The Africa Center for International Law and Accountability (ACILA), has named its flagship International Criminal Justice Center after Justice Emile Francis Short.

Mr. Short, who was also Ghana’s first Commissioner at the Commission for Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), served twice as a Judge on the Rwanda Tribunal for a period of five years after his nomination by then Ghana’s President Agyekum Kuffuor.

He was subsequently approved by the United Nations General Assembly where he served as a judge of the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. 

The tribunal is noted to have tried army commanders, former ministers and party stalwarts for their role in the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

The center, to be called The Justice Emile Short Center for International Criminal Justice will conduct research in international criminal justice and advocate for victims of war crimes. It will also provide education on international criminal justice.

Executive Director of ACILA, an International law and research think tank, William Nyarko in a statement  is overwhelmed by Mr. Short’s contribution to ensuring justice for genocide victims where an estimated 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus died.

According to him, this achievement informed the decision to name the center after him.

Mr. Short in a statement said he is hopeful the center will play a critical role in providing greater understanding and appreciation of the work of the International Criminal Court, especially the role that Africa can and should play in promoting international criminal justice. 

Mr. Short who recounted some of his experiences on the UN Tribunal saying it was both a challenge and an opportunity to assist in securing justice for victims of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. The world witnessed the unprecedented killing of Tutsis and moderate Hutus in 1994.

The Emile Short Center, to be situated in Accra, Ghana, the home country of Mr. Short will also have a public library.