Afterward, denied deserved judicial promotions under the Qarase regime. In fact, her previous bids for a top job with the ICC were thwarted by previous regimes. She was one of two Judges nominated by FLP to High Court in 1999; the other was Justice Tony Gates, later the Chief Justice
* As Director of Public Prosecutions, she was thwarted by Rabuka's overtly racist government from pursuing the crooks who robbed the NBF of over $400 million of taxpayers money
*She was obstructed during the trial of some of the NBF fraudsters.
*State prosecutors were daily maligned, abused, and on one occasion detained in custody for alleged contempt of court. In one absurd case the accused, who was a Cabinet Minister and a high chief, had been permitted to sit at the bar table instead of the dock.
* His counsel, in the course of the preliminary inquiry abused the prosecutor on the basis of his skin color. He was an Australian and
the Deputy DPP.
* The Fijian magistrate reprimanded the prosecutor for insulting Fijian culture when he (the prosecutor) led evidence that the accused had received large sums of money “for his people” in exchange for fishing licenses.
* When the prosecutor tried to present his side of the story, he was detained in the police cell for “contempt of court”, raising the question: when does a cultural gift become a corruptly received gift?
*We might recall that the DPP Shameem had to appear to secure his release and to request the magistrate to disqualify himself. He refused to do so. Shameem moved the High Court to order him to disqualify himself. The High Court did so order, but the defence appealed that decision to the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court. So much delay ensued, that the trial of the Minister never proceeded.
7 March 2022
The Hague, The Netherlands | Seat of the International Criminal Court
By NAZHAT SHAMEEM
Your Honours, their Excellencies members of the Bureau of the Assembly of State Parties, the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, colleagues.
In the traditional greeting of Fiji, bula vinaka.
Today is a day of great importance not just for me, but also for the people of Fiji, and of the Pacific region. For the last 8 years, I have served as Permanent Representative of Fiji to the United Nations in Geneva, and as Fiji’s Ambassador to Switzerland. The focus of the Mission of Fiji has been human rights, and strengthening multilateralism for small island states and for the Pacific region, in Geneva. In the UN Human Rights Council, at which I was honoured to serve as President in 2021, I participated in conversations which stressed the need for building a global community based on the values of human dignity, respect, equality, and accountability for human rights violations. I believe that despite the differing views amongst countries on the role and focus of the Council, there has always been a shared determination to ensure the relevance of the Council. If we do not strengthen multilateral institutions, and dialogue based on respect for humanity, then our future generations will judge us harshly.
I am proud today, to take the position of a Deputy Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, because I believe that the same values underpin this Court. The belief in accountability through a code of international criminal law, the emphasis on complementarity which seeks to strengthen national judicial institutions thereby ensuring the eradication of gaps created by national laws and practices in relation to crimes against humanity, and the amalgamation of different legal systems in the practice of criminal law here at the ICC, in my view, represent the strengths of multilateralism, of the values we all hold dear, and our determination that those responsible for the worst crimes against humanity, should be held to account for them.
I have served previously, in my own country, as a prosecutor and as a judge. But I have never embarked on such an important journey, as I embark on today. I look forward to working with the teams at the Office of the Prosecutor, with my colleague and fellow Deputy Prosecutor, Judge Mandiaye Niang, and under the leadership of the Chief Prosecutor, Mr Karim A. A. Khan QC. I am honoured to serve as a member of such a strong and experienced team, and I undertake to serve the Office of the Prosecutor at the International Criminal Court with diligence and integrity.
I commit to treating all those I work with, with equality, respect and dignity. I thank my family, especially my parents, my children, Siffat and Khizer Hayaat Khan, my husband Aslam Khan, who is here today, the CDA of the Geneva Mission of Fiji, Mr Anare Leweniqila, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Fiji, and the community of Pacific sland countries all of whom share with me, the honour of today’s ceremony.
Thank you, vinaka vakalevu.
The Hague, The Netherlands | Seat of the International Criminal Court
By NAZHAT SHAMEEM
Your Honours, their Excellencies members of the Bureau of the Assembly of State Parties, the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, colleagues.
In the traditional greeting of Fiji, bula vinaka.
