Crime in Australia: International Connections Australian Institute of Criminology International Conference
|
|
- Diane McCormick
- 8 years ago
- Views:
Transcription
1 Crime in Australia: International Connections Australian Institute of Criminology International Conference Hilton on the Park, Melbourne, Australia November 2004 CONFERENCE PAPER: TRANSNATIONAL ORGANISED CRIME AND THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT Towards Global Criminal Justice Dr Andreas Schloenhardt The University of Queensland
2 Transnational Organised Crime and the International Criminal Court -- Towards Global Criminal Justice # DR ANDREAS SCHLOENHARDT * Speaking Notes, Crime in Australia: International Connections, Australian Institute of Criminology Conference, Melbourne, November 2004 In the prospect of an international criminal court lies the promise of universal justice. That is the simple and soaring hope of this vision. We are close to its realization. We will do our part to see it through till the end. We ask you [ ] to do yours in our struggle to ensure that no ruler, no State, no junta and no army anywhere can abuse human rights with impunity. Only then will the innocents of distant wars and conflicts know that they, too, may sleep under the cover of justice; that they, too, have rights, and that those who violate those rights will be punished Introduction On 1 July 2002, the International Criminal Court (ICC) came into existence, marking the end of over fifty years of elaborations to create a permanent global court to prosecute particularly heinous crimes of international significance. The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court 2 now has 139 Signatories with further countries expected to accede. 3 The creation of the ICC is a milestone towards building a global criminal justice system. Like no other institution, it has the ability to bring to justice those accused of the most serious of criminal offences who will no longer be able to escape prosecution by hiding behind national legal obstacles which prevent their trial. # * This paper was first presented (in an extended version) at the Liu Institute for Global Studies, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada, 5 November The full text of this study will be published in volume 24, no 1 of the University of Queensland Law Journal. Lecturer, The University of Queensland T C Beirne School of Law, Brisbane Qld 4172, Australia, andreas.schloenhardt@adelaide.edu.au. UN Secretary General Mr Kofi Annan at the UN Conference of Plenipotentiaries on the Establishment of an International Criminal Court, 15 June-17 July 1998, Rome, Italy. Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, 2187 UNTS 3, 37 ILM 999 (1998), UN Doc A/CONF.183/9 (17 July 1998) [hereinafter ICC Statute]. As on 20 August 2004;
3 2 Unfortunately the great majority of transnational organised crimes is outside the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court. Attempts to include crimes such as trafficking in drugs into the ICC Statute were met by great opposition so that the final text of the ICC Statute restricts the Court s jurisdiction only to three-and-a-half crimes, art 5: genocide, art 6; crimes against humanity, art 7; war crimes, art 9; and the yet to be defined and finalised crime of aggression. Despite the strict limitation of the ICC s jurisdiction, the creation of the Court has generated the idea, and perhaps the ambition, to strengthen the universal criminalisation of transnational organised crimes by allowing their prosecution through an international authority, especially in instances when national agencies do not have the ability, capacity, or political will to prosecute or extradite alleged offenders. There is some debate in judicial and academic circles whether the existing offences under the ICC Statute may, potentially, encompass some transnational organised crimes and whether the Statute should be expanded to include crimes that have been recognised in international treaties. This debate, and its evolution, are the topic of this presentation. Background: existing law The current system of international criminal law conventions leaves too many loopholes for criminals, it allows for too many concessions which can be made by Signatories, and it has in many instances failed to bring the principal organisers of global criminal operations to justice. While the treaties on transnational organised crime, migrant smuggling, trafficking in persons, arms smuggling etc have created a system for Signatories to deal with alleged perpetrators by either prosecuting or extraditing them, 4 and have established a basic framework for mutual legal assistance and judicial cooperation, 5 perhaps the greatest failure of the existing regime is that it leaves enforcement, prosecution, and punishment of the offences to individual nations. The current system has failed to establish mechanisms that ensure that suspected offenders are indeed arrested, properly charged, investigated, prosecuted, and punished fairly and adequately. 6 It is this reliance on national action which creates the greatest obstacle towards effective action against transnational organised crime and which has created so many safe havens for drug producers and traffickers, money launderers and other suspects. This is most convincingly demonstrated in the drug industry which is booming in countries such as Afghanistan and Myanmar, or the money laundering that is occurring in many South Pacific and Caribbean nations. The opportunities offered by globalisation have enabled sophisticated criminal organisations to take advantage of the discrepancies in different legal systems and the non-cooperative attitude expressed by many nations. It is for this reason, that there is a strong argument to centralise powers to investigate, prosecute and punish transnational organised crime in an international agency which complements the activities of national authorities and is activated when those agencies are unable, incapable, or unwilling to intervene. Giving an International Criminal Court See, for example, art 6(9) Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances. See, for example, arts 18, 19, 21 Convention against Transnational Organised Crime; arts 7, 9 Vienna Convention. On the principle aut dedere aut judicare generally see M Cherif Bassiouni & Edward M Wise, Aut Dedere aut Judicare: The Duty to Prosecute of Extradite in International Law (Kluwer, 1995) On extradition for drug trafficking see Faiza Patel, Crime without Frontiers: A Proposal for an International Narcotics Court ( ) 22 NYU Journal Int l Law & Politics 709 at
4 3 jurisdiction over crimes such a narcotrafficking, migrant smuggling, trafficking in persons, arms smuggling, money laundering and the like will mean greater certainty of arresting, prosecuting, and punishing those who engage in these crimes. The ICC would make international law enforcement more efficient and add another layer of criminal justice; it would provide another forum for prosecution in addition to those established at national levels. History The idea of an international criminal court can be traced back to the aftermath of the Word War I and the early days of the League of Nations. These ideas became more substantive after World War II with the conclusion of the Genocide Convention in which in Article 6 suggests that persons charged with the offence of genocide shall be tried either before domestic courts or by such international penal tribunal as may have jurisdiction. To enforce the provisions of the Convention, the UN General Assembly Resolution recommended that the International Law Commission (ILC) prepare a Draft Code of Offences against the Peace and Security of Mankind. 8 A first draft was presented by the ILC in 1951, 9 followed by a second draft in However, the division of the Cold War between the Socialist and Western blocs hindered any further discussion of an international criminal court for the following 36 years. 11 The establishment of the International Criminal Court as it exists today, goes back to an initiative of the year 1989 in which Trinidad and Tobago made a request to the UN General Assembly to explore the possibility of establishing an international court with jurisdiction over drug trafficking offences. 12 By now, the ideological war between Socialist and Western nations had faded and with strong support from Caribbean nations the General Assembly asked the ILC to commence work on an ICC statute. 13 The ILC completed this task in 1994 and submitted a new draft statute to the General Assembly. 14 This development coincides with the break-down of state order and the massive atrocities committed in the conflicts in the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda in the early 1990s, which resulted in the creation of temporary international criminal tribunals. 15 The creation and work UNTS 277 [hereinafter Genocide Convention]. UN General Assembly, Resolution177 (II), UN Doc A/519 (1947). UN, Yearbook of the International Law Commission, vol II, UN Doc A/CN.4/SER.A/1951/Add.1 at 134. UN, Yearbook of the International Law Commission, vol II, UN Doc A/CN.4/SER.A/1954/Add.1 at 149. UN General Assembly, Resolution 36/106, UN Doc A/36/51 (1981). On the drafting process in the ILC see Rosemary Rayfuse, The Draft Code of Crimes against the Peace and Security of Mankind: Eating Disorders at the International Law Commission (1997) 8 Criminal Law Forum 43 at 45-49; and Bejamin B Ferencz, An International Criminal Code and Court: Where they stand and where they re going (1992) 30 Columbian J Transnat l Law 375 at , UN General Assembly, Letter dated 21 Aug 1989 from the Permanent Representative of Trinidad and Tobago to the UN Secretary-General, UN Doc A/44/195 (1989) and UN General Assembly, UN Doc A/44/49 (1989). UN General Assembly, Legal Committee, UN Doc A/C.6/44/SR (1989). See further Section?? below. UN General Assembly, Report of the ILC of its 46 th Session, UN Doc A/49/10 (1994). See further John Crawford, The ILC Adopts a Statute for an International Criminal Court: (1995) 89 American J Int l L 404. UN Security Council, UN Docs S/RES/808 (22 Feb 1993), and S/RES/827 (25 May 1993) [ICTY Statute]; UN Security Council, UN Doc S/RES/955 (8 Nov 1994) [ICTR Statute].
