Significant Developments in International Law - Essay Example

The origins of the international criminal court derive from the end of World War I. Cassese (2008) states that the purpose of the court was to charge and then attempt to prosecute individuals such as prominent politicians, who allegedly committed heinous crimes against humanity. Article 27 of the Versailles Peace Treaty was based on the German Emperor, Kaiser Wilhelm II, who suggested that an international tribunal was established to try him for breaking many international treaties during his reign. From an international conference on military trials held in London, the Nuremberg Charter was formed. This charter gave power to the courts to prosecute certain individuals for crimes against humanity.

In regards to the events that transpired in Tokyo, it was the Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers in Japan, Gen. MacArthur, who approved an executive order that allowed the Tokyo Charter to establish the jurisdiction of the IMT for the Far East, where individuals were also tried for war crimes. Cassese (2008) argues that these tribunals were set up for the sole purpose of cementing victors’ position above their defeated enemy. The reason why he criticizes these courts is that they were largely made up of judges and prosecutors from one country or culture and did not include independent officials.

The United Nations first attempted to establish an international criminal tribunal in 1947 with help from the International Law Commission (ILC). However, the UN did not successfully implement this court until 1998. Due to a lack of political action, the 1953b draft Statute of an International Criminal Court was put to one side shelved. After the end of the court war, international criminal justice was suddenly at the forefront of many organizations' minds. In some countries, the civil conflict resulted in the establishment of two ad hoc criminal tribunals. The UN Security Council, through Resolution 827, set up the ICTY in 1993. Also, the UN, through Resolution 955, established the ICTR in 1994. Both of these resolutions had statutes of the tribunal appended to them. This allowed the courts to try individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes.

Although political pressure has put these UN courts under severe political pressure, there have been some instances of successful prosecutions against individuals who committed the above crimes; this has done much to advance international criminal justice. The Rwandan tribunal was able to prosecute and find guilty many people who were responsible for genocide in the country. 

Besides Rwanda, the UN Security Council has been involved with courts in countries such as Sierra Leona, Cambodia, and East Timor. In each instance, a dual court has been established through treaties between the UN and local governments.

In the 1990s, international criminal justice grew of importance in countries where conflicts were common. At the 1998 Rome conference, the Statute for the International Criminal Court was adopted. As of now, this statute has been ratified by more than 100 states. As a result, the court has issued indictments in the cases of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, and Sudan. 

A final court to be discussed is the Iraqi Special Tribunal which, although it is an Iraqi Court, the statute for which was drafted by international lawyers and there is international participation in the trials. The former dictator of Iraq, Saddam Hussein, was convicted and executed for crimes against humanity.    

All of these courts have in common that they try the most responsible for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. The jurisprudence developed by these courts assists in clarifying the elements of these various crimes and the evidence needed to convict those responsible. They are also developing a code of international criminal procedure which borrows elements from both the civilian and common law systems. An innovation with the ICC will be the more extensive involvement of the victims in the process.