The Changing Dynamics of International Lawmaking: Trying Heads of State for Rape and Sexual Violence

2015 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 290-304
Author(s):  
Sergey Y. Marochkin ◽  
Galina A. Nelaeva
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Violence ◽  
Charles Taylor ◽  
Epistemic Community ◽  
Legal Professionals ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
International Crimes ◽  
Complex Relationships ◽  
Set Up ◽  
New Institutions ◽  
Heads Of State

New ways of international lawmaking have been largely attributed to the changing nature of international relations, with new actors actively participating in domains traditionally reserved for States. The issue of judges as lawmakers is especially relevant in the international criminal justice domain, where new institutions are being set up. One of the well-covered matters in academic literature has been the prosecution of rape and sexual violence as an example of judicial activism and as a result of the complex relationships between States, international organizations and ngos, as well as the epistemic community of legal professionals. However, trying heads of State for international crimes has been a relatively recent phenomenon. Among a number of trials held worldwide, the trial of the former Liberian President Charles Taylor deserves special attention, not only because it is a finished trial, but also because Taylor was tried for such crimes as rape and sexual violence.

Complementing the ICC Efforts to Curb the Impunity of International Crimes in Africa

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pacifique Manirakiza
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
International Criminal ◽  
Criminal Court ◽  
Potential Contribution ◽  
African Continent ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
International Crimes ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Thabo Mbeki

A matter raised consistently by eminent personalities asked to report on atrocities in Africa, such as former South African President Thabo Mbeki, is the utilization of traditional justice mechanisms known to Africans. Their use has been limited to Gacaca courts in Rwanda, set up in haste and subject to much criticism. However, there exist several types and models of traditional justice mechanisms at the African level. The contribution of these sui generis mechanisms towards accountability for heinous crimes is largely unaddressed in academic literature. This chapter intends to fill this gap by exploring their potential contribution towards accountability for heinous crimes, alongside the International Criminal Court (ICC). In short, the chapter explores how community-based judicial mechanisms and the ICC, two types of accountability mechanisms with different methodologies and approaches, can work side by side to eradicate impunity regarding, and also to prevent, mass atrocities on the African continent.

The new International Criminal Court: A preliminary assessment

1998 ◽  
Vol 38 (325) ◽  
pp. 671-683 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie-Claude Roberge
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
International Criminal Court ◽  
International Criminal ◽  
Criminal Court ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Major Step ◽  
International Crimes ◽  
Set Up ◽  
New Institutions

After years of relentless effort and five weeks of intense and difficult negotiations, the Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) was adopted and opened for signature in Rome on 17 July 1998. This historic event represents a major step forward in the battle against impunity and towards better respect for international humanitarian law. For too long it has been possible to commit atrocities with total impunity, a situation which has given perpetrators carte blanche to continue such practices. The system of repression established by international law clearly has its shortcomings, and the time has come to adopt new rules and set up new institutions to ensure the effective prosecution of international crimes. A criminal court, whether at the national or international level, does not put a stop to crime, but it may serve as a deterrent and, consequently, may help reduce the number of victims. The results achieved in Rome should thus be welcomed, in the hope that the new Court will be able to discharge its mandate to the full.

Getting the Core: A Neo‐institutionalist Approach to the EMU

1995 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 347-369 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miriam L. Campanella
Keyword(s):  
Financial Markets ◽  
Monetary Union ◽  
Trade Agreement ◽  
Maastricht Treaty ◽  
Convergence Criteria ◽  
The North ◽  
Single European Act ◽  
Effective Role ◽  
Set Up ◽  
New Institutions

THE NEW REGIONALISM, MANIFESTED IN EUROPE BY THE SINGLE European Act and the Maastricht Treaty (1992) and in North America by the signature of the North-American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA 1993), is centred on strategic policies and new institutions, the aims of which are to achieve a more effective role in global competition. In Europe, the shift is marked by the impending process of monetary union and the creation of its related institutions. The new approach agreed in the Maastricht Treaty sets out four requirements for eligibility to membership of monetary union. Convergence criteria embodying the judgment of financial markets about future inflation, exchange rate and fiscal policy appeared to be the second best choice for governments seeking to institutionalize their commitment to inflation-avoiding policies. The whole mechanism is meant first to provide the region with a credible monetary institution able to win over the financial markets and secondly to set up bulwarks to the inflation-prone pressures of domestic sheltered interests. Thirdly, the aim is to commit member countries, through a so-called targeting exercise (in Keohane's words) to accomplishing the agreed objectives with monetary discipline and macroeconomic adjustment.