5 4 of the ICTY and ICTR lend significant support to the calls for a permanent international criminal court. 16 After several years of controversial debate, the UN General Assembly decided to convene the Rome Conference on the Establishment of an International Criminal Court in The Conference adopted the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court on 17 July 1998; it entered into force on 1 July The ICC is now fully operative and is based in The Hague, Netherlands. Article 5 ICC Statute now grants the ICC jurisdiction only over aggression, crimes against humanity, genocide, and war crimes. The following parts of this presentation explore the feasibility of expanding the mandate of the International Criminal Court to enable the Court to prosecute some transnational organised crimes. This will be done in two ways: First, I will examine whether the existing jurisdiction of the ICC can be interpreted in a way that covers some transnational crimes. Second, I will discuss whether the ICC mandate should be extended by adding further offences to the Court s jurisdiction. 2. Interpretation of existing crimes: transnational organised crime as crimes against humanity? There is some debate whether some transnational crimes, in particular trafficking in persons, can amount to a crime against humanity within the meaning of art 7 ICC Statute Elements of Crimes against Humanity, art 7 ICC The essence of a crime against humanity is an act (or omission) 18 which constitutes or results in a very serious breach of human rights committed as part of a widespread or systematic practice, article 7(1) ICC Statute. To establish criminal responsibility for a crime against humanity, it needs to be proven that one of the acts specified in art 7(1)(a)-(k) such as, for example, murder, extermination, enslavement etc were committed as part of 1. a widespread or systematic attack, art 7(1), (2)(a); 2. against any civilian population, art 7(1), (2)(a); 3. by a perpetrator; 4. pursuant to a Government policy, or tolerated by the State, art 7 (2)(a); 5. with knowledge of the attack, art 7(1) See further, Kriangsak Kittichaisaree, International Criminal Law (Oxford University Press, 2001) 22-27; William A Schabbas, An Introduction to the International Criminal Court (Cambridge University Press, 2 nd ed 2004) UN General Assembly, Establishment of an International Criminal Court, UN Docs A/RES/160/52, A/52/37 (1997). See generally on the work of the Rome Conference, Roy S Lee, The Rome Conference and Its Contributions to International Law, in Roy S Lee (ed), The International Criminal Court, The Making of the Rome Statute (Kluwer Law, 1999) 1 at Claire de Than & Edwin Shorts, International Criminal Law and Human Rights Law (Thomson, 2003) para
6 5 It is no longer required that the attack is connected with an armed conflict or that the perpetrator acted with a discriminatory motive. 1. widespread or systematic attack The elements of art 7 have been unanimously interpreted as requiring a very high threshold. The crimes to be brought before the ICC must be of extreme gravity, of mass scale and constitute an attack on humanity. Sporadic, isolated, uncoordinated, and random incidents are regarded as insufficient to amount to a widespread or systematic attack. 20 With a view to transnational organised crime, trafficking in persons in particular, this stringent requirement will exclude many, if not most cases from the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court. Many trafficking organisations only operate on small and local scales and their organisation and activities can rarely be regarded as highly orchestrated. However, examples of highly sophisticated trafficking networks which systematically recruit their victims from specific areas, often involving the use of severe violence, rape, kidnappings, and sexual slavery, are plenty. These types of operations will undeniably exceed the high threshold of article 7 and there can be little doubt about the orchestration and coordination of these attacks. 2. victim: any civilian population The attack must be directed not just against a random group of persons or isolated individuals. There is consensus that the victim of a crime against humanity must form a clearly identifiable group, usually but not exclusively of persons who share a religious, national, ethnic, or linguistic or other background. 21 Again, this requirement eliminates most transnational organised crimes, including many instances of trafficking in persons which are driven by financial motives and do not target specific groups. There are, however, multiple instances of trafficking committed by State actors or criminal organisations which are directly targeting groups of victims of specific background, from specific geographical areas, in specific socioeconomic circumstances, or of specific gender. 3. perpetrator A crime under art 7 ICC Statute can be committed by an individual, groups of persons, or an organisation, both in official and unofficial capacities. It is noteworthy that the attack does not have to come from the State or a State organ. With respect to trafficking in persons, it is possible to charge organisers and financiers of the operations, those who recruit and transport Cf the features identified in Darryl Robinson, Defining Crimes against Humanity at the Rome Conference (1999) 93 American Journal of International Law 43 at 45. Antonio Cassese, International Criminal Law (Oxford University Press, 2003) 65-66; Darryl Robinson, Defining Crimes against Humanity at the Rome Conference (1999) 93 American Journal of International Law 43 at 47-48; Claire de Than & Edwin Shorts, International Criminal Law and Human Rights Law (Thomson, 2003) para 5-004, See also ICC Assembly of State Parties, Elements of Crimes, ICC Doc ICC-ASP/1/3 (3-10 Sep 2002) 116, requiring a course of conduct involving the multiple commission of acts. Herman von Hebel & Darryl Robinson, Crimes within the Jurisdiction of the Court, in Roy S Lee (ed), The International Criminal Court, The Making of the Rome Statute (Kluwer Law, 1999) 79 at 95-97; Ryszard Piotrowicz, Preempting the Protocol: Protecting the Victims and Punishing the Perpetrators of People Trafficking in Christine Kreuzer (ed), Frauenhandel Menschenhandel Organisierte Kriminalitaet (Nomos, 2003) 1 at 25.
7 6 persons across borders, and those who harbour them, prostitute, buy or otherwise exploit trafficked persons Government policy or tolerated by a State The question remains whether the criminal act must either be authorised by the State, or must be part of official or unofficial State policy, art 7(2)(a). The case law and literature does not offer a conclusive answer. 23 It would seem, in summary, that those crimes which are actively and severely prosecuted and punished by the State will not be regarded as crimes against humanity under the ICC Statute. But in the case of trafficking persons, there are examples where countries have been reluctant to take action against traffickers, where corrupt officials have cooperated with trafficking organisations, or where governments have encouraged, openly or subtly, the recruitment of foreign sex workers or the sale and kidnapping especially of children and young girls in rural and remote country areas. It would follow, that those instances of trafficking in persons, if committed repeatedly and systematically, can indeed be regarded as crimes against humanity Fault element: knowledge of the attack The mental elements for offences under article 7 require that the specific act was committed intentionally, 25 and that the accused acted with some awareness that his/her acts are part of a widespread or systematic attack against the civilian population. 26 Thus, with a view to trafficking in persons and, perhaps, other forms of transnational organised crime, it has become possible to charge those offenders who intentionally engage in, organise, aid, abet, facilitate or otherwise participate in specific acts such as enslavement and sexual slavery, forced prostitution, rape, or trafficking, being aware that their actions are part of a orchestrated operation Specific Acts In addition to the elements of crimes against humanity, for a conviction under art 7 ICC Statute the prosecution must also establish proof of a specific act which formed part of the widespread or systematic attack against a civilian population. Article 7(1)(a)-(k) contains a list of eleven specific acts, ranging from murder to crimes such as rape, apartheid, torture and other inhumane acts of similar character. This list of acts contains a substantial number of offences which are closely associated with trafficking in persons, namely enslavement, rape, Ryszard Piotrowicz, Preempting the Protocol: Protecting the Victims and Punishing the Perpetrators of People Trafficking in Christine Kreuzer (ed), Frauenhandel Menschenhandel Organisierte Kriminalitaet (Nomos, 2003) 1 at 24. Cf Antonio Cassese, International Criminal Law (Oxford University Press, 2003) 83; Ryszard Piotrowicz, Preempting the Protocol: Protecting the Victims and Punishing the Perpetrators of People Trafficking in Christine Kreuzer (ed), Frauenhandel Menschenhandel Organisierte Kriminalitaet (Nomos, 2003) 1 at 21. Cf Ryszard Piotrowicz, Preempting the Protocol: Protecting the Victims and Punishing the Perpetrators of People Trafficking in Christine Kreuzer (ed), Frauenhandel Menschenhandel Organisierte Kriminalitaet (Nomos, 2003) 1 at 25. Article 30(2)(a) ICC Statute. Cf Antonio Cassese, International Criminal Law (Oxford University Press, 2003) 82.; Ryszard Piotrowicz, Preempting the Protocol: Protecting the Victims and Punishing the Perpetrators of People Trafficking in Christine Kreuzer (ed), Frauenhandel Menschenhandel Organisierte Kriminalitaet (Nomos, 2003) 1 at 21.