Today is a day of great importance not just for me, but also for the people of Fiji, and of the Pacific region. For the last 8 years, I have served as Permanent Representative of Fiji to the United Nations in Geneva, and as Fiji’s Ambassador to Switzerland. The focus of the Mission of Fiji has been human rights, and strengthening multilateralism for small island states and for the Pacific region, in Geneva. In the UN Human Rights Council, at which I was honoured to serve as President in 2021, I participated in conversations which stressed the need for building a global community based on the values of human dignity, respect, equality, and accountability for human rights violations. I believe that despite the differing views amongst countries on the role and focus of the Council, there has always been a shared determination to ensure the relevance of the Council. If we do not strengthen multilateral institutions, and dialogue based on respect for humanity, then our future generations will judge us harshly.
I am proud today, to take the position of a Deputy Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, because I believe that the same values underpin this Court. The belief in accountability through a code of international criminal law, the emphasis on complementarity which seeks to strengthen national judicial institutions thereby ensuring the eradication of gaps created by national laws and practices in relation to crimes against humanity, and the amalgamation of different legal systems in the practice of criminal law here at the ICC, in my view, represent the strengths of multilateralism, of the values we all hold dear, and our determination that those responsible for the worst crimes against humanity, should be held to account for them.
I have served previously, in my own country, as a prosecutor and as a judge. But I have never embarked on such an important journey, as I embark on today. I look forward to working with the teams at the Office of the Prosecutor, with my colleague and fellow Deputy Prosecutor, Judge Mandiaye Niang, and under the leadership of the Chief Prosecutor, Mr Karim A. A. Khan QC. I am honoured to serve as a member of such a strong and experienced team, and I undertake to serve the Office of the Prosecutor at the International Criminal Court with diligence and integrity.
I commit to treating all those I work with, with equality, respect and dignity. I thank my family, especially my parents, my children, Siffat and Khizer Hayaat Khan, my husband Aslam Khan, who is here today, the CDA of the Geneva Mission of Fiji, Mr Anare Leweniqila, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Fiji, and the community of Pacific sland countries all of whom share with me, the honour of today’s ceremony.
Thank you, vinaka vakalevu.
The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Fiji, Professor Shaista Shameem says International Women’s Day is usually a day when we tell everyone just how little the situation of women has improved over the past 12 months, decade, century or millennium.
Shameem says every year on this date, we sadly report on how many CEOs are not women, how many parliamentarians are not females, how many women and girls around the world do not have food or water or basic amenities, how many women still suffer from poverty, lack of education and employment, and how many of them continue to suffer from abuse, violence in the home and in society, trafficking, homelessness, and the sheer drudgery of everyday life where nothing seems to improve and there is nothing to look forward to but the same sad situation repeated endlessly like a broken record.
She says all of these still remains the same and is probably worse in 2022 due to the ill-effects of COVID-19 and the economic downturn caused by the pandemic in Fiji and the world.
While speaking at the University’s International Women's Day Celebrations today, Shameem urged everyone at the University of Fiji to think long and hard about just how many things are not happening for women and girls despite our move into the third decade of the 21st century.
She says this year, they thought to do things a little different as their administration team, with ideas coming from all over the University, decided to mark International Women’s Day as a festival where they focused on a photo exhibition, a documentary film festival about women and International Women’s Day and book launches by women. Source: FijiVillage News, 7 March 2022
Shameem says every year on this date, we sadly report on how many CEOs are not women, how many parliamentarians are not females, how many women and girls around the world do not have food or water or basic amenities, how many women still suffer from poverty, lack of education and employment, and how many of them continue to suffer from abuse, violence in the home and in society, trafficking, homelessness, and the sheer drudgery of everyday life where nothing seems to improve and there is nothing to look forward to but the same sad situation repeated endlessly like a broken record.
She says all of these still remains the same and is probably worse in 2022 due to the ill-effects of COVID-19 and the economic downturn caused by the pandemic in Fiji and the world.
While speaking at the University’s International Women's Day Celebrations today, Shameem urged everyone at the University of Fiji to think long and hard about just how many things are not happening for women and girls despite our move into the third decade of the 21st century.
She says this year, they thought to do things a little different as their administration team, with ideas coming from all over the University, decided to mark International Women’s Day as a festival where they focused on a photo exhibition, a documentary film festival about women and International Women’s Day and book launches by women. Source: FijiVillage News, 7 March 2022
