On May 21st 2010, during Citizens for Global Solutions’ annual meeting, long-time member Edward Rawson was honored with the first recipient of an annual named in his honor, the “Edward Rawson Global Citizen Award.” The boards of directors created this award “to honor the lifetime of energy, the outstanding service and the financial support that Edward Rawson has contributed to Citizens for Global Solutions and its predecessor organizations, the World Federalist Association and the Campaign for U.N. Reform.” This award shall each year “recognize an individual who has made an outstanding lifetime contribution to the mission and vision of Citizens for Global Solutions: An individual who has committed his or her life to education and advocacy for a world in which nations work together to abolish war, protect our rights and freedoms, and solve the problems facing humanity that no nation can solve alone.”

Ed has been involved since the organization’s beginning, attending the founding of World Federalists in Asheville, North Carolina, 1947. In his acceptence speech, he recalled his role in the founding conference and remarked if he had been told then he would be the first recipient of the award, “I would never have believed it.” Ed then stated, “I am today privileged to accept this award on behalf of thousands who have labored with me since the founding of our movement for a peaceful and just world governed by law.”

Ed was not only an integral member of the organization, serving on the board of directors for many years, but has truly acted as a global citizen. He has been a staunch advocate of international engagement to achieve peace and the protection of human rights during his tenure at USAID, Department of State, and through various philanthropies. Additionally, Ed established the Edward Rawson Fellowship, which “provides recent college and university graduates the opportunity to obtain hands-on experience working on global issues with one of the country’s leading educational and advocacy organizations.”

In his acceptance speech, Ed discussed what it means to be a global citizen, noting “As we gradually realize we are world citizens, we also become aware that this citizenship should be responsible for certain global solutions.” Addressing the rapid changes in world he has experienced throughout his life he observed, “We live in an irrevocably, integrated, internet world with problems which no nation can solve alone. Our challenge is finding the right system or structure for solving such global problems, as pandemic diseases, terrorism, nuclear proliferation, global pollution and worldwide economic collapses. As centuries go by, our planet has become more unified.” While he notes that these are not easy problems to solve, he remains optimistic, stating, “It’s clear that our core beliefs are accepted by mainstream thinkers now. So our task is to push the boundaries of what is possible and step by step create the world that we envision.”

Don Kraus, CEO of Citizens for Global Solutions, commented “I’m thrilled that Ed is the first recipient of the Edward Rawson Global Citizen Award. His actions have represented the core values of the organization, and for that we are extremely grateful. The award will carry on Ed’s legacy as a global citizen and continue to remind Citizens for Global Solutions of his contributions and vision.”

Watch Ed's speech:

Last night I had the pleasure of participation in a presentation at the Council on Foreign Relations given by Luis Moreno-Ocampo, the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court.  As conveyors’ of the Washington Working Group on the ICC we had helped him set up a few meetings on the Hill.  Our Program Coordinator, Abby Long helped out tremendously in this effort. 

My friend Mark Goldberg at the UN Dispatch wrote an excellent piece on Ocampo’s key points.

I want to emphasize two points that Mark mentioned and one that he didn’t:

First, the true relevance of the Court is its global impact. Ocampo said that:

“Even before any ruling in the Lubanga case, the issue of child recruitment gained new momentum, triggered debates in remote countries like Colombia or Sri Lanka and child soldiers were released in Nepal. The Special representative of the UN Secretary-General on children in armed conflicts immediately factored in such potential and used us as a tool to campaign around the world, and secure even more releases.” This is an example of how the Court can help to prevent crimes.  While the ICC will only deal with a few cases, its “shadow” extends far beyond them and the 110 nations that are Parties to the Rome Statute.

Second, political leaders sought by the ICC, such as Sudanese President Al-Bashir, are increasingly being shunned by other leaders and nations.  According to Ocampo:

“President Al Bashir became a fugitive; he cannot travel to States Parties of the Statute. He looks for political protection in the African Union and in his party, the NCP. South Africa informed President Bashir that he was invited to the inauguration ceremony of President Zuma, but that he would be arrested upon entry into the country. Uganda, Nigeria and Venezuela did the same. President Lula from Brazil and President Kirchner from Argentina refused to approach President Bashir in an Arab-South America summit. President Sarkozy has taken the unprecedented decision to cancel a French-African summit rather than run the risk of meeting with him in a corridor. Turkey has ensured that he cancels his appearance to a meeting of the Organization of the Islamic Conference in Ankara. In the Guinea case, Morocco refused to keep on its territory President Dadis Camara. It did not want to harbor a possible ICC suspect. Burkina Faso’s President Blaise Compaore contacted the ICC to ascertain there was no arrest warrant before accepting to host Dadis Camara.”

Finally, during the question and answer session, Ocampo was asked a few questions regarding immunity for national leaders, particularly in terms of negotiating peace agreement.  His response was quite clear.  His job as a prosecutor is to uphold the law. National leaders can no longer act with impunity and hide behind their national sovereignty.  It’s about time.

If you like to find out more about the crimes committed by world’s worst criminals that are being tried by or wanted by the ICC, check out our new flash tool.

Don Kraus