8 7 sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, and other forms of sexual violence of comparable gravity Summary There is a possibility to interpret crimes against humanity under art 7 ICC Statute in a way that may encompass serious cases of trafficking in persons. Trafficking in persons, especially women and children can certainly fall within the jurisdiction of the ICC. [ ] It is clear, then, that trafficking may be a crime against humanity. However, it is equally clear that not all trafficking is necessarily a crime against humanity. 27 Only the most severe, perhaps most brutal and most orchestrated instances of trafficking could ever meet the high thresholds of art 7 and only if the acts committed have some association with State policy or practice which, however, may also be manifested by a deliberate inactivity of the State to act against traffickers. The reality is, however, that under the current law and in the current political climate it is unlikely that trafficking in persons committed by criminal organisation will be brought to trial before the ICC. It is difficult to imagine that any Signatory will consider common patterns of trafficking grave enough to request intervention by the ICC prosecutor. Further, the requirements under article 7 are so high that many cases will not be prosecuted simply because of the difficulties to provide sufficient evidence for the material elements of crimes against humanity. However, as the experience of the ICTR and ICTY has shown, there are many instances of trafficking which have been brought before international criminal tribunals, thus leaving the hope that the international community will act again to bring cases of a similar scale to those that occurred in Rwanda and the Former Yugoslavia before the International Criminal Court. 3. Adding further crimes to the ICC Statute Rather than interpreting the existing mandate if the International Criminal Court, cases of transnational organised crime could also be brought within the jurisdiction of the Court by adding additional crimes to the ICC Statute. In fact, it was the proposal for a court to prosecute drug trafficking that led to the establishment of the ICC. 28 The question arises whether the inclusion of other crimes is indeed warranted, desirable and achievable and whether it is feasible from political and economic viewpoints. In the remaining parts of my presentation, I will explore these issues in relation to those organised crimes considered during drafting process: drug trafficking, trafficking in small arms, money laundering, and offence against the environment Drug trafficking Offences involving narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances were among the first crimes to be recognised under international law, dating back to the First International Opium Ryszard Piotrowicz, Preempting the Protocol: Protecting the Victims and Punishing the Perpetrators of People Trafficking in Christine Kreuzer (ed), Frauenhandel Menschenhandel Organisierte Kriminalitaet (Nomos, 2003) 1 at 25. See Section?? above. See Section?? Below.
9 8 Convention of Since then, a total of thirteen international agreements on drug control have been concluded along with ten international instruments on drug related issues. Today, the international law on trafficking in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances contains a wealth of widely accepted mechanisms to prohibit the illicit manufacturing, transfer, sale, use, possession etc of these substances along with money laundering and corruption, as well as mutual legal assistance and judicial cooperation measures, extradition clauses, provisions on law enforcement cooperation, technical assistance and training, and prevention mechanisms proposal It was, as mentioned earlier, the call for an international court with jurisdiction over narcotrafficking that ultimately resulted in the creation of the ICC. In 1989, Trinidad and Tobago -- frustrated with the inability to investigate international drug trafficking rings, the lack of capacity of smaller states to prosecute offenders, and the obstacles of cross-border law enforcement and judicial cooperation -- formally proposed to the United Nations to establish an international court with jurisdiction over such offences. However, after many years of controversial debate, in 1998, the Rome Conference ultimately decided that drug trafficking was not to be included in the final text of the ICC Statute. The opposition against the ICC gaining jurisdiction over drug trafficking and other treaty crimes argued that, first, these crimes do not have the same international status as the other offences under international criminal law; second, that the nature and scale of such crimes is less serious that, for instance, genocide and war crimes; third, that the worldwide level of drug trafficking and other transnational organised crimes would exceed the capacity and resources of any international court; and fourth, that the sovereignty issues of some nations may bar prosecution of such offence by an international authority. International status Much of the debate since the proposal by Trinidad and Tobago in 1989 surrounded the international legal status, recognition, and lack of historical precedent of inclusion of treaty crimes such as drug trafficking into the mandate of international criminal tribunals. The argument was made that those crimes that are now included in the ICC Statute: crimes against humanity, war crimes, genocide, and aggression and only those are part of natural justice, have customary status, are motivated by principle rather than policy and have universal application, thus binding States even if they have not formally signed relevant conventions. In contrast, offences such as drug trafficking were regarded as treaty crimes, defined by convention rather than custom. It was argued that such offences do not have universal application in the sense that they are part of conventional justice, thus policy-motivated and designed to reinforce national jurisdiction and their application is confined to the territory of the Signatories. Further, the United States, supported by other European and western nations, expressed the view that This court should not concern itself with incidental or common crimes, nor should it be in the business of deciding what even is a crime. This is not the place for progressive development of the law into uncertain areas, or for the elaboration of new and unprecedented criminal law. The 30 8 LNTS 187.
10 9 court must concern itself with those atrocities which are universally recognised as wrongful and condemned. 31 The position to differentiate offences under international law in that way finds significant support in the literature, though questions remain whether the distinction is sustainable. Obviously, the former offences were regarded more important than the latter. If, however, genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity are recognised in policy and in practice by more countries around the world than offences such as drug trafficking, is indeed doubtful. 32 There may be arguments to support a position that narcotrafficking amount to customary international criminal law. The offence of trafficking in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances has a long history in international law, has extra-territorial application, provides for the obligation to extradite or prosecute, and has been for some time a truly transnational offence, as its commission involves multiple jurisdictions, perhaps even more than genocide or crimes against humanity which have less conventional history and often do not even cross international borders. 33 Seriousness of the drug problem During the discussion in the International Law Commission and at the Rome Conference there was a perception among some participants that drug trafficking is less serious than the crimes of aggression, genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes, and that an international court should not have jurisdiction over trivial offences which may reduce the standing and reputation of the court. 34 There is little substance to these views and the repeated attempts in particular by Caribbean nations to demonstrate the seriousness of international drug trafficking, and its impact on smaller states, are most laudable. There can be no doubt that the global trafficking in narcotic drugs has for the past forty years been the most pressing of all criminal justice issues. It has also had severe political and economic impacts on production, transit, and consumption countries, which is often closely related to widespread corruption. The size of and the violence associated with the illicit drug industry in countries such as Colombia or Afghanistan are destabilising the security and institutions of these and other countries. As illustrated in the Cited in Nick Boister, The Exclusion of Treaty Crimes From the Jurisdiction of the Proposed International Criminal Court: Law, Pragmatism, Politics (1998) 3 Journal of Armed Conflict Law 27 at referring to Agenda Item 150, the Establishment of an International Criminal court, in the Sixth Committee (23 Oct 1997) [source untraceable]. Cf Patrick Robinson, The Missing Crimes in Antonio Cassese et al (eds), The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court: A Commentary, vol 1 (Oxford University Press, 2000) 497 at , 507. Cf Nick Boister, The Exclusion of Treaty Crimes From the Jurisdiction of the Proposed International Criminal Court: Law, Pragmatism, Politics (1998) 3 Journal of Armed Conflict Law 27 at 30; Patrick Robinson, The Missing Crimes in Antonio Cassese et al (eds), The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court: A Commentary, vol 1 (Oxford University Press, 2000) 497 at Cf Molly McConville, A Global War on Drugs: Why the United States Should Support the Prosecution of Drug Trafficking in the International Criminal Court (2000) 37 American Criminal Law Review 75 at 91-92, 98-99; Barbara M Yarnold, Doctrinal Basis for the International Criminalisation Process: (1994) 8 Temple ICLR 85 at 103; Rosemary Rayfuse, The Draft Code of Crimes against the Peace and Security of Mankind: Eating Disorders at the International Law Commission (1997) 8 Criminal Law Forum 43 at 48. See also the comments by Patrick Robinson, The Missing Crimes in Antonio Cassese et al (eds), The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court: A Commentary, vol 1 (Oxford University Press, 2000) 497 at 502: The length to which the ILC went to ensure that drug crimes had the required level of gravity for inclusion in the Statute is remarkable.
