List: (tick one by clicking twice on a box and selecting Checked ) A B

Transcription

1 Conscious of the restrictions placed upon of ICC judges in making extra-curial comments which might affect the independence referred to in Article 40 of the Rome Statute and Rule 34 of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence, we invite judicial candidates to please reply to the following questions as comprehensively or concisely as possible. Name: Vinod BOOLELL Nationality: Mauritian Nominating State: Mauritius List: (tick one by clicking twice on a box and selecting Checked ) A B Background: 1. Why do you wish to be elected a judge of the ICC? I believe that through my experience both as a prosecutor and a judge in Mauritius and in Kosovo and presently at the UN Dispute Tribunal, I can make a significant contribution to the work of the ICC, especially at a time when world events indicate that the ICC will have to grapple with new and complex challenges. 2. What do you think would be the biggest challenges you would face if you were elected as an ICC judge? The ICC has now been in existence for nearly ten years and has just completed the hearing of its first case. Recently criticisms have been voiced against the ICC in view of actions taken in relation to suspects from the African continent. That the ICC is an independent court cannot be disputed. Ten years in the life of such an institution is not a long time and challenges are bound to crop up. One of the major challenges would be to find practical solutions to issues that arise in view of the complexity of the Rome Statute and the Rules of Procedure and Evidence. Should the ICC wait for a final judgment to state the law? Or should it adopt what many national jurisdictions do namely, practice directions to explain some issues and give adequate directions to the judges and parties? Practice directions can assist in expediting the work of the court.

2 The ICC consists of judges coming from different legal systems and the judges should keep an open mind and be alive to the different legal concepts. In that respect my experience of having dealt with both English and French law in Mauritius and with the common law and continental system in Kosovo and now a judge of the UN Dispute Tribunal will be an advantage. 3. What do you believe are some of the major challenges currently facing the Court? What do you believe will be some of the major challenges in the coming years? Genocide or crimes against humanity cannot always be dissociated from the mainstream of politics as recent conflicts and public statements have shown. Politics is being used as a justification not to cooperate with the ICC. Judges cannot meddle in politics. Recently warrants of arrest have been issued against Heads of State but this has not compelled other States to cooperate with the ICC in securing the presence of the suspects before the ICC when the opportunity arose. Efforts should be made to secure the cooperation of States for the successful implementation of the mandate of the court. Tackling delays in the trial of accused parties would be another challenge. Trials at international levels do take a long time and this is evidenced by trials that have taken place before the ad hoc Tribunals. More should be done to avoid undue delays. Nomination Process: 4. What are the qualifications required in the State of which you are a national for appointment to the highest judicial offices? Please explain how you meet these qualifications. Section 72(5) of the Constitution of Mauritius provides that No person shall be qualified for appointment as a judge of the Supreme Court unless he is or has been for at least 5 years a barrister entitled to practise before the Supreme Court. In the history of modern Mauritius no person has been appointed a judge unless he/she has at least 10 to 15 years experience as a barrister or magistrate. It goes without saying that the person appointed must be of a high moral character. To practise as a barrister in Mauritius a person should possess a law degree and should have completed the Bar examinations either in Mauritius or in England. I qualified as a barrister in London (Inner Temple) in 1970 after obtaining my law degree at Oxford University in I practised two years at the Mauritian Bar and served as a prosecutor and a government adviser for 15 years before being appointed a judge of the Supreme Court in Mauritius. I have also served as a judge in Kosovo with the UN Mission (UNMIK) and ended my career there as acting Chief International Judge. I am at present a judge of the UN Dispute Tribunal and was elected the first president of that Tribunal on 1 July 2009.

