Resolution on International Criminal Court (ICC)

Case 24-2017: Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ) of Venezuela & President Maduro

Resolution on International Criminal Court (ICC)

February, 2018

The International Buddhist Ethics Committee and Buddhist Tribunal on Human Rights,

Recalling the principles of Buddhist Law and the International Human Rights Law, such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the UN and the Buddhist Convention on Human Rights adopted by the United Buddhist Nations Organization;

Considering that on April 12, 2017 the Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ) of Venezuela was sentenced for the crimes of Violation of the Constitutional Democratic State of Law and Violation of the International Human Rights Law;

Reaffirming the Legal Opinion of May 4, 2017 against President Maduro of Venezuela on charges of Coup d'état and Crimes against humanity;

Aware that in September 2017 the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein, coincided with the Buddhist Tribunal on Human Rights and publicly requested to initiate an international legal case against Venezuela for crimes against humanity in the context of police forces' abuses against civilian political demonstrators, including crimes such as arbitrary detentions, excessive use of force and torture;

Deploring the fact that Venezuela is one of the members of UN Human Rights Council, because its presence is an affront against the principles by which the UN was created, so that Venezuela should be expelled as a member, such as was pointed out by former Venezuelan ambassador Diego Arria and also by Hillel Neuer, director of UN Watch;

Taking into consideration that the former Venezuelan ambassador, Diego Arria, has also stated that the International Criminal Court (ICC) should judge Venezuela for crimes against humanity, in addition to considering the murders of civilians as perverse, cruel and criminal acts that are part of a widespread and systematic plan of excessive force against political demonstrations, including the arbitrary detention of opponents, inhumane treatment and torture;

Examining the thousands of arbitrary detentions, many of them children, and the hundreds of extrajudicial killings, within a widespread and systematic use of excessive violence that also includes a tactical and strategic plan of homicides, imprisonment, torture and sexual abuse, according to the Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), they constitute crimes against humanity;

Concerned enormously by the fact that in the US justice system there are proofs that the Venezuelan government of President Maduro, together with the high officials Tarek El Aissami, Maikel Moreno, Diosdado Cabello, Vladimir Padrino and Néstor Reverol, would be conforming a transnational criminal organization dedicated to drug trafficking;

Repudiating the fact that Pope Francis I has confirmed that he has always spoken loudly and clearly, and that the Vatican has done much for the Venezuelan government;

Noting that President Maduro has been denounced before the International Criminal Court (ICC) by the former Prosecutor general of Venezuela, Luisa Ortega Díaz, accusing him of crimes against humanity for carrying out a social cleansing plan between the years 2015 to 2017, which included crimes of unofficial executions, torture and incarcerations, being a systematic and widespread attack against the civilian population;

Denouncing before international justice that the former prosecutor general of Venezuela, Luisa Ortega Díaz, presented more than 1000 evidentiary elements to the ICC on the accusation of crimes against humanity committed by the Venezuelan government of President Maduro, existing evidence of medical, psychiatric and technical examinations and identifications, in addition to interviews with victims, where more than 8 thousand deaths and 17 thousand arbitrary arrests can be verified;

Repudiating the inaction of the International Criminal Court (ICC) during the last 4 years, since the complaint of crimes against humanity carried out by the former Prosecutor Ortega against President Maduro is the fourth complaint filed before such court, especially taking into account the complaint of the 2014 presented by two hundred legislators from eight Latin American countries who demanded the ICC to investigate President Maduro for crimes against humanity against peaceful and unarmed demonstrators;

Solemly establishing that it is good news that in 2018 the prosecutor Fatou Bensouda of the ICC has decided to open a preliminary examination on human rights violations committed by the dictatorship of Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela, especially because it is a first step to comply with the requirement ruled by the Buddhist Tribunal on Human Rights in May 2017, when it was manifested: “It is required that Fatou Bensouda, Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), begins to work adequately in the case of Venezuela and promptly bring President Maduro before international justice for "Crimes against humanity", putting on record that indifference or unwarranted delay to give justice to these crimes constitutes an act of complicity by omission”;

1.       Expresses that it is not enough to simply open a preliminary examination on abuses in Venezuela, since this was previously done by the very UN, by hundreds of Latin American legislators and by Venezuelan jurists, who have already studied, analyzed and presented the relevant evidence.

2.      Declares that when health and integrity of millions of lives is involved, preliminary investigations lasting several years should not be carried out, but full and prompt investigations must be carried out in order to proceed with a fair and adequate trial, respecting the human right to justice and the Truth of the thousands of victims, in addition to trying to prevent that conflicts and the number of deaths grow.

3.      Deplores the civil-military regime of President Maduro as illegal, by considering it a transnational criminal organization.

4.     Confirms that the decision of the European Parliament to include President Maduro of Venezuela in the sanctions imposed by the European Union is adequate.

5.      Congratulates the Government of Canada for imposing sanctions on President Maduro of Venezuela, and on 18 other senior officials, for their acts of corruption and serious violations of International Human Rights Law.

6.     Corrects the original Judgment against the Venezuelan regime, where the charge of CRIMES AGAINST PEACE is included, due to the persistent human rights violations that continue even after the multiple denunciations for crimes against humanity against Venezuela.

7.     Implores the International Criminal Court (ICC) to stop being obsessed with only judging African countries, and to start judging States from all over the world, especially those rich and powerful which enjoy impunity.

Always with reconciling spirit (maitri),

H.E. Master Maitreya Samyaksambuddha

Judge and President of the Buddhist Tribunal on Human Rights