The purpose of this thesis is to determine the meaning of the necessary prerequisite attack in the international core crime crimes against humanity. Based on this, the thesis also aims to determine how a Swedish court should interpret the necessary prerequisite attack. Lastly, the thesis aims to assess the necessary prerequisite attack from an external gender perspective. Cases from the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, and the International Criminal Court were analysed to fulfill this purpose. Two methods are applied: the doctrinal study and the gender perspective. Three incidents from the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine have been used to exemplify and discuss some of the theoretical aspects of this thesis. These are the extensive sexual violence against women, the mass executions of men in Bucha, and the forced deportation and illegal adoptions of Ukrainian children. The thesis shows that the necessary prerequisite attack consists of several elements, which all have to be present for the necessary prerequisite to be considered fulfilled. There must be an attack, the attack must be widespread or systematic, the attack must be directed against a civilian population and the perpetrator’s acts must constitute part of an attack that they are aware of and knowingly participates in. An attack no longer needs to occur within the context of an armed conflict or with discriminatory intent, except for the specific act of persecution. An element that appears required for a course of events to constitute an attack is that of a policy, though there is a lack of consensus on this matter. The international views of the necessary prerequisite attack differs, especially regarding the policy element, and the next question that has to be answered is therefore how a Swedish court should interpret the necessary prerequisite attack. Which case law or legal sources should they use, and why? The thesis argues that the Swedish International Crimes Act should be used first, and the Swedish preparatory work has clear indications to follow the International Criminal Courts case law. This means that it is likely that a Swedish court would apply the policy element. The thesis ends with an analysis of the necessary prerequisite attack and acts of sexual violence from a gender perspective. The thesis shows that there has been a positive development in the last 30 years in how acts of sexual violence are viewed and handled within the field of international criminal law.

This thesis strives to provide a new way of implementing the principle known as Responsibility to Protect (R2P). When traditionally associated with armed forces, this thesis will present the principle from a new angle, and in doing so illustrate its untapped potential as a tool for combating human suffering. The aim of this study is to normatively argue for R2P to also be applicable in a situation where water scarcity leads to such severe suffering that a state’s unwillingness or inability to manage the crisis puts people in a situation of despair equivalent with Crimes Against Humanity. The argumentation builds on a deductive inference where documents from the UN and the ICC lay the foundation for the premises. The study concludes that there exist circumstances where R2P could be invoked in the context of water scarcity, but advocates only the non-violent measures of the principle as responses.

Although international human rights declarations exist, violations of human rights are still sad but also common facts around the world. But for repressive regimes, it becomes more and more difficult to hide committed human rights violations, since society entered the "Information Revolution." This study argues that the volume of international information exchanged influences a country's human rights record. A pooled cross sectional time series regression model with a lagged endogenous variable and a standard robust error technique is used to test several hypotheses. The findings of this study indicate that the flow of information can be related to a country's human rights index. The study also suggests that more empirical work on this topic will be necessary.

Crimes against humanity have become a global concern, garnering widespread media coverage over the past decade. Boko Haram's actions pose a threat to both domestic and international security, with frequent attacks on civilians, churches, security forces, and even international organizations like the United Nations. The group's impact is felt across all 36 states of Nigeria, impacting the country's socio-political and economic development. The absence of agreement on whether non-state actors can be held responsible for crimes against humanity in the same way as states, can create a potential risk of serious crimes going unpunished. As non-state actors are increasingly gaining influence and have the capacity to plan and execute widespread atrocities, it is crucial to address this issue. This research project aims to investigate whether there is an Organizational Policy behind Boko Haram’s atrocities and how it can be categorized as committing crimes against humanity under Article 7(2)(a) of the Rome Statute.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität, Bremen, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [353]-356) and index.

Magister Legum - LLM (Criminal Justice and Procedure) / Enforced disappearances are a heinous violation of numerous human rights enshrined in many international conventions. However, they have not been adequately addressed in many jurisdictions. This crime is very common within countries on the continent of Africa, which despite having plenty of conflicts, under report cases of enforced disappearances. This research paper investigates the transitional justice mechanisms implemented in Uganda to deal with the phenomenon of enforced disappearances. It analyses the mechanisms implemented by the Government of Uganda and those by Non- Governmental Organisations. The paper examines also how the phenomenon of enforced disappearances has been dealt with in other countries such as Morocco, Kenya and South Africa. The paper suggests several recommendations to Uganda after having made a comparison with the selected countries on how to deal with the crime of enforced disappearances.

