ASIA-PACIFIC MOOT COURT NATIONAL ROUNDS

2019

MOOT PROBLEM

PROSECUTOR V. COLONEL XANDER RIVIA

BEFORE THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT AT THE HAGUE

Contents
Instructions.......................................................................................................................... 1
Indicative Authorities and Research Material.................................................................... 2
Statement of Agreed Facts ................................................................................................. 3
Charges ................................................................................................................................ 9
Annex I: Map of Temeria and Lyria ...................................................................................10
Annex II: List of Treaties ....................................................................................................11

Instructions

1. Proceedings: The hearing takes place in the jurisdiction of the International Criminal
Court (‘ICC’) at the “confirmation of charges” stage pursuant to Article 61 of the 1998
Rome Statute of the ICC (‘Rome Statute’). At this stage, the Prosecutor must “support
each charge with sufficient evidence to establish substantial grounds to believe that the
person committed the crime charged.” The Accused may “object to the charges” and
“challenge the evidence presented by the Prosecutor”.
2. Facts and evidence: The case is entirely fictional. The Statement of Agreed Facts
includes all the facts supported by evidence that have been transmitted to the Defence,
as well as facts and evidence presented by the Defence. Teams should confine
themselves to the facts supplied. Neither the Prosecutor nor the Defence may introduce
new evidence or facts at the hearing (Article 61(6)(c) of the Rome Statute is not
applicable). Teams may nonetheless draw reasonable inferences from the facts. They
may also question the credibility or weight of the evidence.
3. Procedure: The problem is not intended to raise questions of procedure other than the
rights of the accused pursuant to Articles 66 and 67 of the Rome Statute. Any other
procedural questions should be ignored.
4. Jurisdiction and admissibility: Counsel may, if relevant, address issues of conflict
classification or gravity. Any other issues of jurisdiction and admissibility should be
ignored.
5. Applicable law: In accordance with Article 21 of the Rome Statute:
1. The Court shall apply:
(a) In the first place, this Statute, Elements of Crimes and its Rules of Procedure and
Evidence;
(b) In the second place, where appropriate, applicable treaties and the principles and
rules of international law, including the established principles of the international law
of armed conflict;
(c) Failing that, general principles of law derived by the Court from national laws of legal
systems of the world including, as appropriate, the national laws of States that would
normally exercise jurisdiction over the crime, provided that those principles are not
inconsistent with this Statute and with international law and internationally recognized
norms and standards.
2. The Court may apply principles and rules of law as interpreted in its previous
decisions.
6. Teams are encouraged to look at the case law of international and national courts. If
teams rely on decisions of national courts, these should be leading decisions and teams
should expect to be asked for copies of the head note and the portion of the transcript or
judgment referred to in their argument.

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7. Participation to treaties: at all material times, the treaties listed at Annex II were in force
for Temeria and Lyria.

Indicative Authorities and Research Material

International Criminal Court
a) Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (1998):
http://legal.un.org/icc/statute/english/rome_statute(e).pdf
b) Elements of Crimes under the Rome Statute: https://www.icc-
cpi.int/nr/rdonlyres/336923d8-a6ad-40ec-ad7b-
45bf9de73d56/0/elementsofcrimeseng.pdf

Basic IHL Documents

a) IHL Treaties: https://ihl-databases.icrc.org/ihl
b) Customary IHL: https://ihl-databases.icrc.org/customary-ihl/
c) ICRC Commentaries to the Geneva Conventions and its Additional Protocols: https://ihl-
databases.icrc.org/applic/ihl/ihl.nsf/vwTreaties1949.xsp

Cases
a) International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia:
http://www.icty.org/en/cases/judgement-list
b) International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda cases: http://unictr.unmict.org/en/cases
c) International Criminal Court: https://www.icc-cpi.int/cases
d) International Court of Justice: https://www.icj-cij.org/en/decisions

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 Statement of Agreed Facts

1. Prior to 1981, the territory known as Greater Temeria was administered by the colonial
power Redania. Following a century long struggle for independence by the peoples of
Greater Temeria, Redania withdrew from the region, partitioning Greater Temeria into two
States: the Republic of Temeria and the Republic of Lyria.

