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Lawyers call detention of boy unjustPosted on Sun, Mar. 16, 2008
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By LT. CMDR WILLIAM C. KUEBLERand REBECCA S. SNYDER
From left, Navy Lt. Cmdr William Kuebler, a judge advocate general, or JAG officer and Rebecca Snyder, his civilian co-counsel are the Pentagon appointed defense attorneys for Omar Khadr, the youngest known war-on-terror detainee at Guant?namo Bay, Cuba.
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A young Canadian, Omar Khadr, faces trial by a special military commission at Guantánamo Bay for ''war crimes'' he allegedly committed as a 15-year-old boy in Afghanistan. Omar is alleged to have ''fought'' with an al Qaeda-affiliated militia group in Afghanistan in 2002. If his prosecution goes forward, Omar will be the first child soldier prosecuted for war crimes in the modern history of war-crimes tribunals. Though not expressly prohibited by law, the prosecution of children for war crimes is unprecedented for good reason. In daily civilian life, we would anticipate the average child's basic sense of right and wrong to prevent them from breaking laws that prohibit destroying property, stealing or committing homicide; in warfare, this conduct is not only acceptable but rewarded. The law of armed conflict transcends a basic understanding of ''right and wrong'' (e.g., in war, it's OK to kill, but only if you're wearing certain clothes) and requires a degree of maturity and sophistication that children simply cannot be expected to have. Beyond this general objection, Omar Khadr's prosecution violates established legal norms. First, to the extent that child soldiers may be prosecuted, they must be prosecuted (like all children) in a court with appropriate juvenile justice safeguards. Omar's military commission, created by the Military Commissions Act of 2006, draws no distinction between adults and children and has no such special procedures. (In contrast, the Sierra Leone war-crimes tribunal authorized the prosecution of children for war crimes, but ultimately chose not to do so.) The requirement to distinguish between adults and children for purposes of criminal prosecution is an established feature of the criminal justice systems of the federal government, all 50 states, and the District of Columbia -- not to mention every civilized country in the world. Congress' failure to specify an age limitation in its definition of ''unlawful enemy combatant'' or to provide for special juvenile-justice procedures shows that Congress intended the jurisdiction of military commissions to be limited, as it is in courts-martial under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, to adults. Moreover, the jurisdiction of war-crimes tribunals has historically been limited to members of a military force. Indeed, under U.S. law, the jurisdiction of courts-martial has been limited for decades to those old enough to acquire a military 'status.' Likewise, the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict (''Child Soldier Protocol'') establishes, as a matter of international law, the minimum age at which one can become a member of a military force (including a ''nonstate actor'' such as al Qaeda) and requires children falling below that age to be regarded essentially as involuntary participants in war and afforded opportunities for rehabilitation and reintegration into society upon capture. The Child Soldier Protocol recognizes that the term ''child soldier'' is an oxymoron -- children are never ''soldiers,'' they are children, unlawfully exploited by those who place them in harm's way. In its prosecution of Omar Khadr, the U.S. government has thus failed to distinguish between our enemies in the ''war on terror'' and, if what it alleges is true, a victim of those enemies. The authors are Department of Defense attorneys assigned to the Office of Military Commissions -- Kuebler as a Navy officer, Snyder as a civilian and former uniformed judge advocate general, or JAG. They provided this essay with the following caveat: ``The views expressed are their own and do not constitute an official position of the U.S. government.''
The Prince and I: Now Gwyneth Paltrow rubs shoulders with CharlesLast updated at 20:14pm on 18th March 2008
After her girls' only evening with Madonna, the Hollywood actress graced the red carpet this afternoon at the UK finals of the Celebrate Success Awards held at The Odeon in London's Leicester Square.
The actress, who wore a grey frock and black cropped jacket, arrived alone - there was still no sight of her husband, Coldplay front man Chris Martin. Scroll down for more...  Greetings, Your Highness: Prince Charles and Gwyneth Paltrow, with actor Kevin Spacey (centre) make one another's acquaintance at a charity event in London today 
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The ceremony was organised by the Prince's Trust, a charity established by Prince Charles more than 30 years ago. Gwyneth, sporting a new shoulder-length hairstyle, revealed: "I am a great admirer of The Prince of Wales. The work he has done through his charity to help young people is quite remarkable."
Scroll down for more...  VIPs: Prince Charles and Gwyneth Paltrow arrived at a ceremony organised by the Prince's Trust in London today 
She later paid tribute to a reformed heroin and crack addict who has set up a business educating thousands of school children and prisoners on the dangers of drugs and binge-drinking.
Ian Fisher, 20, from The Wirral, Merseyside, won the Learning and Skills Council Young Achiever Award the ceremony.
The honours recognise young people who have overcome homelessness, drug addiction and unemployment to achieve success with the charity's support.
Scroll down for more...  Solo mission: the actress arrived alone - there was again no sign of her husband Chris Martin
Years of substance misuse have left Mr Fisher with chronic and life-threatening medical problems.
He said: "Drugs education, I feel, is the way forward to stopping drug abuse happening in the first place. I am not going to stand down from this crusade that I am on until I have made some difference."
Scroll down for more...  Acting up: St Trinian's star Talulah Riley and Band of Brothers actor Damian Lewis also graced the red carpet Kevin Spacey, Richard E Grant and Stardust's Charlie Cox were among those gathered at the event.
Fellow actor Damian Lewis presented the RBS Community Impact Award to a team of unemployed young people who revived a Second World War memorial garden in Witton, Birmingham.
Lewis said: "Civilians who died in the World War II heavy bombing were often buried without a permanent tombstone. I think the young people from this Prince's Trust team did an amazing thing, providing a crucial place for relatives to remember their lost ones."
Hosts Jenni Falconer and Ben Shephard and a 1,500-strong audience also heard how single mother-of-three Claire Hutchinson, 29, overcame long-term unemployment to set up a recycling business thanks to a Prince's Trust low-interest loan and mentoring support.
UK Recycling Assistance now employs 25 people and has donated more than £125,000 to a local charity for terminally-ill children.
Spacey, who handed Ms Hutchinson the Capgemini Enterprise Award, said: "Claire's success just shows how a little support can go a long way."
The Prince's Trust & RBS Celebrate Success Awards celebrate the achievements of young people supported by the youth charity who have succeeded against the odds, as well as the support from volunteers and staff.
The Royal Bank of Scotland Group's support of Celebrate Success is part of a five-year partnership with the Trust to help the one million young people who are not in education, employment or training.
The Trust has helped more than 575,000 young people since 1976.
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