1. The International Criminal Court: Challenges for the Future
Steven Freeland
University of Western Sydney
University of Copenhagen
Visiting Professional, The International Criminal Court

2. International Criminal Law
Accountability for crimes that ‘shock the conscience of the world’
gross violations of human rights
but …. need for specific definition
Crimes within mandate of the International Criminal Court:
Genocide
intention to destroy all or part of a national, ethnic, racial or religious group, as such
Crimes Against Humanity
widespread or systematic attack on any civilian population
War Crimes
breach of Geneva Conventions / laws and customs of armed conflict
(Aggression) – to be defined
Other Crimes?

3. Dealing with International Crimes
International Military Tribunals
Nuremberg / Tokyo
Ad Hoc Tribunals established by United Nations Security Council
ICTY / ICTR
‘Hybrid’ / ‘Internationalized’ Courts established by Agreement between the UN and the relevant country
Sierra Leone / Cambodia / East Timor / Lebanon
Permanent Court established by Treaty
International Criminal Court

4. Dealing with International Crimes (continued)
Regional Human Rights Courts
ECHR / ACHR / IACHR
National Courts
Iraqi Special Tribunal / Indonesian Human Rights Court / Lockerbie / Eichmann / Pinochet
Local ‘Courts’
Gacaca community justice (Rwanda)
(Truth and) Reconciliation Commissions
South Africa / Sierra Leone / Bosnia / Latin American Countries
Amnesties / Nothing – Peace v Justice dilemma
Haiti / Uganda (Idi Amin) / Uganda (LRA)? / Darfur?

5. The ICC - (current) Cases and Situations
The Democratic Republic of Congo
The Prosecutor v. Thomas Lubanga Dyilo 
The Prosecutor v. Bosco Ntaganda
The Prosecutor v. Germain Katanga and Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui
The Republic of Uganda
The Prosecutor v. Joseph Kony, Vincent Otti, Okot Odhiambo and Dominic Ongwen  
Darfur, Sudan
The Prosecutor v. Ahmad Muhammad Harun (‘Ahmad Harun’) and Ali Muhammad Al Abd-Al-Rahman (‘Ali Kushayb’) 
(arrest warrant requested against Omar Hassan al-Bashir)
The Central African Republic
The Prosecutor v. Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo  
Cote d’Ivoire
Other investigations

6. The International Criminal Court: Challenges for the Future
Structural Challenges include:
building a new institution
lessons from the other international criminal tribunals
harmonization of multicultural work practices and expectations
demarcation of responsibilities within the divisions of the Court
continuity of expertise and work practices

7. The International Criminal Court: Challenges for the Future
Legal Challenges include:
the legality of the Court
meaning / operation of ‘complementarity’
ambiguities in the Legal Texts
case and trial management
the rights of the accused
resources of counsel for accused
the rights of victims
the status of the Victims’ Trust Fund
harmonization of legal principles (ICTY / ICJ, common law / civil law etc)

8. The International Criminal Court: Challenges for the Future
Political Challenges include:
the need for cooperation by States
peace v justice concerns
the attitude of the major powers
relationship between Court and UNSC
Agreement on Privileges and Immunities
Bilateral Immunity Agreements
additional discrete crimes within the mandate of the Court

9. The International Criminal Court: Challenges for the Future
Practical Challenges include:
the obtaining of evidence
how to execute arrest warrants
the need for accurate information

10. The International Criminal Court: Challenges for the Future
Financial Challenges include:
oversight by the ASP
annual budgets
‘how much justice are we prepared to pay for?’