I have uploaded a copy of the report, which was available for a couple of hours on the ICC website but then removed without explanation. (It's marked public.) Representatives of the Registry spent five days in Libya in late February and early March, so things could have changed significantly since that time. Nevertheless, the report paints an interesting -- and...
I have no idea whether it's true, but that's what the BBC is reporting: The International Criminal Court could soon drop its demand that Saif al-Islam Gaddafi be transferred to the Hague for trial, officials have told the BBC. They say the most prominent son of the former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi could instead be tried inside Libya but under the supervision...
Moreno-Ocampo's inability to avoid allegations of bias has long haunted his tenure as Prosecutor. It's impossible to forget, for example, photos of him standing next to the Ugandan President, Youweri Museveni, as he announced that he was investigating the situation in Northern Uganda -- an act that Ugandans widely perceived, rightly in light of the OTP's failure to seriously investigate...
In 1973, Hans Blix and Jirina Emerson edited the Treaty Maker’s Handbook to help newly emerging States appreciate, post-decolonization, the intricacies of treaty-making as a matter of both domestic and international law. One of the work’s lasting legacies was the inclusion of sample provisions drawn from existing treaties on various treaty topics such as participation, entry into force, reservations, and...
Benn Steil, director of international economics at the Council on Foreign Relations has an interesting peek at the history of the formation of the World Bank and IMF in a New York Times op-ed. From their inceptions, the World Bank has traditionally had an American President and the IMF a European Managing Director. But why? I had learned in college that...
Mr. Davenport makes some very strong claims in his post concerning the OTP's refusal to accept the Palestinian declaration. Although I am on record with my belief that accepting the declaration would be a terrible political move for the ICC, I have a number of questions about Mr. Davenport's claims. I hope he will take the time to answer them...
The ICC's Pre-Trial Chamber I (PTC) has rejected Libya's request to postpone the surrender of Saif Gaddafi so that he can be prosecuted domestically for other crimes. That request was based on Article 95, which reads: Where there is an admissibility challenge under consideration by the Court pursuant to article 18 or 19, the requested State may postpone the...
[Michael Kearney is an LSE Fellow in the Law Department of the London School of Economics] Michael Kearney guest blogs with us to share his knowledge of the Palestinian situation as an external consultant for the Palestinian human rights NGO Al-Haq "I heard from the Americans," Abbas reports. "They said, 'If you will have your state, you will go to the ICC....
As I noted in my previous post, the OTP has implied that it would accept a determination by the Assembly of States Parties (ASP) that Palestine qualifies as a state for purposes of the ICC's jurisdiction. That raises an interesting question: why have the Palestinians never (to the best of my knowledge) asked the ASP to make such a determination? ...
As most readers probably know by now, the Office of the Prosecutor has finally -- after three inexcusable years of inaction -- officially rejected Palestine's attempt to accept the ICC's jurisdiction pursuant to Article 12(3) of the Rome Statute. Politically, I think the OTP has made the right decision; the ICC has enough problems without interjecting itself into one of...
I think it's safe to say that the ECCC is in serious trouble, despite having an excellent International Co-Prosecutor in Andrew Cayley and many intelligent, dedicated staff. As readers probably know, the international reserve co-investigating judge, Laurent Kasper-Ansermet, is resigning his position because interference by the Cambodian government is making it impossible for the Tribunal to investigate new cases. Kasper-Ansermet...
[Harold Hongju Koh is the Legal Adviser, U.S. Department of State.] Statement Regarding Syria Harold Hongju Koh Legal Adviser, U.S. Department of State American Society of International Law Annual Meeting March 30, 2012 It is my honor to speak here again at the annual meeting of the American Society of International Law. A year ago, I spoke before this audience about...
