The International Criminal Court (1998)

Question 1

What is the International Criminal Court?

Answer 1

It sits in permanent session and and a ‘Court of last resort’ - similar to tribunals but is ratified by 124 states (2017).

Question 2

Successes of the ICC

Answer 2

• 2012 = Congolese warlord sentenced to 14 yrs for HR abuses
• 2014 = another Congolese warlord sentenced to 12 ys for atrocities
• 2016 = Vice President of Congo sentenced to 18 yrs for deploying sex violence as a weapon of war.

Question 3

Limitations of the ICC

Answer 3

• Only 120 initially voted in favour; 21 abstained = lacks ‘international scope’ and acceptance.
• China, Russia and USA do not accept ICC’s jurisdiction over internal sovereign affairs and 70% of the worlds population is outside of the ICC’s jurisdiction.
• Has no coercive power of its own and if N-S are unprepared to cooperate there is little it can do. When ‘big’ countries do not recognise or fully back these forms of governance then they are often limited.
• Sudan’s P. al-Bashir indicted but charges dropped as UNSC did not cooperate and they were unwilling to accept authority – called it a ‘colonial court’
• Accused of being institutionally racist by African Union (AU) as only African’s indicted and convicted.
• 2016 – Putin removed his signature from the statute due to annexation of Crimea - further undermines the court.