GENEVA, – The Geneva-based human rights group UN Watch welcomed the resignation of William Schabas from the UN inquiry on Gaza, who had
solemnly denied all conflicts of interest in a related UN application, and called on UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to create an independent inquiry to investigate the extent to which Schabas' undeclared conflict of interest has now irretrievably tainted the probe, the integrity of the process by which Schabas was selected, and whether anyone at the UN rights office in Geneva knew about his paid legal work for the PLO.
Although Human Rights Council president Joachim Ruecker, the ambassador of Germany,
insisted today that Schabas' resignation "preserves the integrity of the process," UN Watch executive director Hillel Neuer said that the opposite is true.
"The truth is that Schabas made clear in his resignation letter that he 'devoted several months of work' to the project," said Neuer, "in which, as the inquiry Chair and as the top expert on the issues, Schabas would have played a leading role in conceiving of the entire project, including the scope, framework, and methodology of the inquiry, selection of which specific incidents of the war to examine, the choice of witnesses, and the legal standards to apply."
"Schabas would have had a say in the influential choice of staffers, who do a lion’s share of the work. He chaired all of the hearings where testimony was delivered and witnesses were examined."
"While absent for the final weeks of drafting, the bottom line is that Schabas masterminded and oversaw this effort for six out of its seven months, and substantially impacted the entire process," said Neuer.
"Because Schabas'
prior statements and actions are so prejudicial -- prompting
top legal scholars and his own colleagues to call for him to step down -- his undeclared conflict of interest has now irretrievably tainted the entire probe and its report," said Neuer.
Schabas resignation follows sustained campaign by UN Watch
