The Honorable Irwin Cotler, former Minister of Justice for Canada, spoke Wednesday evening to a crowd of about 90 in an event sponsored by the Institute for Global Leadership (IGL).
Cotler addressed "the pursuit of justice," and the related "struggle against hatred" and "struggle against genocide."
He discussed these themes in the context of current affairs in the Middle East and Africa, as well as human rights investigations in the Western hemisphere, his specialty for much of his professional life.
He began by speaking briefly about what has "guided" him in his career as a politician and activist, saying that "you cannot pursue justice unless you feel the injustice around you."
Cotler organized his speech into "lessons" on human rights, addressing current phenomena in human rights and how justice can be pursued in each situation.
The first of his "lessons" pertained to what he termed "the danger of a state-sanctioned culture of hate," using Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and the charged political atmosphere in Iran as the prime modern example.
Cotler pointed to Ahmadinejad's comments on Israel as a "direct and public incitement to genocide," underscoring the international community's "responsibility to prevent genocide."
According to Cotler, this statement is "the most comprehensive evidentiary base" for intent to commit genocide in human history.
Using the example of the massive genocide of the Holocaust, Cotler said that "words can hurt."
"The Holocaust did not begin in the gas chambers; it began in words," he said.
His second lesson warned against "crimes of indifference," or the international community's choice to ignore current, preventable actions of hatred and genocide.
The indifference of the international community to genocide is illustrated best by the genocide occurring in the Darfur region of Sudan, he said, but the 1994 Rwandan genocide is also a "painful and tragic" reminder of preventable genocide.
In the case of Darfur, Cotler said that "the international community has a responsibility to intervene."
"What is necessary now is action on the ground if we want to save Darfur, which begins with putting UN boots on the ground...without Sudan's approval if necessary," he said.
He argued that the perpetrators of genocide and human rights violations should be prosecuted, and said "we have to make the International Criminal Court...a reality."
He referred to the plight of the victims of human rights violations, saying that "it becomes our responsibility that we give voice to the voiceless, power to the powerless."
"The real test for human rights" is to ask the question, "is it good for children?" he said. He underscored this sentiment throughout his remarks with anecdotes about his family.
Cotler also spoke about the relationship between human rights and security, saying that "there need be no conflict" between them.
He stated emphatically that "enforcement and application of counter-terrorism must always comport with word of law," and pointed to the case of Maher Arar as an example of this agreement having gone awry.
Maher Arar was a Canadian national whose rendition to Syria from the U.S. sparked controversy when a Canadian governmental commission found that he was innocent of the charges of terrorism he had been imprisoned and tortured for over four years.
Junior Michael Eddy, a student in the IGL's Education for Public Inquiry and International Citizenship (EPIIC) program, questioned Cotler regarding instances when "the pursuit of justice is not always black and white," and whether granting impunity to perpetrators of human rights is a possible solution in these situations.
Cotler said that impunity for perpetrators of human rights violations "may encourage other leaders in other killing fields to continue."
"Always hold the perpetrator responsible," he said. "I don't believe acquiescing to the requests of the perpetrator prevents genocide."
IGL Director Sherman Teichman was pleased with the turnout and the evening's distinguished guest. "I'm amazed that he's here, because he is much sought after," he said.