3 5. Article 36 of the Rome Statute provides for two possible nomination procedures. Please describe in detail the procedure under which you were nominated. Please also provide any relevant information such as the national law governing the procedure for the nomination of candidates to the highest judicial office in the nominating state (an Article 36(4)(a)(i) nomination) or the nominating letter from the Permanent Court of Arbitration national group (an Article 36(4)(a)(ii) nomination). I was nominated according to Article 36 (4) (a) (ii) of the Rome Statute by my Government. Judges in Mauritius are appointed by the President of the Republic on the recommendation of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission, a body that is established under the Constitution. That Commission is totally independent and is chaired by the Chief Justice, who is himself appointed by the President of the Republic after consultation with the Prime Minister, and has as members two other Supreme Court Judges and the Chairman of the Public Service Commission, the independent body that selects candidates for positions in the civil service. I have served as a member of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission when I was at the Supreme Court. 6. Have you provided the statement required by article 36(4)(a) of the Rome Statute and by the nomination and election procedure adopted by the Assembly of States Parties? If not, please provide an explanation for this omission. No. My government has done so. Legal System and Language Abilities: 7. a) Which legal system does your country belong to? Mauritius has a common law system. However in civil and commercial matters Mauritius applies, what is known in the common law, Rules of Court as well as the French Civil Procedure. In addition the French Criminal Code, the French Civil Code and the French Commercial Code are applicable to Mauritius with modifications adapted to the local conditions. b) Do you have knowledge or experience working in other legal systems? Yes. When I started working in Kosovo as an international judge with the UN Mission, there was in existence until 2004 a purely continental system. Though I come from basically a common law jurisdiction I had no difficulty to adapt to that system that was in place in Kosovo as I possess a degree in French Law and a Diploma from the French Ecole de la Magistrature (School of Judges where I had to study in detail the French criminal and civil procedure. c) What difficulties do you envision encountering working with judges from other legal systems? How would you resolve such difficulties?

4 I do not foresee any such difficulties. In Kosovo I had to work with judges coming from both the common law and continental systems and the work always went on smoothly. The views expressed by the judges coming from different legal systems were very enriching in building up the jurisprudence of Kosovo. The most enriching aspect of my work in Kosovo was to discuss many legal issues with the local judges who often served on the international panels. At present as a judge of the UN Dispute Tribunal I have to work with two judges, one coming from Germany and the other from France. Though the Rules of Procedure of the UN Dispute Tribunal are largely common law inspired the judges have adopted a hybrid approach both on the procedural and evidential levels. 8. The Rome Statute requires every candidate to have excellent knowledge of and be fluent in English or French. a) What is your knowledge and fluency in English, if it is not your native language? Do you have experience working in English? My native language is the Mauritian Creole. I am fluent in both written and spoken English, having studied that language since the age of five and having studied and worked in that language. I should point out that the official language of the courts in Mauritius is English b) What is your knowledge and fluency in French, if it is not your native language? Do you have experience working in French? I am fluent in both written and spoken French, having learnt that language since the age of five and having studied and worked in that language. I hold a degree in French law and a Diploma from the French Ecole de la Magistrature. (School of Judges). List A or B Criteria: Your response to this question will depend whether you were nominated as a List A candidate or a List B candidate. Since you may have the competence and experience to qualify for both lists please feel free to answer both parts of this question to give the reader a more complete view of your background and experience. 9. a) For List A candidates: - How would you describe your competence in criminal law and procedure? I have about 40 years experience as a practising lawyer, prosecutor and judge and I have handled criminal investigations and trials both in Mauritius and in Kosovo. I have also taught criminal law, procedure and evidence at the University of Mauritius to both law students and police officers

