Judging War Crimes and Torture : French Justice and International Criminal Tribunals and Commissions (1940-2005)
France, as other democracies, has not always kept up to the high standards expected from the ""homeland of human rights"". Its colonial past, now over, shows that its expressed ""civilizing mission"" was tainted with military exactions, economic and religious abuses, denounced by a few courageous groups and individuals, and revealed in a few public trials. The Vichy government's willing participation in anti-Jews persecution during the German occupation of France was ignored or denied until trials (Barbie, Touvier, Papon) brought to light these unpleasant facts in the 1990s. France's participa
1 online resource (402 pages)
9789047410706, 9789004153295, 9781281400000, 904741070X, 9004153292, 1281400009
1058436580
Foreword; Introduction; List of Abbreviations; Presentation; Chapter 1 French Democracy and Justice; Historical Evolution; A history of wars and massacres; Towards democracy and the rule of law; International Conventions and French Laws; International human rights and humanitarian conventions; French criminal laws; Amnesties; French Justice; Judicial principles and structure under the 1958 Constitution; Military tribunals; Justice and politics under the Fifth Republic; National defence secrecy: an obstruction to justice; Imperfect Democracy and Justice. Judgments of the European Court of Human RightsThe United Nations Committee against Torture; The European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment; The quasi-impunity of police officers; The Impunity of French Presidents; The Irish 'Terrorists' of Vincennes; The wiretapping scandal; The Rainbow Warrior Affair; Universal Jurisdiction or Realpolitik; France and Algeria; Massacres at the Beach (Brazzaville, Congo); Conclusion; PART I FRENCH COLONIZATION AND JUSTICE (1830-1962); Chapter 2 French Colonialism; Conquests and Losses; Early ventures. Colonial expansionLoss of the colonies; Colonial Policies; Slavery; French colonial policy; Legal status of the 'natives'; The colonizers' motivations; Political parties; Christian Churches; Public opinion; The lonely voices of anti-colonialism; The Winds of History; Conclusion; Chapter 3 The French Vietnam War (1946-1954); Conquest and Loss of Indochina; The Attitude of French Political Leaders; Abuses and Crimes Denounced; Andrée Viollis' book; The French League of Human Rights; French periodicals; Three Trials; Henri Martin; Jeanne Bergé; Georges Boudarel; Conclusion. Chapter 4 Madagascar: Revolt and Repression 1947-1948Brief Historical Notes; The Rebellion; The Repression; Factors which Led to the Rebellion; The Trials; Conclusion; Chapter 5 French Algeria: The 'Dirty War' (1954-1962); Brief Historical Notes; French law in Algeria; Justice in Algeria; Breaches of due process; Hiding War Crimes and Torture; Official instructions and reports; Reports of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC); Protests Against Torture; Political parties; The French 'League of Human Rights'; A few journalists and intellectuals; Christian protests. Supporters of the FLN'Manifeste des 121'; The Jeanson trial; The Algerian War Revisited; The trial of General Aussaresse; The trials of General Schmitt; Recent political response; Death squadrons: the French school; Conclusion; PART II VICHY FRANCE THE LATE RECKONING (1940-2004); Chapter 6 Vichy's Regime, Legislation and Justice; Leading to Vichy: The Political Process; The Vichy Regime; Constitutional acts; The nature of the regime; Anti-Jewish laws; French people's attitudes on Vichy's antisemitism; The Churches; Vichy Justice; The trial of Pierre Mendès France; The Riom trial
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