War crimes expert Carla del Ponte is disappointed by the United Nations.
Keystone
Swiss prosecutor Carla del Ponte gave a scathing critique of the United Nations in an interview published on Sunday. She also took aim at Switzerland’s attorney general, Michael Lauber.
“The United Nations is a great disappointment for me,” Del Ponte told the NZZ am Sonntag newspaper, stressing the need to reorganise the international body. “There is a lot of talk and there are too many officials, really too many. Only a few really work”.
Del Ponte, who worked on the UN commission of inquiry on Syria, painted a bleak picture of what has been achieved in terms of international justice.
“We have fallen very low, human rights no longer apply,” she says. “We must believe that an independent international tribunal can do justice.”
As a former attorney general of Switzerland, Del Ponte spared no criticism of Lauber, who assumed the role in January 2012 and is now in his second term.
“Would you be able to tell me what the current attorney general is doing? No, that’s right. He doesn’t exist,” said the 71-year-old native of Ticino.
“I think a federal prosecutor must be transparent and able to cope with criticism,” she added, pointing out that a prosecutor without enemies is not doing a good job. “With me, we knew exactly what I was doing.”
In 1999, Del Ponte became the prosecutor general at the International Criminal Tributnal for the former Yugoslavia and the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.
In 2012, she traveled to Syria as a United Nations special investigator. Five years later the war crimes expert resigned to protest inaction on Syria at the United Nations Security Council. She has described the war crimes committed in Syria since 2011 as the worst she has ever seen.
Del Ponte told the German-language newspaper she plans to disappear from public life after December 5, when she will be presenting her book, ‘In the name of the victims – the failure of the UN and of international politics in Syria,’ during an event in the northern city of Aarau.
swissinfo.ch/ds
Most Read Swiss Abroad
More
Taxes on pension payments: no problem for the Swiss Abroad
Uri voters clear path for hotel and marina complex in central Switzerland
This content was published on
Voters in canton Uri in central Switzerland have rejected a Green Party initiative aimed at regulating the development of the lakeside site in Isleten.
Valais voters reject plan to achieve carbon neutrality by 2040
This content was published on
Voters in canton Valais in southern Switzerland have turned down a proposal for the region to achieve carbon neutrality by 2040.
Swiss central banker wants to boost equity to head off risks
This content was published on
Equity levels at the Swiss National Bank (SNB) are much too low for the risks its large balance sheet poses, according to Martin Schlegel.
Beer sales in Switzerland watered down by bad weather
This content was published on
The past brewing year fell through in Switzerland, partly due to the bad weather. Beer sales shrank again. For the first time, per capita consumption fell below the 50 liter mark.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Carla Del Ponte: ‘We didn’t achieve anything; I’m angry’
This content was published on
Swiss prosecutor Carla Del Ponte says her efforts to investigate human rights violations and war crimes in Syria have clearly failed.
This content was published on
On International Women’s Day, we asked our readers which Swiss women – past or present – they find most inspiring. Here are the results.
This content was published on
Speaking to students at a Bern secondary school, refugees describe the brutal torture they were subjected to before fleeing Syria.
This content was published on
“There are no good or bad ones – they are all bad. Government forces and rebels are both committing war crimes as serious and incredible as each other,” Del Ponte told reporters at a press conference in Geneva on Monday. “I have never seen such acts of torture, even in the Balkans conflict.” The panel…
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.