11 10 US invasion of Panama in 1989, the drug problem is even capable of triggering countries to militarily intervene in foreign nations in pursuit of their anti drug policy. 35 The scale of the problem is also manifested in the enormous amount of money and resources that have been invested in fighting the phenomenon at least since US President Nixon declared the war on drugs. All countries, industrialised and developing, spend more effort and money on preventing and suppressing drug trafficking than perhaps on all other crimes combined, including those under customary international law. Only the resources invested in the war on terror may have recently outstripped those spent on fighting the drug problem. 36 Resources of the court Perhaps more convincing is the argument that jurisdiction over drug trafficking would overwhelm the resources of an international criminal court, or, as Boister put it the ICC would be cheaper to start up and to run if it only had jurisdiction over core crimes 37. Right from the first proposals for such a court arose concern over the resources needed to prosecute offences of the magnitude of the global illicit drug trade. Ultimately, drug trafficking was not included in the ICC Statute, thus leaving the offence to the prosecution by national agencies. And most authors do not seem to challenge this resources argument. But, as the case of Caribbean nations in particular demonstrates, smaller and less developed nations, too, have very limited resources to fight the war on drugs and, even if the political will exists, have little ability to obtain cooperation from the larger states. 38 Thus the resources argument is, at best, circular, as even an under-resourced ICC would have at least a much better mandate to prosecute large-scale transnational trafficking rings than any national agency ever will. Confidentiality and sovereignty Lastly, some countries based their opposition to the inclusion of drug trafficking on internal considerations of national sovereignty and confidentiality. The United States in particular, although at times an advocate of an international drug court, expressed its unwillingness to share information on international drug traffickers with an ambivalent and unknown international criminal court for fear that its own investigations be jeopardised and sources of intelligence be put in danger. 39 However, it is exactly this obstacle of suspicion and lack of trust that the jurisdiction of an international body is trying to overcome. As long as countries adopt the view that they cannot share their intelligence, evidence and other information, the war on drugs is doomed to fail, Cf Faiza Patel, Crime without Frontiers: A Proposal for an International Narcotics Court ( ) 22 NYU Journal Int l Law & Politics 709 at 709, Cf the views expressed in UN, Preparatory Committee on the Establishment of an International Criminal Court, Summary of the Proceedings of the Preparatory Committee during the period 25 March to 12 April 1996, UN Doc A/AC.249/1 (1996) paras 71-72; Lyal L Sunga, The Emerging System of International Criminal Law, Development in Codification and Implementation (Kluwer Law, 1997) 21, Nick Boister, The Exclusion of Treaty Crimes From the Jurisdiction of the Proposed International Criminal Court: Law, Pragmatism, Politics (1998) 3 Journal of Armed Conflict Law 27 at 37. Cf Patrick Robinson, The Missing Crimes in Antonio Cassese et al (eds), The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court: A Commentary, vol 1 (Oxford University Press, 2000) 497 at 501. US Mission to the UN, Statement by The Hon Edwin D Williamson, US Special Advisor to the UN General Assembly in the Sixth Committee, USUN Press Release No 113 of Cf Nick Boister, The Exclusion of Treaty Crimes From the Jurisdiction of the Proposed International Criminal Court: Law, Pragmatism, Politics (1998) 3 Journal of Armed Conflict Law 27 at 36, 38; Benjamin B Ferencz, An International Criminal Code and Court: Where they stand and where they re going (1992) 30 Columbian J Transnat l Law 375 at 399.
12 11 which, in return, only strengthens the argument to include crimes such as drug trafficking into the mandate of the ICC Other Crimes Several other crimes were proposed for inclusion into the ICC Statute during the consultations of the International Law Commission and also at the Rome Conference in During the drafting, International Law Commission briefly considered whether wilful and severe damage to the environment can amount to a crime of the same gravity as other offences covered by the draft Code. 41 The general consensus appeared to be that environmental offences of a particular heinous and orchestrated nature may in fact be regarded as cases of aggression, crimes against humanity, war crimes, or perhaps terrorism, but that the separate inclusion of such crime in the Code would not be warranted. Trafficking in small arms was one of the crimes considered at the Rome Conference. It, too, similar to drug trafficking, has wide-reaching impacts and dire consequences especially on smaller countries. This may explain why the Madagascan delegation orally proposed the inclusion of this offence. Madagascar, too, considered the dumping of nuclear waste in foreign countries as an international crime over which the ICC ought to have jurisdiction. Further, money laundering was considered by some as a crime worth including in the ICC Statute; this view was expressed orally by Nigeria at the Rome Conference. None of these offences were seriously discussed for inclusion into the ICC Statute by the Rome Conference, and also were not mentioned for possible consideration by a Review Conference. 42 Perhaps surprisingly, piracy, the oldest of all international criminal offences was at no time considered for inclusion into the ICC Statute. Unlike any of the other crimes within and outside the ICC s mandate, piracy is one the most universally recognised international offences and there is general consensus that even outside the relevant Law of the Sea conventions piracy is an offence of customary international criminal law Conclusion The inadequacies of the current system to investigate, prosecute, and convict transnational organised crime are obvious and long-standing. Every year, too many people exploit the discrepancies between different criminal justice systems and the loopholes of international See also the comment made by Nick Boister, The Exclusion of Treaty Crimes From the Jurisdiction of the Proposed International Criminal Court: Law, Pragmatism, Politics (1998) 3 Journal of Armed Conflict Law 27 at 34: Those opposed to the inclusion of treaty crimes with the jurisdiction the ICC cite these inadequacies as reasons for exclusion; those in favour of ICC jurisdiction over such crimes cites these inadequacies as reasons for exclusion. UN General Assembly, Draft Code of Crimes against the Peace and Security of Mankind, UN Doc A/CN.4/L.459/Add.1 (5July 1991). Kriangsak Kittichaisaree, International Criminal Law (Oxford University Press, 2001) 229. This observation is shared by Silverman, An Appeal to the United Nations: Terrorism must come within the jurisdiction of an international criminal court (1997) cited in Nick Boister, The Exclusion of Treaty Crimes From the Jurisdiction of the Proposed International Criminal Court: Law, Pragmatism, Politics (1998) 3 Journal of Armed Conflict Law 27 at 31; and by Claire de Than & Edwin Shorts, International Criminal Law and Human Rights (Thomson, 2003) para 9-001: By committing the crime of piracy the offenders have put themselves outside the pale and protection of all states. [ ] As a result, it is now universally acknowledged that all States possess the jurisdiction and responsibility to arrest and prosecute those involved in piratical acts.
