Assembly/AU/ 14 (XI) Page 13 57. The concept of universal jurisdiction is premised on functionality, especially in view of the decentralised nature of the international legal system. Universal jurisdiction enables a farreaching enforcement and protection of international norms and standards and it also ensures that individuals are not beyond the reach of law and enforcement. It is inherent in the nature of the concept that the sovereignty of States will be implicated by the exercise of jurisdiction by one State over the acts of another, and as such there is a wide scope for abuse of the concept. A leading commentator and international criminal law expert advocates that, “Unbridled universal jurisdiction can cause disruptions in world order and deprivation of individual human rights when used in a politically motivated manner or for vexatious purposes. Even with the best of intentions, universal jurisdiction can be used imprudently, creating unnecessary frictions between States, potential abuses of legal processes, and undue harassment of individuals prosecuted or pursued for prosecution under this theory. Universal jurisdiction must therefore be utilized in a cautious manner that minimizes possible negative consequences, while at the same time enabling it to achieve its useful purposes.” lxxxix 58. This Part of the Report considers whether and to what extent the concept of universal jurisdiction has been abused by some non-African States. Appropriate recommendations shall consequently be made to the Executive Council with regards to possible redress by Member States in cases of abuse of universal jurisdiction in international law. With regards to State practice on this score, Belgium and Spain have been in the forefront of assertion of universal jurisdiction and as such the jurisprudence of the Belgian and Spanish courts will form the core of this part of the Report. BELGIUM 59. In 1993 Belgium enacted the Law Relative to the Repression of Serious Violations of the International Conventions of Geneva of 1949, and of the Protocols I and II of 1977. This Law permitted individuals, irrespective of their nationality, to file a criminal complaint in a Belgian court against any person for international crimes in violation of the Geneva Conventions and their additional Protocols, even when the acts were perpetrated outside Belgium by non-Belgian nationals against non-Belgians, and outside of Belgium. This law empowered an investigative magistrate to issue an international arrest warrant against the alleged offender. The Law was later renamed the Law Relative to Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law in 1999 and was extended to include acts of genocide and crimes against humanity. 60. By this legislation, Belgium arrogated to itself universal jurisdiction over persons accused of violations of international humanitarian law irrespective of any jurisdictional link it would otherwise have required. xc Article 7 of the Belgian Law 1993 provided that Belgian courts shall have jurisdiction in respect of the offences contained in the Law wherever the offences may have been committed. Under this Law, many cases were brought against the Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, the then- Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, Mauritanian President Maaouya ould Sid’Ahmed Taya, Laurent Gbagbo of Ivory Coast, Paul Kagame of Rwanda, Fidel Castro of Cuba, Ange-Felix Patassé of Central African Republic, Denis Sassou Nguesso of Republic of Congo, Yassir Arafat of the Palestinian Authority, Former President Hissène Habré of Chad, former President Augusto Pinochet of Chile, former President Hashemi Rafsanjani of Iran and former Minister of the Interior Driss Basri of Morocco. xci