2. Temeria has an area of 923,763 km² and a population of around 84 million. The majority
of Temerians are ethnically Temeri, the predominant group in the region. Around 11 million
Temerians are ethnically Rennish, mainly concentrated in the north of the country near the
border with Lyria. Most Rennish follow the Ren religion. Orthodox adherents follow strict
dietary restrictions and do not marry outside the faith. Rennish people have historically
been subject to persecution in the region.

3. The Republic of Lyria has an area of 475,442 km² and a population of 29 million. Lyria’s
access to the sea is a narrow land corridor running between the Skellig mountain range on
one side and the border with Temeria on the other. Lyria is the only State in the region with
a majority Rennish population.

4. The Rennish Liberation Front (RLF) is a movement with proponents across the former
Greater Temeria, who were highly active in the struggle for independence prior to 1981.
The armed wing of the movement disbanded following independence. Red Geralt, the son
of the former leader of the RLF, sits as a member of the Lyrian parliament. Red Geralt’s
party, the Rennish Freedom Party is a partner in the current ruling coalition.

5. Tensions over the border between Temeria and Lyria have existed since the partition,
especially centred around the eastern border. Lyria claims that the original partition
agreement signed with Redania assigned the historic city of Velen to the Lyrian side of the
border, while Temeria claims the opposite is true. This original agreement was destroyed
in an explosion caused by anti-partition demonstrators. The city of Velen has a population
of 150,000, 60% of whom identify as Rennish.

6. Since independence, Rennish Temerians have faced discrimination, preventing their

employment in the Temerian public service and restricting their access to public education
and health care. They are unable to take out bank loans without a Temeri guarantor and
are often accused of association with criminal organisations by the mainstream press.

7. On 2 November 2007, a young man drove a truck into a crowd gathered to celebrate
Temerian Independence Day in the capital of Novigrad. Armed also with a semi-automatic
weapon, the man killed or injured 52 people before he was fatally shot by Temerian Police
officer, Captain Elsa Letha. Among the casualties was the Foreign Minister. Footage of the
attacker wearing the colours of the RLF (white stars on a blue background) was shown in
the global press.

2010 Election
8. In 2010, Elsa Letha was elected President of Temeria on her platform of protectionism and
border security. From 2010 to 2011 President Letha’s government began dramatically
increasing the cost of visas for foreign workers, a measure which disproportionately
affected the two million Lyrians working in Temeria. In 2011, Temeria increased border
security and restricted visas for Rennish people, making it difficult for ethnically Rennish

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 Temerians to depart the country. On 3 July 2011, the Letha Government introduced
mandatory registration of Rennish people. Rennish heritage was recorded on all new birth
certificates and Rennish people were required to report to their local police station to submit
their details to a registry.

9. Hobby drones began anonymously dropping “Freedom Fighters” manuals in Rennish

communities in Temeria, particularly in the city of Velen. Frequent clashes between
demonstrators and police outside so-called “registry stations” resulted in several live-
streamed fatalities. An alleged agent of the Lyrian intelligence service was arrested by
Temerian police in November 2011, after he was apprehended driving a truck loaded full
of “Freedom Fighters” and other publications, as well as a trunk of small arms and
ammunition.

10. On 2 January 2012 Temeria began building a wall on the Temerian side of the border with
Lyria, in the north-eastern region. Lyria issued a statement declaring the construction to be
an act of aggression by Temeria.

11. In the early hours of 27 April 2012, construction of the wall was halted by artillery fire from
the direction of Velen, on the Temerian side of the border. The barricade was damaged
and 59 people were killed. The casualties were mainly members of the Temerian Armed
Forces (TAF) and the Temerian Police Force, who were sleeping in barracks near the
construction site. The RLF claimed responsibility for the attack. Reuters and the Temerian
Times reported that the shell casings identified the weapons systems used as the same
system used by the armed forces of a number of States in the region, including the Lyrian
Defence Force (LDF).

12. Over the course of the next week the RLF clashed with the Temerian police in north-eastern
border towns. Casualties from the violence between protesters, the RLF and law
enforcement climbed to the hundreds. In the following months, frequent raids on the
construction and supplies destined for the wall were carried out by armed men and women
bearing blue armbands emblazoned with white stars. On 4 May 2012, the RLF attacked
the TAF barracks on the fringe of the city of Velen, surprising the TAF with heavy weapons
and forcing the TAF and Temerian Police Force to withdraw from the region. The RLF
developed a system of seniority, denoted by the number and arrangement of white stars
displayed on a member’s armbands. Recruitment of new members was highly successful,
particularly in northern towns with registry stations. By 2 July 2012, an area ranging over
150km from the border with Lyria and incorporating the city of Velen was declared by the
RLF to be a “liberated zone”.