13 12 criminal law to their best advantage thus resulting in too many offenders escaping prosecution, too many victims to be abused or die at the hand of transnational criminal organisations, and too great profits to be made by global crime networks. Crime pays as long as nations fail to cooperate more closely in law enforcement and judicial proceedings. Nations will continue to lose their war on crime unless they resort to the weapons of international prosecution. Transnational organised crime is a problem in need of a solution; the newly created International Criminal Court is a solution in need of problems. The creation of the International Criminal Court has created an opportunity to overcome many of the deficiencies of the past. It offers a new forum to prosecute cases that would otherwise not be prosecuted. It offers a neutral forum to try offenders that are not extradited because too many countries are seeking jurisdiction, or because a country remains too fearful its nationals or other alleged offenders may face biased trials in a foreign jurisdiction. It offers a more reliable tool to prosecute seemingly unreachable and uncontrollable mafia bosses and drug cartels as it is less vulnerable to intimidation and corruption by criminal gangs. This presentation has demonstrated that there are still too great political reservations towards broadening the ICC s mandate as countries continue to place sovereignty ahead of criminal justice. A further obstacle lies in the fact that the system of international criminal law, its enforcement and jurisdiction, is not yet a comprehensive and consistent body of principles of criminal responsibility. It is only slowly emerging and is still being developed into a more comprehensive body of law. 44 With growing levels of transnational crime on the one hand, and some success stories of arrests of key leaders of criminal organisations on the other, some countries start to acknowledge that international criminal law is a valuable complement to domestic enforcement efforts and thus worth supporting. As the example of the Caribbean nations has shown, smaller nations depend largely on the cooperation of the larger powers if they wish to investigate traces of transnational organised crime and prosecute offenders. Thus, an international criminal court would be of enormous practical assistance to these states. It, too, would have a symbolic value; it would illustrate that no one is above the law. [It] would serve as stabilising reference points for floundering national criminal justice systems Cf John Crawford, The ILC Adopts a Statute for an International Criminal Court: (1995) 89 American J Int l L 404 at 407; Barbara M Yarnold, Doctrinal Basis for the International Criminalization Process (1994) 8 Temple Int l & Comp L J 85 at Nick Boister, The Exclusion of Treaty Crimes From the Jurisdiction of the Proposed International Criminal Court: Law, Pragmatism, Politics (1998) 3 Journal of Armed Conflict Law 27 at 37, 39; cf Lyal L Sunga, The Emerging System of International Criminal Law, Development in Codification and Implementation (Kluwer Law, 1997) 206.
Sexual Violence as Weapon of War. By Lydia Farah Lawyer & Legal researcher
Sexual Violence as Weapon of War By Lydia Farah Lawyer & Legal researcher In general women face in peacetime as well as in wartime different forms of discrimination and gender based violence. But during
More informationNPWJ International Criminal Justice Policy Series No. 1. Prosecuting Violations of International Criminal Law: Who should be tried?
Prosecuting Violations of International Criminal Law: Who should be tried? Preliminary edition for distribution during the Third Session of the ICC Assembly of States Parties, The Hague, September 2004
More informationPaper on some policy issues before the Office of the Prosecutor
This policy paper defines a general strategy for the Office of the Prosecutor, highlights the priority tasks to be performed and determines an institutional framework capable of ensuring the proper exercise
More informationInformation and Observations on the Scope and Application of Universal Jurisdiction. Resolution 65/33 of the General Assembly
United Nations General Assembly Sixty-seventh Session Sixth Committee Information and Observations on the Scope and Application of Universal Jurisdiction Resolution 65/33 of the General Assembly pursuant
More informationAdopted by the Security Council at its 5430th meeting, on 28 April 2006
United Nations S/RES/1674 (2006) Security Council Distr.: General 28 April 2006 Resolution 1674 (2006) Adopted by the Security Council at its 5430th meeting, on 28 April 2006 The Security Council, Reaffirming
More informationJANUARY JULY 2013 LIST OF UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLUTIONS (CHRONOLOGICAL) 1. S/RES/2090 13 February Burundi 2
COALITION FOR THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT INFORMAL COMPILATION OF EXCERPTS FROM SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLUTIONS ADOPTED IN 2013 (1 st SEMESTER) WITH ICC LANGUAGE JANUARY JULY 2013 The United Nations
More informationAdopted by the Security Council at its 5916th meeting, on 19 June 2008
United Nations S/RES/1820 (2008) Security Council Distr.: General 19 June 2008 Resolution 1820 (2008) Adopted by the Security Council at its 5916th meeting, on 19 June 2008 The Security Council, Reaffirming
More informationOPTIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD ON THE SALE OF CHILDREN, CHILD PROSTITUTION AND CHILD PORNOGRAPHY
[ ENGLISH TEXT TEXTE ANGLAIS ] OPTIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD ON THE SALE OF CHILDREN, CHILD PROSTITUTION AND CHILD PORNOGRAPHY The States Parties to the present Protocol,
More informationOptional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography
United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child CRC/C/OPSC/VEN/CO/1 Distr.: General 19 September 2014 Original: English ADVANCE UNEDITED VERSION Committee on the Rights of the Child Optional Protocol
More informationThank you for your communication concerning the situation in Venezuela.
Le Bureau du Procureur The Office of the Prosecutor The Hague, 9 February 2006 Thank you for your communication concerning the situation in Venezuela. The Office of the Prosecutor has received twelve communications
More information2 Introduction. Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (adopted 22 May 1969, entry into force 27 January 1980) 1155 UNTS 331, art 53.
