news & events

ASTT IN THE COMMUNITY

ASTT's work has been featured in several journal and newspaper articles. Click on the links below to read the articles.

Our most recent quarterly newsletter included two stories that were written with incredible detail. Due to their length, they were each divided into two segments. Please find their conclusions below:

Alemayehu Teshome's Review of Treatment (continued)...

I continued my treatment as per the appointment schedules. Also, I called the office and Dr. Karen for bigger issues I had. She was also calling and emailing me to follow up on my issues. At some point in this treatment she gave me an affidavit to present in my asylum case and she told me she would support me whenever I needed in my case.

During this period of my attendance, I found ASTT always working on improvements; they have completed "The Healing Garden" which was in the construction process at the back of the office where I was attending. Their Facebook page is another website that I appreciate a lot. It is constantly being updated and is interactive.

I tried to write down my impressions of what I faced during my visits to the office and my phone communications. Probably this is what I remembered at the time of writing it but as a general conclusion I can say that I found ASTT to be a humanitarian service center because the service given really matches the name ASTT has. Since they are advocates for survivors of torture and trauma, I believe I am an advocate for the good services I got from their office.

The American Non-Governmental Organizations Coalition for the International Criminal Court (AMICC) (continued)...

The International Criminal Court (ICC) is a permanent court to prosecute individuals for
genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression, although crimes
of aggression cannot be tried before 2017. With its creation came a permanent international
judicial establishment to try heinous crimes that are condemned by all cultures, religions and
governments. The ICC can only prosecute crimes committed on or after July 1, 2002, the date
it was established according to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (Rome
Statue), and has its headquarters located in The Hague, Netherlands. As of August 2011, 115
states are members of the ICC with another 34 countries having signed but not ratified the
Rome Statute.
   The ICC can only try crimes that are the most grave in nature that interest the entire
international community. This suggests that the ICC generally takes the cases that entail
numerous or colossal acts of violence that have been deliberately planned. It is designed to
be a court of last resort, meaning the ICC will bow to a states right to prosecute their nationals,
except in a few extreme circumstances. Merely prosecuting individuals for atrocious crimes
can get justice for the victims and society, counteract efforts to blame groups as a whole for
the crimes of individuals and act as a deterrent to future supercilious criminals. These benefits can be had gained by the sheer existence of the ICC can encourage states to investigate and
prosecute grave crimes because, if they do not, the ICC may find it necessary to pursue its own
investigations and prosecutions.
   Historically, the US has been a major trailblazer in the quest for international courts,
and even made significant contributions to the documents that the ICC is founded on including
stipulations giving strong regard to national courts, due process civil liberties procured from the
US Bill of Rights, and the definitions and fundamentals of the ICC crimes. A union of America's
friends and allies, including all members of the European Union (EU) and all members of NATO,
with the exception of only the US and Turkey, support the ICC. However, under the leadership
of former President George W. Bush, the US government actively opposed the ICC. Some of
Bush’s reasons behind not ratifying the Rome Statue and actively opposing the ICC encompass
the following: a claim that the ICC prospectively could investigate and try US citizens without US
permission even though the US is not a party to the Rome Statute; another allegation that he
fears the prosecutor in the ICC will be uncontrollable and that the ICC has too much unchecked
power; fears that the the ICC will be politically motivated against US leaders and soldiers; and
a dilemma with the lack of due process rights for defendants. Because of his concerns, Bush
passed the American Service Members Protection Act (ASPA) prohibiting the United States
from providing military aid to countries that ratified the treaty giving the ICC power, and the
Nethercutt Amendment which suspended economic support to states who refused bilateral
immunity agreements with the US.
   Bush’s concerns, however, were incongruent with the way that the ICC has been set
up to run. It has many checks and balances, most introduced by US negotiators, that limit
the authority of the prosecutor and judges. The Court only judges the actions of individuals,
not entire states or governments and can only investigate the most serious crimes of great
enormity that fall within the ICC’s jurisdiction. The Rome Statute also contains the due process
rights found in the US Constitution, with the exclusion of a jury trial because of its tremendous
impracticality. The ICC relies on panels of experienced judges with great integrity and expertise
to examine the complex crimes tried before the court.
   The Obama administration, conversely, vowed to end US hostility toward the ICC stating
that "the United States should cooperate with ICC investigations in a way that reflects American
sovereignty and promotes our national security interests". In 2009, the United States sent
delegation to the 8th meeting of the International Criminal Court's Assembly of States Parties,
marking the first time that the US had attended a meeting of the ICC since 2001. Obama has
implied that his administration will take a more positive approach toward the ICC and is now a
common attendee and participant in meetings of the ICC's governing body.