The smallest armies

The Pontifical Swiss Guards (Latin: Cohors Helvetica Pontificia) [Swiss Guards] has its origins on January 22, 1506 when 150 Swiss Guards entered for the first time the Vatican where they were blessed by Pope Julius III. The Swiss Guards are responsible for the safety of the Pope, including the security of the Apostolic Palace. They serve as the de facto military force of the Vatican and are one of the oldest active military units in existence. In December 2014, Pope Francis dismissed the Commander of the Swiss Guard, Colonel Daniel Rudolf Anrig, allegedly because of the latter's “excessively strict military discipline.” [Dismissal of the Commander]

The Swiss Guards serve as the de facto military force of the Vatican. They are the smallest military force in the world, with 110 soldiers vice la Compagnie des Carabiniers du Prince de Monaco [Monaco] which numbers 119 officers and men.

More on yesterday's Supreme Court of Pakistan hearing

While far more attention has been paid to the numerous constitutional challenges to the recent 21st Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan, the Supreme Court also has before it long-dormant challenges to the 18th Amendment. Here is an extract from a Nation article on the Court's April 16 hearing that sheds light on that aspect of the current cases (and the sad note on which the hearing concluded):

Later, the court heard petitions against the 18th Amendment. The court was informed Akram Sheikh, counsel for the SHCBA [Sindh High Court Bar Association], is on general adjournment. Ikram Chaudhry, representing the Justice Party, sought time, saying yesterday (Wednesday) a young man in the family was murdered therefore he could not prepare his case. He said that he is still interested in pressing his petition. 

Justice Jawwad [S. Khawaja] said the basic question in all the petitions is almost the same, adding the judgment on the 18th Amendment would be a precedent, therefore all the parties should give importance to this case. 

Barrister Zafarullah Khan, appearing on behalf of the Wattan Party, said that 104 amendments were made in 60 articles of the Constitution through 18th Amendment and nine months were spent to prepare it, while millions of rupees were spent. He said that on 30-9-2010 an interim order was passed on the 18th Amendment and now after five years the apex court again took up this case. 

He said the Supreme Court passed judgment on Article 175A and through the 19th Amendment strengthened its position as there are now six judges, including Chief Justice of Pakistan. Justice Nasir [-ul-Mulk], Justice Khawaja and Justice [Mian] Saqib [Nisar] inquired from him whether he was challenging the 19th Amendment or the order of January 26, 2011. Barrister Zafarullah failed to respond to the court’s query. 

As the Full Court was hearing the arguments of Zafarullah one of the SC staff informed the chief justice that Justice Ijaz Ahmed Chaudhry’s wife had suffered heart attack. The chief justice therefore adjourned the hearing till April 22. Later, it was reported in the media that Justice Ijaz’ wife had expired.

"Scarcely passes the laugh test"

It is rare that a United States Court of Appeals concludes that a government argument "scarcely passes the laugh test." But that is what the Third Circuit wrote (p. 19) in a recent unanimous decision rejecting an imaginative albeit desperate government theory seeking to demonstrate that a general court-martial sentence that dealt en bloc with a number of separate offenses could be subdivided into notional separate sentences, one of which would have been long enough to merit deportation of a non-citizen who was a U.S. Army veteran. Click here for Chavez-Alvarez v. Attorney General of the United States, No. 14-1630 (3d Cir., Apr. 16, 2015). Query: will the Defense Department now change the Manual for Courts-Martial to require courts-martial to allocate sentences among the various offenses of which the accused is convicted?

Military justice adjustments proposed in Australia

New military justice legislation has been introduced in Australia. Click here for a link to the Defense Legislation (Enhancement of Military Justice) Bill 2015. The website summarizes the measure as follows:

Amends the: 

Defence Force Discipline Act 1982 to clarify the character and status of service convictions for Commonwealth purposes; remove provisions in respect of the trial of offences under the law prior to the Act; create services offences of ‘assault occasioning actual bodily harm’ and ‘unauthorised use of a Commonwealth credit card’; clarify the elements of the service offence of ‘commanding or ordering a service offence to be committed’; replace the power to issue recognisance release orders with a system of fixing non-parole periods; replace dollar amounts as maximum fines with a penalty units system; and make technical amendments;   

Defence Act 1903 and Defence Force Discipline Act 1982 to recognise the office of the Director of Defence Counsel Services; and  

Military Justice (Interim Measures) Act (No. 1) 2009 to extend the appointment, remuneration and entitlement arrangements of the current Chief Judge Advocate and the full-time Judge Advocate.

Thanks for barrister Commander Chris Griggs, RNZN (Ret) for the reference. 

XXth ISMLLW Congress in Prague, Day 3

Prof. Dr. Terry D. Gill

Today is Day 3 of the International Society for Military Law and the Law of War's XXth Congress, the overall theme of which is "Current International Crises and the Rule of Law." Among the day's presenters were Colonel Eli Bar-On, Deputy Military Advocate General, Israel Defence Force; Prof. Dr. Terry D. Gill, University of Amsterdam & Netherlands Defence Academy; and Colonel Pierre Desiré Mviena, President, Douala Military Tribunal, Cameroon.

Col. Pierre Desiré Mviena

Col. Eli Bar-On