Introduction The emergence of a system of international criminal justice is a relatively new development largely dating from the 1990s onwards. International criminal law imposes criminal responsibility
More informationPart 1: The Origins of the Responsibility to Protect and the R2PCS Project
Part 1: The Origins of the Responsibility to Protect and the R2PCS Project What is the Responsibility to Protect (R2P)? R2P is an emerging international norm which sets forth that states have the primary
More informationQUESTIONS AND ANSWERS on the International Criminal Court
C o a l i t i o n f o r t h e I n t e r n a t i o n a l C r i m i n a l C o u r t C o n t a c t : A d e l e W a u g a m a n M e d i a L i a i s o n t e l e p h o n e : + 2 1 2. 6 8 7. 2 1 7 6 e m a i l
More informationSummary of key points & outcomes
Roundtable discussion on Prospects for international criminal justice in Africa: lessons from eastern and southern Africa, and Sudan 8 Dec 2008, Pretoria Summary of key points & outcomes Aims of the roundtable
More informationInternational Mechanisms for Promoting Freedom of Expression JOINT DECLARATION ON CRIMES AGAINST FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
International Mechanisms for Promoting Freedom of Expression JOINT DECLARATION ON CRIMES AGAINST FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION The United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion and Expression, the
More informationCOUNCIL OF EUROPE COMMITTEE OF MINISTERS
COUNCIL OF EUROPE COMMITTEE OF MINISTERS Recommendation Rec(2006)8 of the Committee of Ministers to member states on assistance to crime victims (Adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 14 June 2006 at
More informationInternational Criminal Court: Review Conference
International Criminal Court: Review Conference Keynote Address by Ambassador Yasuji ISHIGAKI Special Assistant to Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan Round-Table Meeting of Legal Experts on the Review
More informationWe have concluded that the International Criminal Court does not advance these principles. Here is why:
American Foreign Policy and the International Criminal Court Marc Grossman, Under Secretary for Political Affairs Remarks to the Center for Strategic and International Studies Washington, DC May 6, 2002
More information5. The Model Strategies and Practical Measures are aimed at providing de jure and de
MODEL STRATEGIES AND PRACTICAL MEASURES ON THE ELIMINATION OF VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN IN THE FIELD OF CRIME PREVENTION AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE 1. The multifaceted nature of violence against women suggests
More informationDeclaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women
The General Assembly, Distr. GENERAL A/RES/48/104 23 February 1994 Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women General Assembly resolution 48/104 of 20 December 1993 Recognizing the urgent
More informationTITLE III JUSTICE, FREEDOM AND SECURITY
TITLE III JUSTICE, FREEDOM AND SECURITY Article 14 The rule of law and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms In their cooperation on justice, freedom and security, the Parties shall attach
More informationUN Human Rights Council UNITED KINGDOM 2014-2016 candidate
UN Human Rights Council UNITED KINGDOM 2014-2016 candidate The UK is a passionate, committed and effective defender of human rights. We are seeking election to the UN Human Rights Council for the term
More informationOn co-operation by states not party to the International Criminal Court
Volume 88 Number 861 March 2006 On co-operation by states not party to the International Criminal Court Zhu Wenqi Zhu Wenqi is Professor of International Law, Renmin University of China School of Law Abstract
More informationTransnational Challenges and Approaches to Investigating Trafficking Offences. Ilias Chatzis, Chief, Human Trafficking and Migrant Smuggling Section
Transnational Challenges and Approaches to Investigating Trafficking Offences Ilias Chatzis, Chief, Human Trafficking and Migrant Smuggling Section Trafficking in persons: a low risk / high profit crime
More informationJudge Sang Hyun Song President of the International Criminal Court Role of Asian Lawyers in the Emerging System of International Criminal Justice
Judge Sang Hyun Song President of the International Criminal Court Role of Asian Lawyers in the Emerging System of International Criminal Justice 24 th Annual Conference of the Law Association for Asia
More informationThirteenth United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Doha, Qatar April 9, 2015 April 16, 2015
Thirteenth United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Doha, Qatar April 9, 2015 April 16, 2015 High Level Special Event on Rule of Law, Human Rights and the Post 2015 Development
More informationAd Litem Judge Kimberly PROST. (Member of the Tribunal since 3 July 2006) Canada
United Nations Nations Unies BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE CHAMBERS JUDGE PROST International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia Tribunal Pénal International pour l ex-yougoslavie Ad Litem Judge Kimberly
More informationAdvance copy of the authentic text. The copy certified by the Secretary-General will be issued at a later time.
PROTOCOL TO PREVENT, SUPPRESS AND PUNISH TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS, ESPECIALLY WOMEN AND CHILDREN, SUPPLEMENTING THE UNITED NATIONS CONVENTION AGAINST TRANSNATIONAL ORGANIZED CRIME Advance copy of the authentic
More informationSCREENING CHAPTER 24 JUSTICE, FREEDOM AND SECURITY AGENDA ITEM 7A: ORGANISED CRIME
1 SCREENING CHAPTER 24 JUSTICE, FREEDOM AND SECURITY Country Session: Republic of TURKEY 13-15 February 2006 CONTENT -LEGAL BASIS -ORGANISATION -COMBATTING INSTRUMENTS -EXPERTISE AND TRAINING -INTERNATIONAL
More informationUnderstanding the International Criminal Court
Understanding the International Criminal Court Understanding the International Criminal Court Table of Contents I. The International Criminal Court at a glance 3 II. Structure of the ICC 9 III. Crimes
More informationSection 17: Offenses against the Administration of Justice
399 Section 17: Offenses against the Administration of Justice General Very often, the legislation of post-conflict states lacks adequate administration-ofjustice offenses. This section is a relatively
More informationADVANCE UNEDITED VERSION
Committee against Torture Forty-fifth session 1-19 November 2010 List of issues prior to the submission of the second periodic report of Qatar (CAT/C/QAT/2) 1 ADVANCE UNEDITED VERSION Specific information
More informationChairman's Summary of the Outcomes of the G8 Justice and Home Affairs Ministerial Meeting. (Moscow, 15-16 June 2006)
Chairman's Summary of the Outcomes of the G8 Justice and Home Affairs Ministerial Meeting (Moscow, 15-16 June 2006) At their meeting in Moscow on 15-16 June 2006 the G8 Justice and Home Affairs Ministers
More informationChildren Used by Adults to Commit Crime. Guidelines for Role-players in the Criminal Justice System
Children Used by Adults to Commit Crime Guidelines for Role-players in the Criminal Justice System Children Used by Adults to Commit Crime: Guidelines for Role-players in the Criminal Justice System Prepared
More informationBangkok Declaration Synergies and Responses: Strategic Alliances in Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice
Bangkok Declaration Synergies and Responses: Strategic Alliances in Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice We, the States Members of the United Nations, Having assembled at the Eleventh United Nations Congress
More informationCastan Centre for Human Rights Law Monash University Melbourne
Castan Centre for Human Rights Law Monash University Melbourne Submission to the Secretary General's Special Representative on Business and Human Rights on Proposed Guiding Principles for Business and
More information64/180. 2 A/CONF.213/RPM.1/1, A/CONF.213/RPM.2/1, A/CONF.213/RPM.3/1 and
Salvador Declaration on Comprehensive Strategies for Global Challenges: Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Systems and Their Development in a Changing World We, the States Members of the United Nations,
More informationConvention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others
Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others Approved by General Assembly resolution 317 (IV) of 2 December 1949 Preamble Entry into force:
More informationInternational Crime & Comparative Criminal Law
Professor Dr Frank Meyer Professor für Strafrecht Universität Zürich Rechtswissenschaftliches Institut Freiensteinstrasse 5 8032 Zürich Schweiz Professor Dr Andreas Schloenhardt Professor of Criminal Law
More informationCHAPTER 2: INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL JUSTICE: A MATTER OF NATIONAL IMPORTANCE
CHAPTER 2: INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL JUSTICE: A MATTER OF NATIONAL IMPORTANCE International criminal justice is usually perceived as justice delivered by international courts Yet there are reasons to believe
More informationCHAPTER 13: International Law, Norms, and Human Rights
CHAPTER 13: International Law, Norms, and Human Rights MULTIPLE CHOICE 1. Why did the former Secretary General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, state that the US invasion of Iraq in 2003 was illegal?