5 I have on three occasions been a guest speaker on War Crimes Investigation and Trials in Kosovo at the Centre for International Peace Operations (ZIF), a project financed by the European Union, in Berlin and Sweden, between 2005 and I have given lectures on the investigation and trial of war crimes to judges, prosecutors and police officers of the European Mission in Kosovo (EULEX) in I have co-authored a book on Criminal procedure for use by the Police in Mauritius. - How would you describe your experience as judge, prosecutor, counsel, or in another similar capacity, in criminal proceedings? In May 2002 I was appointed a judge with the UN Mission in Kosovo and in 2008 I was appointed acting Chief International Judge. In that position I have presided and participated as a panel member in a number of cases involving ethnic homicides, war crimes, human trafficking, sexual offences, money laundering, corruption, terrorism, abduction of children. I have also acted as an investigating or pre-trial judge in many of such cases to deal with detention issues, warrants, confirmation of indictments, and extraordinary investigative opportunity. I have also dealt with abduction cases where children were smuggled to Kosovo notwithstanding a court order of the jurisdiction where the children were located. In November 1987 I was appointed a judge of the Supreme Court of Mauritius. I have presided over criminal trials involving murder, drug trafficking, sexual offences either as judge sitting with a jury or a judge sitting alone. I have also participated or presided over several criminal cases as an appellate judge of the Supreme Court. In March 1972 I was appointed a Crown Counsel (now a State Counsel) in the Office of the Attorney General in Mauritius. I was both a prosecutor working directly under the Director of Public Prosecutions, who is totally independent by virtue of section 72 of the Constitution, and as a government legal adviser working directly under the supervision of the Solicitor General. In my capacity as prosecutor I supervised the investigation of complex crimes that were investigated by the police. I also appeared in a number of criminal cases where the charges were serious homicides, rape, sexual assault, crimes related to the sexual exploitation of women and children. In two highly complex murder cases I prosecuted before a judge and jury in 1982 and 1984 respectively I secured a conviction that resulted in the death sentence being meted out to the accused. I must add that Mauritius has suspended the death penalty in 1995 and I myself am against such a punishment. In 1986 Mauritius was facing a serious drug trafficking problem and the Government appointed a national commission chaired by a former Chief Justice to investigate all aspects of drug trafficking in Mauritius and to make appropriate recommendations. I was chosen to

6 be a special investigator before that commission that resulted in many drug barons being arrested and subsequently prosecuted. Between 1975 and 1976 I was a District Magistrate presiding over less serious offences. From December 1970 to March 1972 as a practising lawyer I defended several accused. b) For List B candidates: - How would you describe your competence in relevant areas of international law, such as international humanitarian law and international human rights law? Though I am a List A candidate I have opted to set out my observations on that question. I studied public international law both as a subject for my degree at Oxford University and for my Bar examination in London. I have acquired a wide experience in international law and international humanitarian law during my tenure as a judge in Kosovo with the UN Mission, having investigated, presided and participated in a number of war crimes cases. - How would you describe your professional legal experience that is of relevance to the judicial work of the Court? I believe that my career has enabled me to acquire a wide knowledge and experience in criminal law, evidence and procedure both in Mauritius and in Kosovo. I have dealt with serious criminal cases including war crimes and I have given lectures on criminal law criminal procedure and evidence in Mauritius and on war crimes in Kosovo. I have also actively participated in finalising the Model Codes for Post-Conflict Criminal Justice under the chairmanship of Professor William Schabas in Galway, Ireland. Expertise and Experience: 10. Please describe your qualifications for this position. Please also describe the aspects of your career, experience or expertise outside your professional competence that you consider especially relevant to the work of an ICC judge. I have about forty years experience as a practising lawyer, prosecutor and a judge in Mauritius, in Kosovo and now with the UN Dispute Tribunal. This track record has given me the opportunity to deal with a variety of cases, mostly criminal as well as civil, administrative and constitutional. I have always incorporated a human rights approach in my handling of cases as a practising lawyer and as a prosecutor as well as in my judgments. In 1991` as a judge in Mauritius I wrote the first ever judgment that ruled that it was mandatory on the police to inform a suspect of his/her right to a legal adviser and to provide that suspect with all facilities to have

