Capacity-Building for Defence Council in East Timor's Hybrid Tribunal.

My paper examines the failure of UN transitional missions to develop the capacity of East Timor's defence counsel during its hybrid court Serious Crimes Process from 2000 to 2005. In keeping with changes in UN peace-keeping operations policy, UN Transitional Authority in East Timor and its successor missions were given a responsibility to develop the capacity of judicial institutions in East Timor. One of the rationales behind the move from fully international courts to mixed domestic/international criminal courts is that involvement of local lawyers and judges will help develop their professional abilities as they learn from their more experienced international counterparts. While it had a level of success in developing prosecutorial capacity and the skills of judges, the UN failed completely in relation to defence counsel. My paper examines the nature of this failure. I argue that the failure to develop defence capacity is due to an omission to provide adequate personnel and the alienation of local lawyers from the defence process. Furthermore, I argue that the prioritization of the short-term political goals of transitional justice which emphasise a prosecution-driven speedy series of trials and where fairness is a secondary concern has taken precedence over a more long-term approach which would emphasise the need to use the trials to demonstrate how high standard fair trials operate and to develop the professional abilities of local lawyers. My paper will conclude by suggesting how the UN should alter its approach if their commitment on paper to capacity-building in hybrid courts is to be realised ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]