BEIRUT, Lebanon, Jan. 21 (UPI) -- Pressure to change Belgian law to block the prosecution of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon for alleged war crimes has receded, two Belgian senators told reporters in Lebanon Monday, promising to fight to preserve controversial legislation under which Sharon has been charged with responsibility for a 1982 massacre of Palestinian refugees.
"Belgian justice should pursue all those who took part in or authorized the (Sabra-Shatila) massacre including the Lebanese," Josey Dubie told a news conference in Beirut.
Dubie and fellow senator Vincent Van Quickenborne met with survivors and relatives of victims of the massacre during a fact-finding mission to Beirut. The responsibility of the Israeli military authorities in the "terrible" massacre was "evident," they said.
Van Quickenborne said Sharon, who was Israel's Defense Minister and masterminded the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982, had "the command responsibility" for the massacre in which nearly 2,000 unarmed people, mostly Palestinians, were killed by Israeli-allied Lebanese Christian militiamen in the refugee camps at Sabra and Shatila.
By collecting testimonies from survivors and inspecting the places where Israeli soldiers were stationed around the camps, Dubie and Van Quickenborne said they had a clear idea of what happened.
"It is normal that those who allowed, authorized and even helped this massacre should be pursued and Sharon, who was then defense minister, was undoubtedly the main culprit," Dubie said.
On Wednesday, a Belgian investigating judge is set to hold another hearing to rule on a lawsuit filed against Sharon by Belgian and Lebanese lawyers on behalf of 24 survivors of Sabra-Shatila. No final decision is expected before March.
An Israeli investigation in 1983, the Kahan Commission, found Sharon indirectly responsible for the atrocity, and public pressure forced him to resign. But survivors want Sharon tried for what they have always said was a war crime.
The basis for the case is in a 1993 law -- expanded in 1999 -- that gives Belgian courts jurisdiction over violations of the Geneva war crimes convention no matter where they happened, and even if they involve no Belgian nationals.
Six months ago, the legislation was used to convict two nuns who played a role in the genocide in Rwanda in 1994.
Describing the case against Sharon as "a major case in Belgian law," Van Quickenborne said the moment it was filed on June 28 of last year, voices had been raised calling for the law to be repealed or amended.
"The pressure that has been put on the law and us is immense but it has diminished because of the reactions of the politicians and political parties in Belgium," he said. "The possibility of changing the law has dropped from 50 percent to 5 percent. I think the case against Sharon shows that no one can escape the long arm of justice."
Dubie said they and other members of the legislature were not ready to accept an amendment of the law that would bar the trial of important political personalities such as Sharon.
"As president of the Committee of Justice, I will do all my best so that the law is not changed," he said, referring to an "hysterical campaign in the Israeli press which accuses us of being anti-Semitic."
He added: "We are anti-racists and today justice should be on the side of the Palestinian people. The more pressures Israel exerts on our country, the less desire there will be to change the law."
Dubie noted that after the Rwanda convictions, Belgian courts received 26 complaints against various world leaders, including Iran's former President Hashemi Rafsanjani, Cuban leader Fidel Castro and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.
He said Belgium cannot handle all these cases and was encouraging other European countries to adopt similar legislation and help establish an International Criminal Court.
"The law in Belgian is a small step and opens the path for international justice," Van Quickenborne said. "With this law, we can prevent any potential war criminal in the near and far future from committing genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes."
Copyright © 2002 United Press International
Dr. Laurie King-Irani is North American Coordinator of International Campaign for Justice for the Victims of Sabra & Shatila. For media queries, write to coordinator@indictsharon.net. For website queries, write to webmaster@indictsharon.net.
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