7 a lawyer present during his/her interrogation by the police. This decision was confirmed by the Full Bench of the Supreme Court subsequently. As a lecturer in law at the University of Mauritius I had the unique opportunity to interact with young people who were voicing their concerns about a more just world. As a guest speaker on War Crimes Investigation and Trials in Kosovo at the Centre for International Peace Operations (ZIF), a project financed by the European Union, in Berlin and Sweden between 2005 and 2007 I had also a great opportunity of interacting with young people from many countries of the world who shared their concerns about how to deal with issues arising in conflict and post conflict situations and the need to have a strong world body to bring those suspected of serious crimes to account. As a lecturer in human rights law at the Law faculty in Cambodia I impressed on the young students the important need to focus on the concept of human rights in a country where so many abuses had taken place. As an adviser at the Supreme Court of Cambodia I always impressed on the judges the need to be very professional and take a human rights approach in cases. I have participated in seminars and meetings in Mauritius, Cambodia and Kosovo where topics such as human rights, fairness in the justice system, corruption and good governance were discussed. 11. Do you have legal expertise in relevant areas such as the crimes over which the Court has jurisdiction; the management of complex criminal and mass crimes cases; or the disclosure of evidence? Yes in view of my work both in Cambodia ( ) and as judge in Kosovo ( ) With regard to disclosure of evidence I have constantly dealt with this topic on many occasions in Mauritius, in Kosovo and now at the UN Dispute Tribunal. 12. The ICC is a unique institution, and judges serving on the court will inevitably face a number of unprecedented challenges (including managing a regime of victims participation and protecting witnesses in situations of ongoing conflict). Even judges with significant prior experience managing complex criminal trials may not necessarily possess requisite skills and knowledge needed to manage these challenges. a) Are you willing to participate in ongoing workplace training aimed at promoting legal innovation and coordination among all judicial chambers in adjudicating complex questions relating to law and policy? Yes. As the question rightly points out judges and lawyers do not always possess the necessary skills to grapple with the new challenges, both substantive and procedural. Such training where participants will learn and share would be a vital feature of the ICC that I greatly welcome.

8 b) Do you consider such training to be important? Training and continuous learning was an essential feature of my tenure as a judge in Kosovo and it greatly benefited all the judges and prosecutors coming different legal systems. I believe personally that such training should be a permanent feature of any judiciary. 13. Historically, many of the grave abuses suffered by women in situations of armed conflict have been marginalised or overlooked. a) Please describe any expertise and/or experience you may have in dealing with crimes of sexual and/or gender based violence. Historically and traditionally when we look at a criminal trial the emphasis has been placed on the fundamental rights of the accused, and rightly so. Unfortunately for a long time the rights of victims, especially women, be it in situations of armed conflict or otherwise, have been marginalised, as the question puts it. With the advent of many international conventions that deal with the rights of women, with the awareness generated through the number of colloquium on women s rights, the approach has fortunately changed but there is still a long way to go. This is where the constant vigilance of a court of law becomes highly relevant though it must be impressed that the role of civil society in that respect should not be minimised. I strongly believe that the components of a fair criminal trial should also focus on the rights of women victims. History and current events teach us that women are very vulnerable and are an easy prey in conflict situations. In this context, as others have stated, the ICTR landmark judgment in the Akayesu case that decided that rape is a war crime and further expanded by the ICTY in other cases is a historically significant contribution to the recognition and consolidation of the rights of women victims. This sacrosanct principle is now a well-entrenched aspect of international humanitarian law. I have experienced examples of badly conducted investigations by the police in my country in rape and other sexual offences. The nature of the questions asked during interrogations and the attitude towards the women were simply unbelievable. I have always endeavoured to set the record right by asking for supplementary investigations. In Kosovo as an investigating judge I had the opportunity of interrogating victims of rape, human trafficking and prostitution with all possible safeguards, and very often with a psychologist present. There is no doubt that the trauma undergone by these women victims make them reluctant to relive the sordid experience that they are made to go through again during an investigation and it takes a lot of skill both as a lawyer and a humanitarian to deal with such a situation. b) Are there situations or cases in the past where you believe you have applied a gender perspective, i.e. inquired into the ways in which men and women were differently impacted? If so, to what effect?

