"March to Justice: Global Military Law Landmarks" launched worldwide [Watch Video]

March to Justice: Global Military Law Landmarks, a book of short essays and commentaries by jurists, judges and academics on landmark military law judgments, was launched at a virtual event on Friday..The book has been edited by advocate Navdeep Singh and Judge Franklin D Rosenblatt.Singh is an advocate at the Punjab & Haryana High Court and also the founder President of the Armed Forces Tribunal Bar Association at Chandigarh. He is very actively involved in issues relating to soldiers’ rights and tribunalisation.Singh is also a former Major and has been a national service volunteer-reservist with the Territorial Army in the past. He has voluntarily served in counter-insurgency and operational areas during the vacation period of the High Court.Rosenblatt is a Judge at the Military Court of Appeals, Mississippi and the former Judge Advocate, US Army.He teaches law at Mississippi College of Law in Jackson, USA where his scholarship focuses on criminal lawThe launch was organised by publisher BlueOne Ink in collaboration with Bar & Bench, and Beyond Law. It was followed by a panel discussion and question & answer session on “Global Trends in Military Justice”. The discussion was moderated by Justice Rajive Bhalla, former Judge of the Punjab & Haryana High Court, and Major General Neeraj Bali, currently the Founder-CEO of LeadScape. .The panel comprised of Judge Jeff Blackett, Judge Advocate-General and Deputy High Court Judge in the UK; Jan Peter Spijk, former Judge at the Netherlands Military Chamber Court of Appeals and former President of the International Society for Military Law and the Law of War; Rory Fowler, formerly of the Canadian Forces and now into private practice; Pascal Levesque, former Canadian Forces member now working on parliamentary ethics; and professor Amos Guiora of the SJ Quinney College of Law at the University of Utah.The panel and editors were introduced by advocate Vikas Chatrath..The event began with a tribute and a minute of silence to honour the 12 lives lost in the recent Indian Air Force helicopter crash near Coonoor..Justice Bhalla described the book as being long overdue in the military law space. The editors described how the book came into being, with the two meeting at Yale Law School and the idea of the book coming from Singh.On the question by Justice Bhalla on how rights are to be balanced in a battle zone, Singh pointed out that looking for the right intention and the action being in line of duty was key. "Only a good justice system can lead to good conclusions. Fairness would lead to better morale and discipline ... We cannot divorce justice from discipline. Better justice will lead to more discipline," he said..Justice Bhalla then asked if the EU convention on human rights applies for all member States and whether it cane be considered the most progressive system. To this Jan Peter Spijk said, "All members adhere to the treaty. Legal standards may vary but all have to adhere, and they do mostly. Generally, as a rule, all these nations adhere. On conviction in a regular basis, it happens even if it takes a while. Every country has a different military-legal system in EU but within treaty ... every nation can implement a military-legal system for it.".Judge Blackett spoke about the need to look at subjective and objective fairness. "Court martial system pre-Finlay was arguably fair but it was not objectively fair at least, which depends on independence. That order created huge disturbance for the military. Military likes to control everything in their sphere of influence. They find it difficult if anything against chain of command. But the Finlay judgment is landmark," he said.He also stated that now that the juries in military cases comprise experts and civilians, the arrangement can align with the civilian system and is delivering better justice and discipline.Rory Fowler pointed out that if the military finds any civil code unwieldy, they will resort to methods which are less difficult to challenge in civil law..Maj Gen Bali asked, "What are the most important lessons on independence that need to be taught to military judges and others?"Professor Amos said, "It is for military to decide the judicial fate of soldier as per rules. Independence of military key." He said he is a firm believer that sexual assault offences should be outside of military trial in the US.Judge Blackett said that judges have to be ready to be ravaged by the press, and that one deals with it by remaining quiet and letting the government protect them. "The single biggest catalyst for reforms in military law is the use of appeals by the accused," Fowler said..On the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, Singh first mentioned that there are 2 chapters on the act in the book. "Contrary to popular perception, protection under AFSPA is not absolute. Only within the law if action is in good faith and in the line of duty. Unforgivable to maim people with criminal intention, no protection in those circumstances in the Act. The Army is clear that human rights have to be respected, aberrations are condemned."He added that oversight is required and even Constitutional Courts play a role in this..The last question was possible advice to officers of the Judge Advocate-General (JAG) Department."Don't be personally involved in your files. Don't treat litigant like enemy, help court arrive at justice. There should be no over smartness," Singh said.Rosenblatt said that JAG officers should not only think about promotions but maintain ties to civic life and forums."JAGs ought to be wedded to the rule of law. Ignore external and internal noise," Professor Amos said."My advice would be try to develop independent thinking even if the junior officer in room," opined Jan Spijk.Pascal Levesque said the best court-martial case is one that never materialised because a JAG officer helped ensure it did not come to that.Justice Bhalla called for greater interaction by JAG officers with civilian colleagues. "Don't sit in the cocoon of cantonments. See the real world."Maj Gen Bali advised that their role ought to be to instinctively know that they have to aid justice, not just the prosecution."If you're the only voice of reason in room, if challenging commanders, you have to find the right way to do it. Aggressive may not always be right approach, have to master craft. Because if you're wrong, they won't forget it. Master the craft by selecting apt mentors. Other resources are available to assist," Fowler said..In closing, Rosenblatt quipped in ligher vein that he needs everyone's help as the editors are trying to outsell Harry Potter..Watch the full launch video and discussion:.Follow our Twitter thread covering the updates from the launch: