The charges of war crimes filed in German last month against Donald Rumsfeld and eight other officials of the Bush administration may be having some impact: Rummy is having second thoughts on attending the annual Munich Conference on Security Policy next month. The Washington Post reports this morning:
The German press agency Deutsche Presse Agentur first reported last week that Rumsfeld had decided not to go to Munich. The agency said the decision was prompted by a criminal complaint, filed Nov. 30 with the federal prosecutor's office in Germany, accusing him of war crimes in connection with detainee abuse at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq.
<>The 160-page complaint was brought by the New York-based Center for Constitutional Rights, a group of lawyers representing four Iraqis who say they were mistreated at the prison outside Baghdad. In addition to Rumsfeld, the complaint singles out eight other high-ranking U.S. military authorities and former CIA director George J. Tenet.
<>It is based on a German law, enacted in 2002, that gives the Karlsruhe Court "universal jurisdiction" in cases involving alleged war crimes. A prosecutor is obligated to investigate the claims but does not have to act on them further. So far, German authorities have said that the complaint against Rumsfeld and the others is being studied.
<>"We've been in discussions with the Germans about the case and have expressed concern because it would set a precedent for those who want to pursue politicized prosecutions," a spokesman for the U.S. Embassy in Berlin said yesterday.
Meanwhile, tens of thousands of protesters are organizing to welcome President Bush on his visit to Mainz on February 23rd, according to taz:
Der amerikanische Präsident trifft am 23. Februar Gerhard Schröder in Mainz, in der Stadt, deren Ruhm sich sonst hauptsächlich auf Weck, Worscht und Woi sowie der Fastnacht gründet. "Wenn Bush hier eine ,cosy atmosphere' erwartet, dann hat er sich aber getäuscht", sagt Tina. Denn Mainz macht mobil. Eine Demonstration wurde bereits einen Tag nach Bekanntgabe des Bush-Besuchs beim Ordnungsamt angemeldet, rund 100 Leute haben sich am vergangenen Samstag zu ersten Planungsgesprächen getroffen - Vertreter von Friedensgruppen, Gewerkschaften, Attac, Pax Christi und anderen Initiativen. "Sonst kooperiert ja nicht jeder mit jedem, aber in diesen Fall ist das etwas anderes", erklärt Tina, "nur rechte Gruppierungen wollen wir natürlich nicht dabei haben." Und Andreas ergänzt: "Bush ist der gemeinsame Nenner des Protestes, egal ob man jetzt den Schwerpunkt auf Irakkrieg, Umweltpolitik oder Bürgerrechte legt."
The Web site NotWelcomeBush is a clearing house for information on the planned protests, and Genosse Tabu will keep the blogosphere informed on the preparations.
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