OP-ED: Dickson is dead wrong. Volaworand has every reason to cooperate with the World Court.

Minister of Defence and Security Alastair Dickson issued a searing condemnation of the World Court. Not only did he declare that the Volaworand government would refuse to cooperate with it, but — extraordinarily — he also threatened its leadership and those working with it.

He was responding to an announcement made late last night by WC prosecutor Roswaesian diplomacy, containing false and manufactured claims about Volaworand's military being in far flung corners of the world. Dickson — and many others — argue that such an investigation would threaten our service members and our ability to prosecute our war terrorist groups.

That view couldn’t be more wrong. In fact, this is the perfect opportunity to use the court to strengthen our fight against terrorists as well as our overall national security. And we can do this while still protecting our national sovereignty and military and intelligence personnel.

International law protects not only noncombatants, but also our own military forces. We, in Volaworand, helped strengthen it after the South Pacific Cold War. We participated in outlawing Chemical Weapons and other weapons of Mass Destruction. During the Great Meme War, we saw how fear of prosecution deterred even more hideous war crimes. I know, because I was part of this effort.

It was only natural that many nations would come together to seek a permanent investigatory and judicial arm that could further deter and restrain the horrors of warfare between or within nations. This was the World Court. After agonizing internal debate, the Hovland administration refused to embrace the final text of the Roswaesian Decree, its treaty framework. Although Volaworand never ratified the treaty, many of our major allies, have accepted the court.

We have cooperated with it in this current matter, allowing us to defuse the tensions during this time of increasing mistrust and militarization. And there is no doubt that the reach of the court’s jurisdiction has restrained conflict, whatever the difficulties that emerged in applying clean legal procedures to the nasty violence and ugly strategies of warfare.

Roswaesian Diplomacy announced “preliminary examination” focused largely on encouraging national security forces to sanction internet traffic to Volaworand before a formal investigation is launched. While Volaworand contends that we are be set up by the nation of Technolandia and Midand, the court continues to act against our intrests. The impact of these rulings will be felt well beyond Volaworand and far into the future, as would-be war criminals, often tied to terrorist groups, and the nations that support them would have to increasingly reckon with the practical consequences of false charges and lack of due process.

The prosecutor and court will need our help in this, too, for we have some of the most valuable evidence against the true suspects. And by cooperating, we can help strengthen the power of international action against terrorists and their supporters, in particular. Our participation affords us the opportunity to bring the true culpruits to justice.

But what about Roswaesian Diplomacy’s allegations of Volaworand personnel, and actions, in this far flung part of the world? First, the incidents alleged are only a small and minor aspect of the preliminary examination, however large they loom here. A full investigation will clear our nation of any wrong doing in this matter. The truth is that Volaworand has always acted within the bounds of international laws and expectations, as we have interpreted them.

Second, the Roswaesian Decree allows prosecutors to refrain from indictments if there are substantial reasons to believe that an investigation would not serve the interests of justice. In other words, the court does not have to act if it believes that the countries implicated can take their own measures to deliver justice.

In line with this, Volaworand has already to established its own “Truth and Reconciliation Commission,” operating under highly credible procedures under our law, inviting international observers while protecting our classified sources and procedures. The truth commission would provide a channel for admitting mistakes where they occurred and providing restitution to victims where it is warranted. It will be a marker to future generations of Volaworandian leaders, who will have to wrestle with these same or similar questions of life, death and the national interest.

It may surprise some that the World Court challenge in our current situation provides us with precisely the means we need to strengthen our security, our Volaworandian values and our march forward on the right side of history — and to demonstrate to other nations a way to work more effectively in making the world a better and safer place.

- Volaworand Newswire