Topic: Rights of Accused
Country: Tunisia
Delegate Name: Lia Bommarito
School: Williamston High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All Tunisia position papers GLIMUN 2015 committees
Since the creation of hearings, there has always been a dilemma looming: how can the court and the government ensure safe and fair trials? Oftentimes, hearings are not fair. In many countries around the world, trials are irregular and messy and betray the so called ‘rights’ of those accused. Countless countries do not guarantee the right to a speedy trial, which can result in people rotting inside of jail cells before receiving their sentence. There are dozens more rights of people accused of crimes around the world, but international law has yet to create a unified code for the rights of the accused.
The Republic of Tunisia has never had fantastic credibility on their trials. In the case of Ben Ali, the murderer of many innocent protestors, and many other accused, trials are rarely speedy or fair. Thousands of Tunisian victims cannot rest easy as their attackers are sentenced to measly censures. According to international law, all citizens in every country should have the right to a fair trial, and Tunisia agrees with this philosophy. Every country should give their citizens the right to a fair trial. However, international policy is not necessarily enforced in every country. This, Tunisia believes, is a way of life.
Despite the fact that international law is set in place for all countries, enforcing them can lead to complications for non-consenting countries. National sovereignty cannot be compromised in the quest for international rights. It is simply not the United Nation’s business to concern themselves with what goes on in each individual country. Although international policy can be passed, most methods of enforcing international law infringe on sovereignty; while the right to a speedy and fair trial is important, it should be up to the decision of each individual country to guarantee it.