13. On 30 July, a member of the Temerian cabinet leaked footage of the apprehended Lyrian
intelligence agent, in which the man was seen in prison uniform, claiming that Lyrian MP
Red Geralt was a member of the leadership of the RLF and was also using the Central
Bank of Lyria to fund the RLF. Members of the Rennish Freedom Party made private
donations of medical supplies for a field hospital in the “liberated zone”.

14. Amongst the weapons captured by the TAF during clashes with the RLF were rifles that
were the same model as those issued in the LDF. Serial numbers had been erased on all
the seized firearms. Photos of the rifles featured in a series of articles in the Temerian
Times reporting that the RLF was supplying its operations in Velen from a headquarters
based in the Skellig mountains on Lyrian territory. The Lyrian Government strongly denied

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 any link with the RLF and further claimed it was not aware of any RLF operations on its
territory.

15. On 2 November 2012, Red Geralt resigned from the Lyrian parliament. On 12 December,
he released a YouTube video calling for an end to the Letha Government’s tyranny and
identifying himself as the new political leader of the RLF.

16. Al Jazeera and Reuters ran articles with accounts of RLF training camps conducted by the
LDF in the Skellig mountains. The Temerian Times reported that members of the LDF were
embedded as advisers in the RLF. Following a clash bordering the “liberated zone”, the
TAF identified the mortal remains of one casualty as a former LDF officer. Lyria issued a
statement claiming that the man held a valid Temerian visa and that the officer had been
de-commissioned from the LDF the previous year.
Siege of Velen
17. By September 2013, the TAF had regained control of nearly half of the “liberated zone”,
and was now able to conduct operations on the southern periphery of the city of Velen.
Velen remained a strong RLF position and the heart of its operations in the “liberated zone”.
Since the initial clashes in and around the city, the city itself had remained relatively free
from violence and a large civilian population remained, composed of both Rennish and
non-Rennish Temerians.

18. Velen is an historic city with two rings of fortified inner and outer walls surrounding it. After
taking over the city, the RLF reinforced the walls in some places. Then, in response to
incursion attempts by the TAF in September 2013, the RLF barricaded most of the gates
along the walls, cutting off all but two entrances to the city. The few TAF operations inside
the walls led to massive TAF casualties, with building to building fighting in terrain well
known to the RLF. High civilian casualties were also reported, caused by the use of
explosive weapons in populated areas and the heavy fire around the two remaining
entrances to the city.

19. In October 2013, the TAF began successfully intercepting the RLF’s supply chain to the
city from the north. Any attempted operations within the city continued to produce severe
casualties for the TAF and also for the civilians in Velen.

20. On 15 October, the TAF area commander, Colonel Rivia, issued directive 66 to all TAF
Units in the Velen area to “take all necessary measures to cut off the RLF’s means of
fighting” and “remember who we’re fighting, the RLF are barbarians, they take no
prisoners”. On 16 October, the TAF dropped 10,000 leaflets over the city and used phone
towers to the south and west of Velen to send text messages to all mobile phones in the
area, informing residents of Velen that a 48-hour evacuation period had begun: evacuation
would be supervised via the two remaining entries and Rennish inhabitants would be
required to present registration papers. The leaflets and text messages also contained a
message to the fighters inside Velen “RLF: surrender now or be prepared to fight to the
bitter end”. Approximately 30,000 residents of Velen evacuated the city before the
expiration of the 48-hour period. 2,000 of the evacuees were Rennish.

21. On 19 October, TAF Unit 50 used artillery fire to seal one of the two remaining exits.
Several other TAF units patrolled the wall perimeter and were stationed at a distance from
the remaining exit to the Eastern Quarter of Velen, enforcing a blanket no-entry or exit

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 policy. After several attempts by RLF members to go over the wall by night, a “shoot on
sight” policy was initiated by the TAF for anyone seen on the wall.

