Support Our Work Mailing list About / Contact
  • Home /
  • News /
  • 2016 /
  • April /
  • How fair are trials at the International Criminal Court? Three examples of concern

How fair are trials at the International Criminal Court? Three examples of concern

22 April 2016

Support our work: become a Friend of Statewatch from as little as £1/€1 per month.

"While acknowledging that ICC trials are conducted according to international recognized standards and the governing laws and regulations guarantee the rights of the accused, there are structural limitations. Seven years after the opening of the first trial different patterns have emerged which are of concern from a fair trial perspective. Three common examples:

1. Regulation 55

The ICC’s Regulations contain the controversial regulation 55 which allows the judges to recharacterize the facts presented by the parties to enable more focused trials. The provision has been used in various cases and at different stages of the proceedings to make law and facts better fit.

(...)

2. Long proceedings

While long trials are common at many international courts, the ICC in addition to the trial has developed an extensive pre-trial phase at the end of which the charges against a person are either confirmed or declined. This means that most suspects are in pre-trial detention for a year or longer before it is clear whether they will go on trial at all.

(...)

3. Inherent bias

The defense side and the accused are rarely at the center in international criminal trials. Instead, the focus is often on victims and the “fight against impunity” for heinous crimes. From such a perspective a conviction is seen as a victory of justice while an acquittal is considered a failure of the court."

See: How fair are trials at the International Criminal Court? Three examples of concern (Fair Trials, link)

Our work is only possible with your support.
Become a Friend of Statewatch from as little as £1/€1 per month.

 Previous article

EU: Europol joins UK appeal to report extremist and terrorist material online using red "stop" button

Next article 

French 'Nuit Debout' protest movement shows no sign of losing steam

 

Spotted an error? If you've spotted a problem with this page, just click once to let us know.

Report error

Statewatch does not have a corporate view, nor does it seek to create one, the views expressed are those of the author. Statewatch is not responsible for the content of external websites and inclusion of a link does not constitute an endorsement. Registered UK charity number: 1154784. Registered UK company number: 08480724. Registered company name: The Libertarian Research & Education Trust. Registered office: MayDay Rooms, 88 Fleet Street, London EC4Y 1DH. © Statewatch ISSN 1756-851X. Personal usage as private individuals "fair dealing" is allowed. We also welcome links to material on our site. Usage by those working for organisations is allowed only if the organisation holds an appropriate licence from the relevant reprographic rights organisation (eg: Copyright Licensing Agency in the UK) with such usage being subject to the terms and conditions of that licence and to local copyright law.

About | Contact | Privacy Policy