Press release April 7, 2009: Statement of Appeal in Srebrenica case filed today
In the legal proceedings brought by the Mothers of Srebrenica against the State of the Netherlands and the United Nations, the District Court in The Hague ruled in first instance that the United Nations have absolute immunity and therefore can never be summoned before any court of law. The Mothers of Srebrenica have appealed this judgement. The Court of Appeal in The Hague is addressing this legal matter. The Statement of Appeal will be filed today (the English version of the Statement will be published soon on our website).
In their appeal, the Mothers of Srebrenica draw support from the judgement of the European Court of Justice of 3 September 2008 (Kadi & Al-Barakaat) in which the European Court ruled that the UN does not have absolute immunity. In the case Al-Barakaat the European Court ruled among other things that an absolute immunity is not legitimate. The European Court furthermore ruled that an effective remedy is a fundamental right within the legal order of the European Community, which may not be violated. In view of this ruling, the argument that the UN can uphold its immunity successfully cannot be upheld.
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