22. By November, there were reports of starvation within the city. On 2 December, due to
damaged infrastructure from the use of explosives in previous operations, part of the water
mains and sewage system between the Southern and Eastern Quarters of the city
collapsed. There were reports of cholera outbreaks over the next months.

23. On 25 December, the TAF supervised the evacuation of several thousand civilians from
the city. The mortal remains of over 1500 civilians were also evacuated. The evacuation
was marred by exchanges of fire between TAF and RLF members as the RLF members
were attempting to enter the city dressed as humanitarian workers and carrying relief
supplies for their comrades.

Convoy incident
24. By January 2014, international pressure on the government of Temeria to permit the
delivery of humanitarian assistance to Velen was mounting. The General Assembly passed
a resolution condemning the humanitarian crisis in the city and several States unilaterally
imposed arms embargoes and economic sanctions.

25. By this point, the siege had taken a serious toll on the operations of the RLF. The RLF had
lost control of a significant portion of Velen and TAF units were now stationed precariously
within sections of the city. These TAF Units operated with relative autonomy given
communication difficulties and the rapidly changing front line. The RLF retained a
stronghold in the large Eastern Quarter, where a large number of civilians also remained
trapped without supplies.

26. Images of severely malnourished children in Velen consistently featured in the international
media and anti-Letha Government sentiment was gaining traction in Novigrad. Protesters
burning blue flags emblazoned with white stars clashed in the capital with “Feed the
Children” vigils.

27. On 3 February 2014, President Letha announced that the International Committee of the
Red Cross (ICRC) had the agreement of all parties, including the Temerian government,
to enter Velen on 5 February to provide the first distribution of food and medical supplies
to the Eastern quarter of the city. Red Geralt made a broadcast on his YouTube channel
on 4 February 2014 in which he recognised the “fundamental right of the civilians in Velen
to independent, impartial and neutral humanitarian assistance” and welcomed the
assistance of the ICRC in Velen. Red Geralt expressed his wish to be present to distribute
the aid to the besieged civilians personally. The government of Lyria issued a statement in
which it declared that it “unreservedly supports the right of all people to humanitarian
assistance and considers the obstruction of humanitarian assistance to be contrary to
international law.”

28. On 4 February, the TAF received intelligence that Red Geralt may have crossed the border
from Lyria into Temeria. Colonel Rivia issued an order to all TAF Units in and around Velen
to “fire at will” if they had eyes on Red Geralt.

29. At 06.00 on 5 February, a convoy of eight land cruisers passed through the TAF Command
Centre directing TAF operations in and around the city of Velen. Carrying primarily food

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 items, water filters and some basic medical supplies, the convoy was driven by ICRC
delegates, accompanied by several doctors and nurses from the Temerian Red Cross
Society. The delegates confirmed the expected delivery time in Velen was shortly after
07.00. The Red Cross emblem was displayed prominently on the bonnets and sides of the
vehicles and all personnel wore vests displaying the same emblem on their chests and
backs.

30. At 06.45, the convoy radioed back to the Command Centre as they entered the city of
Velen, informing Colonel Rivia that the convoy was entering the outer fortified wall via the
eastern gate as planned. As the convoy penetrated further into the Quarter, radio contact
was lost.

31. The convoy passed an RLF checkpoint without incident. Reaching a flooded section of
road, the convoy attempted to continue by fording the filthy water. The lead two vehicles
became heavily bogged in the water up to the window line. The convoy successfully
extracted personnel from the vehicles but were unable to pull the mired land cruisers from
the water using tow lines attached to other vehicles. The bonnets of the two towing vehicles
were sprayed with thick mud and oil slick in the process. Given the dire situation of the
civilians in the Eastern Quarter, the decision was made to attempt delivery via an
alternative route. An attempt was made to radio the TAF Command Centre. The TAF
signals operator informed Colonel Rivia of the attempted communication from the convoy,
reporting the only clear word “water”.

32. At 06.50, TAF Unit 52, holding a temporary checkpoint in the Southern Quarter, was
successfully ram-raided by a small truck. One unit member suffered minor injuries.
Lieutenant Metz of Unit 52 contacted the Command Centre, reporting that armed RLF
members were seen in the vehicle as it forced its way through the checkpoint and that Unit
52 was now on high alert for further attacks.

