A/HRC/14/26 charges, including genocide and murder, for war crimes allegedly committed during the 1992–1995 Bosnian conflict. 89. The trial of Zdravko Tolimir, a former high-ranking official of the Bosnian Serb Army (VRS), started on 26 February 2010. He is the last accused in ICTY custody to be put on trial. Mr. Tolimir is charged with genocide, conspiracy to commit genocide, crimes against humanity and violations of the laws or customs of war committed between July and November 1995 against Bosnian Muslims in Srebrenica and Žepa. During the period relevant to the indictment, Mr. Tolimir was the Assistant Commander for Intelligence and Security of the Main Staff of the VRS. In this position, Zdravko Tolimir was one of seven Assistant Commanders who reported directly to the Commander of the Main Staff of the VRS, Ratko Mladić. C. International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda 90. The court has issued a number of convictions in the cases of Lieutenant Colonel Ephrem Setako who was head of the division of legal affairs in the Ministry of Defence in 1994; Emmanuel Rukondo, former Military Captain in the Rwandan Armed Forces; Callixte Kalimanzila, former Directeur de Cabinet of the Ministry of the Interior; and Michael Baragaza, former Director General of the office controlling the Rwandan tea industry. The accused have been convicted for crimes ranging from genocide, crimes against humanity and serious violations of Article 3 common to the Geneva Conventions and Additional Protocol II (murder). On 7 July the Security Council extended the term of office of the six permanent judges of the Court until 31 December 2010 or until the completion of the cases assigned to them. V. Conclusions and recommendations A. Conclusions 91. The Special Rapporteur would like to stress the need for magistrates, judges, prosecutors, public defenders and lawyers throughout the world to receive, in addition to legal training, continuing education in international and regional human rights standards and systems. 92. In a democratic State, the judiciary should be a partner with the other branches of Government, working together to vindicate human rights and provide justice. The courts alone cannot provide effective justice and remedies. In some countries, judges might enhance their ability to tackle deep patterns of human rights violations that persist year after year in their States. For this purpose, continuing education in international human rights law and continuous updating on its development is essential. 93. The principle of separation of powers is the basis on which the judicial independence and the impartiality of judges is founded. This principle must be respected by all States. Member States should give priority to strengthening their judicial systems, guaranteeing their full independence as institutions as well as the independence and impartiality of their magistrates and judges. An independent judiciary is fundamental for the respect of the rule of law and the development of democracy. It is also fundamental to combating corruption, to guaranteeing equal access to justice, to providing effective justice and remedies to citizens, to countering patterns or contexts of abuse and to guaranteeing health, labour rights and nondiscrimination. GE.10-12622 19

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