Justice, Power, and the Realities of Interdependence: Lessons from the Milosevic and Hussein Trials

Abstract

In this essay in the Symposium on Milosevic & Hussein on Trial, the author discusses issues of interdependence to argue that, although military power can eliminate threats in the short term, in an inextricably interdependent world long term peace can only be sustained by legitimacy. The author\u27s personal experiences at a meeting on the ethnic cleansing in the Balkans prior to the creation of the International Criminal Tribunal on the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) are related to the success of soft power in judicial disguise, & the relationship between justice for others & political identity in liberal democracies. A historical narrative of political events prior to the creation of the Iraqi Special Tribunal (IST) addresses the impacts of the Iran-Iraq war; the Reagan & Bush administration\u27s fight against Iraqi sanctions, & provides a context for Saddam\u27s trial & the authors concerns about the omissions of crimes against the Iraqi people in the IST. The author advocates a US commitment to accountability beyond the realpolitik of nuclear containment or support for terrorism. J. Harwel