9 As a prosecutor and as judge I have seen cross examinations of women victims being conducted in a callous way and I have always intervened to keep the limits of such cross examination within the limits of decency without the rights of the accused being impaired. It is a very sensitive balance that needs to be respected. 14. Victims have a recognised right to participate in ICC proceedings and to apply for reparations under Article 75 of the Rome Statute. Please describe any experience that you have, which would be relevant to these provisions. I have had a wide experience of this situation during my handling of cases in Kosovo. Victims were invariably putting in an appearance as injured parties, the term used in the Kosovo criminal justice system. 15. Under Article 68(3) of the Rome Statute, victims are entitled to present their views and concerns and have them considered at stages of the proceedings to be determined by the Court and in a manner which is not prejudicial to or inconsistent with the rights of the accused and a fair and impartial trial. a) Please describe any experience you may have that would make you particularly sensitive/understanding to the participation of victims in the courtroom? Victims can be either what I would call direct witnesses or injured parties. The latter would be what I would label as indirect victims. Both categories of victims need to be assured that they are entitled to participate in proceedings before the ICC and that they can do so without any harm being done to them either physically or psychologically. b) Do you have any experience in balancing victims participation with the rights of the accused to due process and a fair and impartial trial? If so, please describe. In any criminal trial the balance between the rights of an accused to a fair trial and the rights of victims have to be scrupulously respected. Victims of serious crimes tend to be emotive or to exaggerate their testimony. When I was trying war crimes or other serious offences in Kosovo the major difficulty I had to cope with was to drive home to the victims that the fairness of the proceedings demanded that they be cross examined by the accused or counsel. This was not always an easy exercise. But even such an exercise had to be carried out very carefully so as not to give the perception of any undue bias in favour of the victims. One of the major difficulties that I have experienced in Kosovo was the taking of the testimony of witnesses who were subject to an anonymity order. On the one hand the witnesses were reluctant to be cross examined by the defence and on the other the accused did not always welcome such a procedure. The witnesses had to be told that all precaution had been taken and that they could and would not be identified by voice or otherwise and I had to explain to the accused that there could be no conviction solely on the testimony of an anonymous witness. 16. Have you advocated for the adoption and/or implementation of human rights or international humanitarian law treaties or other instruments? Please describe your experience.

10 I have not done so in an active manner. My modest contribution has been through my participation in meetings or seminars where I have expressed the view that human rights instruments should be adopted by countries. I contributed to the formulation of a Human Rights Strategy for Mauritius in 2008 by working with the Mauritius Council of Social Service (MACOSS) which is the umbrella organisation for NGOs in Mauritius. The project was headed by the then Attorney General. I would also mention, to the extent that it may be relevant, that I have worked with Professor William Schabas on the preparation of Model Codes for Post-Conflict Criminal Justice. 17. Have you ever referred to or applied any specific provisions of international human rights or international humanitarian law treaties within any judicial decision that you may have issued within the context of your judicial activity or legal experience? I have incorporated international human rights in many of my judgments in Mauritius and in Kosovo and international humanitarian law treaties in my judgments in Kosovo. 18. During the course of your judicial activity, if any, have you ever applied the provisions of the Rome Statute directly or through the equivalent national legislation that incorporates Rome Statute offences and procedure? If so please describe the context in which you did. I have applied equivalent principles in relation to evidence and procedure in many cases I handled in Mauritius and in Kosovo. I have also applied provisions related to war crimes, witness protection, victims rights in war crimes judgments in Kosovo. 19. Have you ever referred to or applied the jurisprudence of the ICC, ad hoc, or special tribunals? If so, please describe the context. I have quoted at length from the jurisprudence of the ad hoc Tribunals in my judgments in Kosovo. 20. Have you served on the staff or board of directors of human rights or international humanitarian law organisations? Please describe your experience. No. 21. a) Please provide us with a list of and/or links to your writings and opinions relevant to evaluating your experience. b) Please provide us with an electronic copy of and/or links to any writing or opinion describing your experience as outlined in questions 1a), 1b) and 5. In regard to 20 a) and b) I am providing some of my judgments.

