Report of the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on the independence of judges and lawyers, August 31, 2005, released October 10, 2005 [assailing the independence of the Iraqi Special Tribunal and saying that US and UK anti-terror policies undermine human rights standards]. Excerpt:

At the time of writing (August 2005), the Special Rapporteur is concerned about the judicial proceedings taking place before the Iraqi Special Tribunal. Despite the commitment and personal efforts of the judges and the cooperation provided by several countries in setting up the Tribunal, he is concerned that the pressure weighing on the judges and the prevailing insecurity in Iraq may undermine its independence. Moreover, the Tribunal itself has certain deficiencies, some of which can be traced back to the manner in which it was set up and, in particular, to the restriction of its jurisdiction to specific people and a specific time frame; i.e., the Tribunal may only try Iraqi citizens for acts committed prior to 1 May 2003, when the occupation began. The Tribunal’s power to impose the death penalty demonstrates the extent to which it contravenes international human rights standards. Because it was established during an occupation and was financed primarily by the United States, its legitimacy has been widely questioned, with the result that its credibility has been tarnished.

Read the full text of the report [PDF]. Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here.