Blood group frequencies of the population of Trinidad and Tobago, West Indies.

The results of grouping tests performed on blood samples collected over a five-year period at the Trinidad and Tobago Forensic Science Centre are presented. The samples were tested using the ABO, PGM, EAP and GLO blood group systems. Phenotypic frequencies and allele frequencies for each system were calculated for the two major ethnic groups of the population, the African and East Indian. Matching probabilities, which can be used in the interpretation of physical evidence in forensic cases, were also calculated.     

HLA DQ alpha typing of forensic specimens by amplification restriction fragment polymorphism (ARFP) analysis.

The alleles present at the HLA DQ alpha locus may be typed by either allele specific oligonucleotide (ASO) probing or by restriction mapping, referred to here as amplification restriction fragment polymorphism (ARFP) analysis. ASO typing relies upon hybridization principles, whereas ARFP typing relies upon restriction site analysis. Dot-blot ASO typings which are of doubtful interpretation may be directly checked by ARFP analysis. Aliquots of the PCR products amplified using the commercial Amplitype HLA DQ alpha system are digested with suitable restriction endonucleases. Electrophoresis, blotting and detection of biotin-labelled restriction fragments provides a sensitive and robust typing method suited to forensic analysis.     

Amnesties in International Law: The Experience of the Special Court for Sierra Leone

The Special Court for Sierra Leone, a hybrid criminal tribunalestablished to try persons accused of serious crimes duringthe conflict in Sierra Leone, has recently commenced its judicialoperations. Several of the preliminary issues raised by variousdefendants have required the Court to examine the validity ofthe amnesty granted to combatants by the Lomé Peace Agreementand the amnesty's impact upon the Court's jurisdiction to trythe defendants. This article examines the decisions of the Courton the amnesty issue and evaluates the jurisprudence of theCourt with reference to the current status of amnesties in internationallaw.     

Britannia waived the rules: The Major government and the 1994 Rwandan genocide

Ten years after the 1994 Rwandan genocide occurred, seriousquestions remain about the circumstances of the British government'sresponse. This article critically evaluates the response ofJohn Major's government to the genocide. It does so in fourstages. The first section provides a brief overview of the Majorgovernment's international agenda in 1994, focusing on Britishpolicy towards the war in Bosnia and the African continent ingeneral. The second section deals with the substance of Britain'sRwanda policy, while the third discusses the ways in which thispolicy has been almost totally omitted from mainstream accountsof this period. The final section provides a critical evaluationof some of the tactics that British officials employed to avertcriticism of their government's policies. Based on the evidencepresented we conclude that the British government displayeda deeply troubling indifference towards the victims of Rwanda'sgenocide.