11 c) Is there any other information in the public domain that would support your candidacy or provide additional evidence of your qualification as a judge at the ICC? Other matters: 22. Have you ever resigned from a position as a member of the bar of any country or been disciplined or censured by any bar association of which you may have been a member? If yes, please describe the circumstances. No. I may mention that I had to leave the Bar Association of Mauritius when I was appointed a judge of the Supreme Court. I would add that I am a member of the International Bar Association 23. Have you ever been found by a governmental, legal or professional body to have discriminated against or harassed an individual on the grounds of actual or perceived age, race, creed, colour, gender, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, disability, marital status, socioeconomic status, alienage or citizenship status, or any other grounds of discrimination? If yes, please describe the circumstances. No. 24. It is expected that a judge shall not, by words or conduct, manifest or appear to condone bias or prejudice, including, but not limited to, bias or prejudice based upon age, race, creed, colour, gender, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, disability, marital status, socioeconomic status, alienage or citizenship status and shall require staff, Court officials and others subject to his or her direction and control to refrain from such words or conduct. a) Do you disagree or have difficulty with this expectation? I fully endorse that expectation b) Please provide any relevant information regarding your ability to meet this expectation. I have served as a judge for 10 years in Mauritius and 7 years in Kosovo with the UN Mission. I have also been a judicial mentor in Cambodia. Since July 2009 I am a judge of the UN Dispute Tribunal. I have always complied with the high principles enunciated at 22 a) above. During all these tenures I have worked in a multi-cultural environment with people of both sexes and coming from different strata of society. I have never had any difficulties or problems at all interacting with them. With or without a code of conduct it must be borne in mind that a judge should always be alive to his conduct both in and outside his/her official duties.

12 I would wish to point out that for my current present position as a judge of the UN Dispute Tribunal, the International Justice Council, the institution mandated by the General Assembly to recommend judges for election vetted all candidates thoroughly before making any recommendation. That Council is chaired by Justice Kate O Regan, a former judge of the Constitutional Court of South Africa and consists of five members in total. 25. Article 40 of the Rome Statute requires judges to be independent in the performance of their functions. Members of the CICC and governments are concerned about the difficulties a judge may experience in independently interpreting articles of the Rome Statute on which his or her government has expressed an opinion. a) Do you expect to have any difficulties in your taking a position on any matter independent of, and possibly contrary to, your government? Not at all. I come from a country where the judiciary is totally independent. There has never been an example where the government of Mauritius has ever interfered with the work of the judiciary or try to pressurise any individual judge. b) Article 41 requires a judge s recusal in any case in which his or her impartiality might be doubted on any ground. Do you feel you could participate in a judicial decision involving a matter in which your government has an interest, such as whether an investigation by your government on a matter of which the ICC was seized was genuine? Appearance of bias is a matter that is very sensitive but it is a reality of the judicial process. Even though a judge, who finds himself/herself in the situation described in the question, will certainly not be subjectively biased, good sense may require that he or she recuses himself or herself in a given situation. But on the other hand the matter will depend to a large extent the nature and impact of the interest at issue. That should be the determining factor in the ultimate decision of the judge. Article 41(2)(a) reads: A judge shall not participate in any case in which his or her impartiality might reasonably be doubted on any ground. I believe that the all-important word in the Article is reasonably. And what is reasonable would have to be determined on a case to case basis. However I must add experience has taught me that in the majority of cases of recusal a judge would rather back out to avoid any possible controversy. 26. The Rome Statute requires that judges elected to the Court be available from the commencement of their terms, to serve a non-renewable nine-year term and possibly to remain in office to complete any trials or appeals. In addition, a judge is expected to be on the bench or otherwise handle legal matters for at least seven hours per day, five days per week, and at times a judge s responsibilities may require him or her to be on the bench or at work into the evenings and on weekends. It may also include working on more than one case at a time and for Pre-Trial Division and Trial Division judges, the possibility of temporary attachment to the opposite Division.

13 Yes. a) Do you expect to be able to serve at the commencement and for the duration of your term, if elected? b) Do you expect to be able to perform the judicial tasks described above on your own or with reasonable accommodation? If no, please describe the circumstances. As a judge in Mauritius and in Kosovo I had to put in long hours of work. In Kosovo with all my other colleagues I worked very often in very difficult conditions and a hard environment. On some occasions we had to sit until the early hours of the morning to complete the testimony of witnesses who were under a protection or anonymity order. Even at the UN Dispute Tribunal now I have to work at undue hours and under pressure to keep deadlines in urgent applications coming before the Tribunal. In Cambodia and in Kosovo I was on my own and visited my family in Mauritius periodically. The same situation prevails now in Nairobi where I am located. 27. If there are any questions you wish were asked in this questionnaire but were not, or if there are any matters that you otherwise wish to bring to the attention of the Coalition in this questionnaire, please feel free to address them here. My seven fellow judges and I of the UN Dispute Tribunal drafted the Rules of Procedure of the Tribunal in New York in June The Rules have to be approved by the General Assembly. As the president of the Tribunal I attended a meeting of the 6 th committee of the General Assembly in October 2009 to present the Rules to that committee. The Rules were unanimously adopted without any amendments after questioning by the members of the committee for nearly two hours both in English and French. In 2003 I was tasked by the International Bar Association to prepare a report on the Bar Association of Cambodia. The terms of reference were: [a] review the professional capability of the Bar Association of the Kingdom of Cambodia [b] analyze the managerial structure and performance of the Bar Association and performance of the Bar Association and propose reforms for its efficient functioning; [c] assess the needs of the legal profession including ethical compliance, the establishment of a centre for lawyers' training, the procedure for admission in the legal profession and the curriculum for lawyers' training; [d] identify project areas that the Bar Associations must undertake to achieve a mission of promoting the rule of law in Cambodia;

14 [e] make recommendations for follow-up actions to be taken by TAF and BAKC. In 1998 I was requested by the United States Embassy to visit the Comoros Islands and report on the state of the judiciary there. In the same year I was asked by the United States Embassy to prepare a booklet on Human Rights to be used in the primary schools of Mauritius. I have also done some arbitration work in Mauritius. As the acting Chief International Judge in Kosovo I have provided leadership for a continuing international judicial presence in Kosovo and monitored and actively participated in the efforts of the UN Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) for the transition of powers to the local judiciary and for institutional and capacity building at both regional and provincial level for the judiciary in Kosovo. I have supervised and overseen the administration, management, and coordination of the dayto-day activity of the International Judicial Support Division (the International Judiciary), in order to ensure the independence of international judges from the administration, and to provide effective assistance to the Supreme Court of Kosovo; The Special Chamber of the Supreme Court of Kosovo on Kosovo Trust Agency Related Matters; and the five District Courts in Kosovo. I have also established criteria and overseen the fairness in the selection and assignment of international judges to criminal and civil cases, and the promptness in case completion. I have represented the interests and activity of International Judges serving in Kosovo with the Department of Justice and other divisions and/or units and with external local and/or international authorities. I prepared the transition from the UN Mission to the European Mission (EULEX) in 2008/2009 and handed all cases pending with the UN Mission to the President of the EULEX Judges. Thank you for completing this questionnaire.