Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Kiel, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references.

Complementarity, the organizing principle of the International Criminal Court (ICC), is a largely untested concept in terms of its ability to instigate State compliance with the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. The ICC made its debut at a time when States were routinely accused of non-compliance with international law, particularly international criminal law. Due to perennial concerns over the protection of State sovereignty, an ingenious system of allocation of competencies between States and the ICC was evolved. This is embodied by the principle of complementarity. At the heart of complementarity is an arrangement by which States Parties to the Rome Statute of the ICC are regarded as the prime fora for the prosecution of crimes of grave concern to the international community. In the event of inaction, however, the ICC is mandated to wrest specific cases from the jurisdiction of national courts and try them. In effect, a carrot-and-stick mechanism has been built into the Rome Statute to induce States to comply with the Statute. This thesis examines the principle of complementarity from a theoretical perspective, bearing in mind contemporary international law structures and institutions. A better understanding of the theoretical assumptions of complementarity, it is suggested, will foster a more effective application of the tenets of the Rome Statute within the municipal system. The thesis argues that complementarity is a catalyst for implementation of the Rome Statute only to the extent to which it alters or re-defines well established and encumbering procedures and norms within the municipal system. In this regard, although South Africa’s status of constitutional democracy may be reason to expect that the obligations imposed by the Rome Statute will be observed, that very fact may increase the inclination to preserve the “baseline of conduct” rather than be swayed by the Rome Statute. An illustrative excursion into South African rules and norms is undertaken, after which the argument is advanced that not much change has been effected to the South African legal landscape through implementation of the Rome Statute. The sole exception to this is the issue of prosecutorial discretion. On this, the South African legislature has uniquely crafted a mechanism for ensuring accountability, presumably with a view to ensuring that South Africa is always able to prosecute the crimes concerned. However, the thesis cautions against complacency, arguing that the tension between national law and international obligations may yet play itself out, owing to insufficient attention to the role of national courts in giving effect to the Rome Statute. The act of implementation may be a response to stimuli such as the perceived need to avoid civil liability for international crimes, or the general inertia of implementing human rights instruments. Therefore, the carrot-and-stick mechanism may be lacking in the compulsive qualities it is presumed to have. Through an exploratory survey of South African law, the thesis illustrates that prosecutorial accountability is the major factor in determining whether a State has fully complied with is obligations under the Rome Statute. However, it also points out that the way courts of law apply the new norms in municipal systems in the future will be crucial.

Magister Legum / In the aftermath of World War Two, the International Community has shown a renewed commitment towards the protection of human rights. However, whether during wars or under dictatorial regimes, numerous human rights abuses occurred everywhere in the world, from Latin America to Eastern Europe and from Southern Europe to Africa. Countries which experienced oppressive governance or outrageous atrocities has to address the legacies of their past on the return of democratic rule or peace. In other words, they had to emerge from the darkness of dictatorship or civil war in order to establish a democracy. Today, after 14 years of civil war, Liberia is faced with the challenge of achieving a successful transition where the imperatives of truth, justice and reconciliation need to be met. The purpose of this research paper was to make some recommendations on the way the accountability process in Liberia should be shaped as far as prosecution is concerned. / South Africa

Magister Legum - LLM / This research paper will focus on these controversial issues and their significance for the International Criminal Court (ICC) in dealing with the situation in Darfur/Sudan. Furthermore, another related issue that was addressed by the Commission will be analysed, namely which exact degree of mens rea is required for the special intent to destroy one of the protected groups. / South Africa

Approved for public release, distribution is unlimited / Initially, many Rwandans placed their hopes in the well-funded International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) but it has been plagued by inefficiencies and delays. Although the Rwandan national courts have tried a significantly larger number of cases than the ICTR, they are also criticized as being too slow. Therefore, the government of Rwanda has proposed using the "Gacaca" traditional courts to accelerate post-genocide justice. The purpose of this thesis is to determine whether, and under what conditions, the Gacaca courts can be an effective mechanism of justice and national reconciliation. / Captain, Rwanda Army

This dissertation in four essays critically examines the emergence of international criminal courts: their international political underpinnings, context, and the impact of their political production in relation to liberal legalism, liberal political theory, and history. The essays conceive of international criminal legal bodies both as political projects at their inception and as institutions that deny their own political provenance. The work is primarily one of political theory at the intersection of history, international relations, international criminal law, and the politics of memory. The first essay questions Nuremberg's legacy on the United States' exceptionalist view of international law and its deviant practice, while the second essay explores the relationship between exploding inequality and the triumph of the human rights movement as well as the costs of international prosecutions to the detriment of transformative politics. The third essay explores the relationship between history and international criminal courts, as well as the limits of their engagement, while the fourth examines the idea of legalism - rule following as a moral ethos - in the context of real political trials.

Univ., Diss.--Tilburg, 2005. / Literaturverz. S. 499 - 519.

Univ., Diss.--Regensburg, 2004. / Literaturverz. S. [339] - 370.

This thesis seeks to answer the principal question as to whether international criminal justice systems can serve as adequate truth-ascertaining forums. In doing so, it reviews the practice of three international criminal justice systems: the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) and the International Criminal Court (ICC). It is not the purpose of this research to review the black letter law adopted and applied by these international tribunals and court, but rather to review the implementation of the legal principles in practice. It is a socio-legal research project which focuses on the practice of the tribunals and court. It discusses socio-legal, institutional and political issues relating to the ascertainment of the truth in international criminal justice. In addition, it examines the gaps between the theory and practice of ascertaining the truth in the ICTY, ICTR and ICC. It does so principally by exploring the roles of the parties, participants and judges in ascertaining the truth. This includes the obstacles they face in doing so and the responses given, if any, to accommodate these difficulties. Challenges include the politicised climate of most post-conflict societies, the remoteness of the crime base areas from the seat of the Court, the lack of enforcement mechanisms and reliance on State cooperation, as well as the unfamiliarities with the cultural and linguistic features of the affected communities. This thesis reveals that these difficulties are not the principal cause of truth-searching impediments. Indeed, it is asserted that the ascertainment of the truth can be fair and effective notwithstanding these difficulties. It also demonstrates that truth-ascertaining impediments are mainly caused by failures to adequately investigate the crimes and relevant evidence. At the ICTY, investigations have been carried out in the most efficient and fair manner possible under the circumstances. By contrast, the ICTR and ICC investigations are far from adequate and should be improved. The Prosecution should make more efforts to obtain the best evidence available. It further concludes that international justice systems have set their goals too highly. Instead of seeking to meet objectives such as reconciliation, peace and security, they should restrict their focus to the question as to whether the guilt of a particular accused has been established in respect of the crimes charged.

- Sexual violence on women in armed conflicts - the role of the international criminal courts The main purpose of the thesis is to analyse the role of international criminal courts notably the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. It will analyse the process of the development of the international individual criminal responsibility of the perpetrators of sexual violence on women in the course of war. Sexual violence on women played an almost integral part of every armed conflict since the beginning of warfare. Despite this fact, the topic of sexual violence on women has been, until recently, generally ignored by politicians, historians and lawyers. The relevant treaties of the international humanitarian law also either ommited or trivialized rape and other crimes of a sexual nature. Not until the worst atrocities were committed in the armed conflict in the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda at the beginning of the nineties was the sexual violence recognized as a serious crime which causes great suffering to victims, both physically and mentoly, and has to be properly investigated and prosecuted. In respect of the fact, that sexual violence has, in the last decades, become a particularly effective weapon of war rather than a random...