33. TAF Unit 45 was positioned in the absolute perimeter of the Eastern Quarter, at some
distance from the nearest RLF-held buildings but with surveillance vision of one of the
expected assistance distribution points. At 07.00, and again at 07.30, Unit 45 contacted
the TAF Command Centre to report that they had not sighted the convoy.

34. At 07.45, Lieutenant Metz of Unit 52 contacted the Command Centre, reporting the
approach of unidentified vehicles in the Southern Quarter of Velen, close to the border of
the Eastern Quarter. Communication was patchy.

COL Rivia: “How many vehicles do you see?”

LT Metz: “Six vehicles. Preparing to engage.”

COL Rivia: “Do you see a cross on the vehicles?”

LT Metz: “We …. front vehicles… camouflaged… mud.”

COL Rivia: “Can you confirm it is the RLF?”

LT Metz: “…. red …. red ...……… RLF. Preparing to fire.”

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35. Unit 52 fired on the convoy, wounding eight humanitarian personnel. The wounded were
taken to a field hospital and later transferred to hospital in Novigrad to recover. One doctor
required amputation of a leg as a result of his injuries. All further assistance to Velen was
delayed and the international community strongly condemned the incident.

36. On 23 February 2014, Colonel Rivia withdrew Unit 52 from Velen as a disciplinary measure
and posted it to the north-western border region, outside the former “liberated zone”.
End of hostilities
37. On 1 March 2014, a cease fire agreement was signed between President Letha and Red
Geralt on behalf of the RLF. Humanitarian assistance was finally able to reach the civilian
population in Velen.

38. Large protests and sporadic violence continued, mainly in the former “liberated zone”,
reaching a low with the 2016 peace negotiations. As a key component of these peace
negotiations, Colonel Rivia was delivered into the custody of the International Criminal
Court on 15 July 2016.

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 Charges
Colonel Xander Rivia is charged with:
Count 1
With respect to the cutting off of supplies to the population of the city of Velen,
on the basis of individual criminal responsibility for ordering the commission of (Article
25(3)(b) of the Rome Statute):
- The war crime of intentionally launching an attack in the knowledge that such
attack will cause incidental loss of life or injury to civilians or damage to civilian
objects or widespread, long-term and severe damage to the natural environment
which would be clearly excessive in relation to the concrete and direct overall
military advantage anticipated under Article 8(2)(b)(iv) of the Rome Statute;
Count 2
With respect to the 5 February 2014 attack by Unit 52 on the ICRC convoy,
on the basis of command responsibility (Article 28(a) of the Rome Statute):
- The war crime of intentionally directing attacks against personnel, installations,
material, units or vehicles involved in a humanitarian assistance or peacekeeping
mission in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, as long as they are
entitled to the protection given to civilians or civilian objects under the international
law of armed conflict under Article 8(2)(b)(iii) of the Rome Statute;
Count 3
With respect to directive 66 issued on 15 October 2013,
on the basis of individual criminal responsibility for commission of (Article 25(3)(a) of the
Rome Statute):
- The war crime of declaring that no quarter will be given under Article 8(2)(b)(xii)
of the Rome Statute.

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 Annex I: Map of Temeria and Lyria

Kaer Morhen

REPUBLIC OF Skellig Mountains

LYRIA

“Liberated
Zone” The wall

Velen

REPUBLIC OF
TEMERIA

Temer Sea
Novigrad

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 Annex II: List of Treaties
State Party Republic of Temeria Republic of Lyria
Treaty
Geneva Convention (I) on
Wounded and Sick in
Armed Forces in the Field,
1949

Geneva Convention (II) on

Wounded, Sick and
Shipwrecked of Armed
Forces at Sea, 1949

Geneva Convention (III) on

Prisoners of War, 1949

Geneva Convention (IV) on

Civilians, 1949

Additional Protocol (I) to the

Geneva Conventions, 1977

Additional Protocol (II) to

the Geneva Conventions,
1977

Additional Protocol (III) to

the Geneva Conventions,
2005

Statute of the International

Criminal Court, 1998

Amendment to the Rome

Statute of the International
Criminal Court on the
Crime of Aggression,
articles 8bis, 15bis and
15ter, 11 June 2010

Convention Prohibiting
Certain Conventional
Weapons, Protocol II, 1980

Montreux Document on
Private Military and
Security Companies, 2011

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