More informationThe Tenth Anniversary of the ICC and Challenges for the Future: Implementing the law
Le Bureau du Procureur The Office of the Prosecutor Mr. Luis Moreno-Ocampo Prosecutor International Criminal Court The Tenth Anniversary of the ICC and Challenges for the Future: Implementing the law Speech
More informationTwelfth United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice
United Nations A/65/92 General Assembly Distr.: General 10 June 2010 Original: English Sixty-fifth session Item 107 of the preliminary list * Crime prevention and criminal justice Twelfth United Nations
More informationOuagadougou Action Plan to Combat Trafficking In Human Beings, Especially Women and Children
Ouagadougou Action Plan to Combat Trafficking In Human Beings, Especially Women and Children Introduction This booklet contains the Ouagadougou Action Plan to Combat Trafficking in Human Beings, Especially
More informationTHE RESPONSIBILITY TO PROTECT AND PROTECTION OF CIVILIANS: THE HUMAN RIGHTS STORY
THE RESPONSIBILITY TO PROTECT AND PROTECTION OF CIVILIANS: THE HUMAN RIGHTS STORY MONA RISHMAWI, ESQ. Chief, Rule of Law, Equality, and Non Discrimination Branch, Office of the High Commissioner for Human
More informationThirteenth United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice
United Nations A/CONF.222/L.6 Thirteenth United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Doha, 12-19 April 2015 Distr.: Limited 31 March 2015 Original: English Items 3, 4, 5 and 6 of the
More informationFor the last ten years the notion of jurisdiction has been a central
RICR Mars IRRC March 2002 Vol. 84 N o 845 145 Complementary jurisdiction and international criminal justice by Oscar Solera For the last ten years the notion of jurisdiction has been a central issue in
More informationErbil Declaration. Regional Women s Security Forum on Resolution UNSCR 1325
Erbil Declaration Regional Women s Security Forum on Resolution UNSCR 1325 The Women s Security Forum on Resolution No 1325 for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region concluded its work in Erbil
More information- Safety of journalists -
- Safety of journalists - Recommendations by Reporters Without Borders Various UN bodies have adopted resolutions in the past eight years including Security Council Resolution 1738 in 2006 and General
More informationInternational Criminal Law Services. and
International Criminal Law Services and INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL LAW TRAINING MATERIALS FOR THE EXTRAORDINARY CHAMBERS IN THE COURTS OF CAMBODIA Copyright 2009 by International Criminal Law Services and
More informationSAARC CONVENTION ON PREVENTING AND COMBATING TRAFFICKING IN WOMEN AND CHILDREN FOR PROSTITUTION
SAARC SAARC CONVENTION ON PREVENTING AND COMBATING TRAFFICKING IN WOMEN AND CHILDREN FOR PROSTITUTION THE MEMBER STATES OF THE SOUTH ASIAN ASSOCIATION FOR REGIONAL COOPERATION (SAARC), PARTIES TO THE PRESENT
More informationDECLARATION STRENGTHENING CYBER-SECURITY IN THE AMERICAS
DECLARATION STRENGTHENING CYBER-SECURITY IN THE AMERICAS INTER-AMERICAN COMMITTEE AGAINST TERRORISM (CICTE) TWELFTH REGULAR SESSION OEA/Ser.L/X.2.12 7 March, 2012 CICTE/DEC.1/12 rev. 1 Washington, D.C.
More informationTESTIMONY OF COOK COUNTY STATE S ATTORNEY ANITA ALVAREZ SENATE JUDICIARY SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE LAW
TESTIMONY OF COOK COUNTY STATE S ATTORNEY ANITA ALVAREZ SENATE JUDICIARY SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE LAW FEBRUARY 24, 2010 THANK YOU SENATOR DURBIN AND MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE FOR INVITING ME
More informationAGREEMENT BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE EUROPEAN POLICE OFFICE
AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE EUROPEAN POLICE OFFICE Preamble The United States of America and the European Police Office (Europol): considering that it is within their common
More informationLegal protection of children from sexual exploitation: The Lanzarote Convention and the ONE in FIVE campaign
PARLIAMENTS UNITED in combating sexual violence against children Legal protection of children from sexual exploitation: The Lanzarote Convention and the ONE in FIVE campaign Tanja Kleinsorge Head of the
More informationMigration/ Asylum. Co-operation in the field of drugs
Non-exhaustive list of issues and questions to facilitate preparations for the bilateral meeting with Turkey in the area of Chapter 24 Justice, freedom and security Migration/ Asylum - Which are currently
More informationThe relationship between Transitional Justice mechanisms and the Criminal Justice system
The relationship between Transitional Justice mechanisms and the Criminal Justice system Can conflict-related human rights and humanitarian law violations and abuses be deferred or suspended on the basis
More informationInternational Criminal Court. Strategic Plan
International Criminal Court Strategic Plan 2013 2017 Structure 2 Mission 2 Strategic Goals (2013-2017) 3 Strategic s (2013-2014) per Goal 4 Goal 1: Judicial and prosecutorial 4 Goal 2: Managerial 5 Goal
More informationLaw No. 80 for 2002 Promulgating the Anti-Money Laundering Law And its Amendments ١
Law No. 80 for 2002 Promulgating the Anti-Money Laundering Law And its Amendments ١ In the Name of the People, The President of the Republic, The People's Assembly has passed the following Law, and we
More informationSources of International Law: An Introduction. Professor Christopher Greenwood
Sources of International Law: An Introduction by Professor Christopher Greenwood 1. Introduction Where does international law come from and how is it made? These are more difficult questions than one might
More informationESTABLISHING AN INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT MAJOR UNRESOLVED ISSUES IN THE DRAFT STATUTE
ESTABLISHING AN INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT MAJOR UNRESOLVED ISSUES IN THE DRAFT STATUTE A Position Paper of the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights August 1996/Updated 1996 by the Lawyers Committee for
More informationStates rights and obligations in case of illegal drug trafficking by the sea
Faculty of Law States rights and obligations in case of illegal drug trafficking by the sea CANDIDATE NO.4 Master thesis in Law of the Sea August 2014 Table of Content 1. Introduction... 2 1.1 Introduction...
More informationSECURING PROTECTION AND COOPERATION OF WITNESSES AND WHISTLE-BLOWERS I. INTRODUCTION
SECURING PROTECTION AND COOPERATION OF WITNESSES AND WHISTLE-BLOWERS Trimulyono Hendradi * I. INTRODUCTION The nature of corruption and organized crime nowadays, has transformed into extraordinary and
More informationCRC/C/OPAC/NLD/CO/1. Convention on the Rights of the Child. United Nations
United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child CRC/C/OPAC/NLD/CO/1 Distr.: General 5 June 2015 ADVANCE UNEDITED VERSION Original: English Committee on the Rights of the Child Concluding observations
More informationEnsuring the Protection Aid Workers: Why a Special Mandate Holder is Necessary
www.protectaidworkers.org Florian Seriex / ACF Jordanie Ensuring the Protection Aid Workers: Why a Special Mandate Holder is Necessary Discussion Paper Strengthening the protection of aid workers goes
More informationResolution 11/3. Trafficking in persons, especially women and children
Human Rights Council Eleventh Session Resolution 11/3. Trafficking in persons, especially women and children The Human Rights Council, Reaffirming all previous resolutions on the problem of trafficking
More informationEUROPEAN UNION COMMON POSITION ON UNGASS 2016
EUROPEAN UNION COMMON POSITION ON UNGASS 2016 UNGASS 2016 is a key opportunity for the international community to take stock of the achievements of the international drug control system to date, to elaborate
More informationAttorney General Balderas Criminal Affairs Update to Courts, Corrections & Justice Interim Committee
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Contact: James Hallinan September 24, 2015 (505) 660-2216 Attorney General Balderas Criminal Affairs Update to Courts, Corrections & Justice Interim Committee Albuquerque, NM Today,
More informationAkbar Maratovich Kogamov. Kazakh University of Humanities and Law, Astana, Kazakhstan
World Applied Sciences Journal 26 (8): 1094-1099, 2013 ISSN 1818-4952 IDOSI Publications, 2013 DOI: 10.5829/idosi.wasj.2013.26.08.17002 Juridical Personality of a Defense Lawyer in the Context of International
More informationUsing National Action Plans on Women, Peace and Security to Get Your Government Moving
Using National Action Plans on Women, Peace and Security to Get Your Government Moving The International Campaign to Stop Rape and Gender Violence in Conflict is now underway. The Campaign is pressing
More informationUniversalisation of International Criminal Justice System: the Role of the International Criminal Court?
Universalisation of International Criminal Justice System: the Role of the International Criminal Court? Address by Judge Kuniko OZAKI International Criminal Court At the Round-Table Meeting of Legal Experts
More informationCorporations and Human Rights: Do They Have Obligations?