This thesis takes its starting point from the need for a comprehensive approach towards justice following atrocities, and where not only the states in which the crimes were committed have a role to play. The thesis discusses atrocity crime (genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes) prosecution and reparations procedures concerning individuals as two appropriate courses of action, through which non-territorial states may contribute to atrocity prevention and justice for the victims of atrocities. The analysis addresses whether, under international law, non-territorial states are allowed to, required to, or prohibited from facilitating prosecution and reparations procedures and includes an assessment of the extent to which international law relating to reparations fails to correspond to that applicable to prosecution. The implications of the lack of correspondence are analysed in light of the historical connection and separation of the two courses of action, the procedural and substantive legal overlaps between prosecution and reparations, and the underlying aims and functions of prosecution and reparations. The study covers a wide spectrum of international legal sources, most of them to be found in human rights law, humanitarian law and international criminal law. The study shows that while non-territorial states are included in both conventional and customary law as regards prosecution of atrocity crimes, the same cannot be said in relation to reparations procedures. This serious deficit and inconsistency in international law, is explained by the framing of reparations, but not prosecution, as a matter concerning victims and human rights, thereby leaving the enforcement of the rules to the discretion of each state. Reparation is also considered a private matter and as such falls outside the scope of the far-reaching obligations regarding prosecution. The study suggests taking further the responsibilities of non-territorial states in relation to atrocity crimes. Most urgently, measures should be considered that bring the legal space for reparations procedures into line with that for prosecution in, for instance, future discussions by human rights treaty-monitoring bodies and in the drafting of new international victims' rights, atrocity crimes or civil procedure instruments.

This thesis analyses the crime of trafficking in persons under international law with a special focus on Jordanian legislation, arguing that efforts to address the crime of trafficking in persons require a holistic approach, but it will focus on questions of jurisdiction and legal definitions. After analysing the definitions, elements, forms, and typologies of the crime of trafficking in persons under the Trafficking in Persons Protocol (TIPP) as the main legal international instrument, this thesis further examines whether or not Jordanian legislation is in line with international standards. Then, under the holistic approach to addressing the crime of trafficking in persons, this thesis examines trafficking in persons as a transnational organised crime. Subsequently, it examines trafficking in persons as a crime against humanity by examining whether or not the International Criminal Court (ICC) might be regarded as an effective organ for addressing trafficking in persons as a crime against humanity. Later, the thesis examines the efforts made in Jordan to address the crime of trafficking in persons. Accordingly, this thesis concludes that trafficking in persons is a multi-dimensional problem and that long-term success will not be achieved by taking a disjunctive approach to addressing its many facets. Therefore, achieving a unified approach will lead to a permanent solution or will at least make a major contribution to addressing the problem.

Denna studie undersöker hur minnen av folkmord och brott mot mänskligheten artikuleras, förvaltas och kommer till uttryck. Traumatiska erfarenheter av folkmord och brott mot mänskligheten gör avtryck på en människas minne och minnena traderas och ärvs över generationsgränser. Omfattande studier har gjorts om berättande, folkmord och minne, där flertalet fokuserar på efterdyningarna av Förintelsen och effekterna för överlevande såväl som deras barn. Detta har lämnat ett kunskapsglapp kring minnesprocesser från folkmord och brott mot mänskligheten utanför Europa, vilket osynliggör de som har sådana erfarenheter. Med intervju som metod undersöker denna studie egna och ärva minnen från skilda geografiska och historiska skeenden. Berättelser om minnen från dessa händelser analyseras med hjälp av tidigare minnesforskning samt narrativanalys. Materialet visar på att smärtsamma minnen ärvs tillsammans med strategier för att förvalta dem, att de positioneras i relation till gängse historiografi och binds till andras minnen, samt att minnen kommer till uttryck genom minnesbärarnas identitetsprocesser och vägval. Genom att undersöka detta hoppas författaren ge bredare kunskap om minnesprocesser kring folkmord och brott mot mänskligheten, synliggöra dess förekomst i Sverige samt dess inverkan på människors livsvillkor.

Since the aftermath of the brutal civil war in Somaliland, no one has systematically considered the human rights atrocities committed by one of the most brutal regimes in sub-Saharan Africa. Therefore, it is the objective of this study, firstly, to throw light on the international rules which govern those crimes committed in Somaliland during the military regime. Secondly, the study will apply those rules to the case of Somaliland, based on the available evidence. Thirdly, the study will establish a case for the international prosecution of those who bear the greatest responsibilities for the human rights atrocities that occurred in Somaliland. Fourthly, this study will investigate which international mechanism provides the best chance of serving as an adequate prosecutorial mechanism. Finally, the study will analyse the role of individual criminal responsibility under international criminal law / Thesis (LLM (Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa)) -- University of Pretoria, 2008. / A Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Law University of Pretoria, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Masters of Law (LLM in Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa). Prepared under the supervision of Prof. Frans Viljoen of the Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria / http://www.chr.up.ac.za/ / Centre for Human Rights / LLM