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
Gold-digging: why some Swiss bury their wealth in the garden
Is reforming the Swiss pension system still possible, and if so, how?
Solutions still need to be found to meet the challenge of an ageing population and to improve the pensions of low-paid workers, the majority of whom are women.
New European space tech centre in Switzerland launches its first project
This content was published on
The European Space Deep-Tech Innovation Centre (ESDI), launched in collaboration with the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI), is to be located in the immediate vicinity of the PSI in northern Switzerland.
Swiss Federal Railways launches campaign for safety on public transport
This content was published on
The Swiss Federal Railways is launching a campaign for greater respect and safety on public transport, with posters to go up in stations and on trains starting next week.
Swiss scientists to use AI for improved weather and climate forecasts
This content was published on
MeteoSwiss and the Swiss Data Science Center have signed a four-year agreement to make greater use of AI in meteorology and climatology going forward.
This content was published on
Prices of owner-occupied homes rose in the third quarter of 2024 by 0.5%, with inflation affecting both apartments and single-family houses, says the Federal Statistical Office.
This content was published on
The honey harvest is projected to be lower than usual this year, as Swiss beekeepers report harvesting an average of just 16kg of honey per bee colony.
More young refugees in Switzerland following vocational training
This content was published on
More than half of young refugees and temporarily admitted persons between the ages of 16 and 25 are now in training. This is significantly more than five years ago.
One in five Swiss children suffers psychological abuse at home
This content was published on
In Switzerland, one in five children suffers psychological violence, and one in three has witnessed psychological violence between parents, says the association Kinderschutz Schweiz.
Swiss government minister breaks silence over Trump remarks controversy
This content was published on
Transport Minister Albert Rösti explained himself in a television interview on Sunday evening, after being called out for expressing support for Donald Trump.
Swiss Covid expert calls for caution on vaccination recommendations
This content was published on
The head of the vaccination commission would be “even more cautious today” when it comes to Covid-19 vaccination recommendations.
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.