Corporations and Human Rights: Do They Have Obligations? International law has traditionally been understood as a system set up by states to regulate the affairs between them. 1 Especially, since the Second
More informationExpert Group Meeting on the Technical and Legal Obstacles to the Use of Videoconferencing
20 October 2010 Original: English Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime Fifth session Vienna, 18-22 October 2010 Agenda item 6 * International
More informationREPLIES TO THE QUESTIONNAIRE ON PROTECTION OF WITNESSES AND PENTITI IN RELATION TO ACTS OF TERRORISM POLAND
REPLIES TO THE QUESTIONNAIRE ON PROTECTION OF WITNESSES AND PENTITI IN RELATION TO ACTS OF TERRORISM POLAND a. General Information 1. Please describe the framework (legal provisions and established practice)
More informationUNITED NATIONS CONGRESS ON CRIME PREVENTION AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE
DOHA DECLARATION ON INTEGRATING CRIME PREVENTION AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE INTO THE WIDER UNITED NATIONS AGENDA TO ADDRESS SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC CHALLENGES AND TO PROMOTE THE RULE OF LAW AT THE NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL
More informationOur action is coordinated by a team led by the Prime Minister s Office - Department for Equal Opportunities. It consists of the Ministries of Justice
Madame Chair, First of all, let me thank the IOM and ILO for organizing this side event together with the Permanent Mission of Italy. We agreed enthusiastically to be co-host of this event, knowing that
More informationCommonwealth Organised Crime Strategic Framework: Overview
Commonwealth Organised Crime Strategic Framework: Overview Commonwealth Organised Crime Strategic Framework: Overview ISBN: 978-1-921241-94-9 Commonwealth of Australia 2009 This work is copyright. Apart
More informationAdvocate for Women s Rights Using International Law
300 Appendix A Advocate for Women s Rights Using International Law The United Nations (UN) brings together almost every government in the world to discuss issues, resolve conflicts, and make treaties affecting
More informationCROWN LAW STATUTORY OFFENCES REQUIRING THE CONSENT OF THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL
CROWN LAW STATUTORY OFFENCES REQUIRING THE CONSENT OF THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL As at 1 July 2013 Antarctica Act 1960 s 3 Offences in Ross Dependency or any part of Antarctica other than the Ross Dependency
More informationThe role of lawyers in the prevention of torture
The role of lawyers in the prevention of torture January 2008 Introduction The Association for the Prevention of Torture (APT) believes that the effective prevention of torture requires three integrated
More informationInterpretative Note to Special Recommendation III: Freezing and Confiscating Terrorist Assets
Objectives Interpretative Note to Special Recommendation III: Freezing and Confiscating Terrorist Assets 1. FATF Special Recommendation III consists of two obligations. The first requires jurisdictions
More informationUNDERSTANDING MONEY LAUNDERING
UNDERSTANDING MONEY LAUNDERING Preface In light of the international concerns growing on money laundering and the financing of terrorist activities, many countries have taken rigorous measures to curb
More informationPRISONERS INTERNATIONAL TRANSFER (QUEENSLAND) ACT 1997
Queensland PRISONERS INTERNATIONAL TRANSFER (QUEENSLAND) ACT 1997 Reprinted as in force on 1 April 1999 (Act not amended up to this date) Reprint No. 1 This reprint is prepared by the Office of the Queensland
More informationFAST FACTS. 100 TO 140 MILLION girls and women in the world have experienced female genital mutilation/ cutting.
603 MILLION women live in countries where domestic violence is not yet considered a crime. Women and girls make up 80% of the estimated 800,000 people trafficked across national borders annually, with
More informationFor most countries, money laundering and terrorist financing raise significant
01-chap01-f.qxd 3/30/03 13:44 Page I-1 Chapter I Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing: Definitions and Explanations A. What Is Money Laundering? B. What is Terrorist Financing? C. The Link Between
More informationInternational Transfer of Prisoners (South Australia) Act 1998
Version: 2.4.2000 South Australia International Transfer of Prisoners (South Australia) Act 1998 An Act relating to the transfer of prisoners to and from Australia. Contents Part 1 Preliminary 1 Short
More informationRestorative Justice & the United Nations
Restorative Justice & the United Nations Paul McCold, Ph.D. Professor, IIRP Graduate School Chair, Alliance of NGOs on Crime Prevention & Criminal Justice (NY) Restorative justice is a paradigm, not a
More informationBenin, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Chile, Costa Rica, Georgia, Guatemala, Jordan, Nicaragua, Norway, Portugal and Qatar: draft resolution
United Nations A/64/L.58 General Assembly Distr.: Limited 30 June 2010 Original: English Sixty-fourth session Agenda item 114 Follow-up to the Outcome of the Millennium Summit Benin, Bosnia and Herzegovina,
More informationGeorgia: Five Years of Non-Action
Georgia: Five Years of Non-Action The Failure to Investigate the Crimes of the Russian- Georgian War of August 2008 No. 4-2014 After the brief war in Georgia in August 2008, when Russia invaded and for
More informationCRIMINAL JUSTICE RESPONSES TO TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS: ASEAN PRACTITIONER GUIDELINES
CRIMINAL JUSTICE RESPONSES TO TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS: ASEAN PRACTITIONER GUIDELINES [As finalized by the ASEAN Ad-Hoc Working Group on Trafficking in Persons, 25 June 2007, Vientiane, Lao PDR; and endorsed
More informationSTATEMENT OF THE HOLY SEE AT THE EIGTHEENTH MINISTERIAL COUNCIL OF THE ORGANIZATION FOR SECURITY AND COOPERATION IN EUROPE (OSCE) DELIVERED BY
MC.DEL/8/11 6 December 2011 ENGLISH only STATEMENT OF THE HOLY SEE AT THE EIGTHEENTH MINISTERIAL COUNCIL OF THE ORGANIZATION FOR SECURITY AND COOPERATION IN EUROPE (OSCE) DELIVERED BY HIS EXCELLENCY ARCHBISHOP
More informationSituation of trafficking in Thailand
Wanchai Roujanavong Thailand UNODC, Vienna 27-29 January 2010 Situation of trafficking in Thailand Thailand has 3 statuses: 1 Sending country, 2 Destination country, 3 Transit country. Forced prostitution,
More informationAssise de la Justice Brussels, 21 & 22 November 2013. Presentation by Maura McGowan QC Chairman of the Bar Council of England and Wales
Assise de la Justice Brussels, 21 & 22 November 2013 Presentation by Maura McGowan QC Chairman of the Bar Council of England and Wales Day 2 Towards a More Integrated European Area of Justice Based on
More informationHuman Rights, Terrorism and Counter-terrorism
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Human Rights, Terrorism and Counter-terrorism Fact Sheet No. 32 NOTE The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this
More informationCriminal Justice Sector/Rule of Law Working Group
Criminal Justice Sector/Rule of Law Working Group The Rabat Memorandum on Good Practices for Effective Counterterrorism Practice in the Criminal Justice Sector Introduction The Cairo Declaration on Counterterrorism
More informationARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS
Human Trafficking Act, 2005 Act 694 ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS Section Prohibition and offences relating to trafficking 1. Meaning of trafficking 2. Prohibition of trafficking 3. Provision of trafficked person
More informationCRIMINAL LAW & YOUR RIGHTS MARCH 2008
CRIMINAL LAW & YOUR RIGHTS MARCH 2008 1 What are your rights? As a human being and as a citizen you automatically have certain rights. These rights are not a gift from anyone, including the state. In fact,
More informationCompensation. International framework Marjan Wijers
Compensation International framework Marjan Wijers Why? Legal basis International human rights law ECrtHR, Rantsev vs Russia and Cyprus (2010): trafficking falls within the scope of Art. 4 ECHR without
More informationThe technical and legal obstacles to the use of videoconferencing
13 September 2010 Original: English Fifth session Vienna, 18-22 October 2010 Item 6 of the provisional agenda International cooperation with particular emphasis on extradition, mutual legal assistance
More informationApplication of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. (Croatia v. Serbia).
INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE Peace Palace, Carnegieplein 2, 2517 KJ The Hague, Netherlands Tel.: +31 (0)70 302 2323 Fax: +31 (0)70 364 9928 Website: www.icj-cij.org Press Release Unofficial No. 2015/4
More information