Judge Emile Francis Short (Ghana) was sworn in as an ad litem Judge on 23 March 2004 in a ceremony administered by the President of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, Judge Erik Møse. The ceremony was witnessed by the Deputy Registrar of the Tribunal, Mr. Lovemore Munlo, on behalf of the Registrar, Mr. Adama Dieng, representing the UN Secretary-General. The ceremony took place in the presence of the other judges of the Tribunal, the Prosecutor Mr. Hassan Bubacar Jallow, and ICTR staff.

Judge Short (61) was until his appointment Chairperson of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice in Ghana for more than ten years. He was previously head of a law firm in Ghana for about 20 years, and is a Barrister-At-Law, Lincoln’s Inn, and London (UK).

Judge Short holds a Masters Degree in Law (LLM) from the London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London. He has lectured on law in England and in Ghana, and has published extensively. Following a request from the ICTR President, the Secretary-General appointed the new ad litem judge to sit in the trial of The Prosecutor v. Mika Muhimana, which is scheduled to start on Monday 29 March 2004. The commencement of this trial brings the number of accused whose trials are being heard to 21. So far, the Tribunal has delivered judgements involving 21 accused, of whom 18 have been convicted and three acquitted.