedará en las manos de los países de bajos o medianos recursos donde los costos políticos, económicos y diplomáticos serán sin duda enormes".
According to Lydia Vicente from Rights International Spain, "también se ha acusado a España de gastar recursos excesivos en la persecución de estos casos. But that's a myth, porque siempre han sido las víctimas o las asociaciones de derechos humanos las que han asumido el coste y las que pagan los viajes u otros gastos cuando hay que trasladarse".
Y agrega que también es un "mito" to say that universal jurisdiction is not necessary because there are already organizations like the International Criminal Court (CPI) in The Hague to handle these cases.
That of Augusto Pinochet was one of the casesemblematic of the principle of universal justice.
"La CPI se creó para procesar delitos específicos, of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. And it only recognizes those cases that occurred after 2002 cuando fue creada".
"La Corte además se basa en el principio de la complementariedad, which means that each State must also investigate its cases. Y ¿What happens when the State itself is the alleged perpetrator?", the lawyer poses.
The truth, says Professor Remiro Brotons of the Autonomous University of Madrid, is that if this reform is approved, Spain and the rest of the world will be left without a valuable instrument of international law.
"La jurisdicción universal mantiene viva la esperanza y la capacidad de crear justicia para las víctimas y sus familiares", says the expert.
"Y también implica que los valores de solidaridad y cooperación frente al crimen prevalecen sobre los intereses comerciales y políticos".
"Pero estamos viviendo un proceso de regresión en la defensa de los valores universales, de los derechos y las libertades humanas".
"Esta reforma demuestra que estamos de acuerdo con países como China, Israel, Russia and the United States who are harmed and disturbed by the principle of universal jurisdiction and who are not willing to let other countries subject their nationals, that perhaps they have not always acted appropriately, a procedimientos legales en otros países".
