HUMAN RIGHTS
EDUCATION
Lesson 3
THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL
COURT (ICC)
• The International Criminal Court in The Hague
prosecutes those accused of war crimes, crimes
against humanity and genocide.
• In 1998, 60 countries signed the Rome Statute
after it was opened for signature by the United
Nations. The Statute laid the foundation for the
establishment of the International Criminal Court
in 2002. Its purpose is to investigate and
prosecute war criminals.
CRIMES WITHIN THE JURISDICTION OF
THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT
• War Crimes
• Genocide
• Crimes against humanity
WAR CRIMES
• War crimes include torture, mutilation,
corporal punishment, hostage taking and
acts of terrorism. This category also covers
violations of human dignity such as rape and
forced prostitution, looting and execution
without trial. War crimes, unlike crimes
against humanity, are always committed in
times of war.
GENOCIDE
•This includes all acts
committed with the intent to
destroy a national, ethnic or
religious group.
CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY
• Crimes against humanity are acts
committed as part of a widespread or
systematic attack directed against any
civilian population, such as murder,
deportation, torture and rape. The ICC
prosecutes the perpetrators even if the
crimes were not committed in times of war.
THE POWERS OF THE ICC
The ICC is only competent to hear a case if:
•the country where the offence was committed is a party to the
Rome Statute; or
•the perpetrator's country of origin is a party to the Rome
Statute.
The ICC may only exercise its jurisdiction if the national court is
unable or unwilling to do so. The ICC only has jurisdiction over
offences committed after the Statute’s entry into force on 1 July 2002.
REFERRING A CASE TO THE
INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL
COURT
• Various parties have the right to refer a case to the ICC:
•any State Party to the Rome Statute, irrespective of any
involvement in the alleged offence;
•the Prosecutor of the ICC;
•the United Nations Security Council
• The United Nations Security Council may ask the ICC to defer
investigation of a case for a limited period if it considers that the
proceedings would constitute an obstruction to its powers.