Advancing the Agenda of the Confederation of Trade Unions on the Prevention of Sexual Violence in the World of Work in Indonesia

2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 63
Author(s):  
Atnike Nova Sigiro
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Violence ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Ad Hoc ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
The World ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Set Up

<p>This article was formulated based on interviews with 5 (five) trade union confederations from a number of confederations in Indonesia, namely: Konfederasi Serikat Pekerja Nasional (KSPN), Konfederasi Sarikat Buruh Muslimin Indonesia (KSarbumusi), Konfederasi Serikat Buruh Seluruh Indonesia (KSBSI), Konfederasi Serikat Pekerja Indonesia (KSPI), and Konfederasi Kongres Aliansi Serikat Buruh Indonesia (KKASBI). This article seeks to explore the efforts made by the trade union confederation in promoting gender equality - specifically in advancing the agenda for the prevention and elimination of sexual violence in the world of work. This article was compiled based on research with a qualitative approach, with data collection methods through interviews and literature studies. The results of this study found that the confederations interviewed had already set up internal structures that have specific functions on issues related to gender equality, gender-based violence, and women’s empowerment; although still limited and on ad-hoc basis. This research also finds that the role of the trade union confederation is particularly prominent in advocating policies related to sexual violence and gender-based violence in the world of work, such as advocating the Bill on the Elimination of Sexual Violence, and the ratification of the ILO Convention No. 190 on Violence and Harassment.</p>

scholarly journals Float: Designing for the Rise in Sea Level

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Camilo Cerro ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Sea Level ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Healthcare Education ◽  
American University ◽  
Real Possibility ◽  
Urban Problem ◽  
Will Force ◽  
Complex Relationships ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Floating Systems

According to the United Nations, presently, about 54% of the world’s population lives in urban areas, with the number expected to increase to 66% by 2050. Urban areas which are ill prepared to deal with their present population needs will have to develop and manage; housing, healthcare, education, transportation, infrastructure and food pro-duction for an additional 2.5 billion people. With three-quarters of the world’s megalopolis by the sea and 80% of people living within 60 miles of the coast, sea level rise will force a new way of thinking about urban development. Managing urban areas has become one of the most important development challenges of the 21st century. In the UAE specifically, there are nearly 1,300 kilometers of coast-line. Approximately 85% of the population and over 90% of the infra-structure are located within several meters of sea level in low-lying coastal areas. This poses a very specific urban problem of relocation. But not all relocation will need to be done inland. The potential for floating architecture is a very real possibility to help solve some of the problems brought on by the rise in sea level. This is why at the American University of Sharjah, we have been studying this issue and other sustainability related opportunities in a series of courses that started in 2014 with a summer studio course set in Cambodia. Students lived with a floating community in the Tong le Sap lake for a month, studying vernacular floatation systems to inform the development of proposals for floating dwelling studies. This semester (Spring 2018), a fifth year architecture studio set up to transfer specific urban functions to the water within protected areas in the UAE. The aim of the studio was to start looking at possible implementation of floating systems within everyday functions to start a discussion of the potential of this technologies and the feasibility of its use at both an industrial and commercial level. The idea was to develop a series systemic interdependent sustainable designs based on the idea of third nature, hybridizing complex relationships between distinct functions in environments above and below water. This paper will cover the methodology implemented to start tackling these subjects in the studio environment with the aim to create awareness for designers and the general public.

scholarly journals REALITY OF PROTECTION FOR SEXUAL VIOLENCE VICTIMS: COMPREHENSIVE PROTECTION ANALYSIS FOR SEXUAL VIOLENCE VICTIMS

2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 168-183
Author(s):  
Diandra Preludio Ramada
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Violence ◽  
Scientific Information ◽  
Sexual Crimes ◽  
Preliminary Information ◽  
Sense Of Security ◽  
Victim Protection ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Depth Interviews ◽  
Physical Recovery

Lack of research on victims, especially victims of sexual crimes, whereas cases of sexual crimes are increasingly prevalent in the community. Victim protection is urgently needed to address the increasing number of victims who are not immediately noticed as law enforcers pay more attention to the perpetrators, while victims who suffer physically and psychologically, materially and spiritually, are largely ignored. There are two things that make the offer of protection become important for the victim. First, how to make victims for whom the protection is held, they feel that they are given a sense of security and comfort as citizens protected from the evil that constantly lurks. Second, how to ensure that protection institutions can be achieved with adequate social, economic and cultural aspects.This research aims to find two important things: (1). Finding framework and system of victim protection innovation in Semarang (2). Find and understand the most urgent needs of victims for psychological and physical recovery so that victims can reactivate like other citizens. The benefit of this research is to provide scientific information about the opportunities and barriers to the application of innovative protection for victims in the environment. Thus, the institution can be built especially for victims of sexual violence, as well as the preparation of aspirative and compatible programsThe research method used is qualitative research that rely on information from the first hand, both concerning the application of innovation protection and efforts to find the framework of innovation, it will be pursued stages of research stages, ranging from the determination of the object and place of research, the determination of unit analysis and observation unit, to intensive research in the field. Preliminary information was collected through a survey with questionnaires and interview guides. In addition, focus groups will be set up based on the diversity of informants. The deepening of the data is done by combining in-depth interviews and focused discussions.The findings of this research will result in a model of protection that has legitimacy for the community. The protection model is in great demand and beneficial to victims who have not been noticed.

Can We Be Friends? Offering an Amicus Curiae Brief on Sexual Violence to the EAC

2020 ◽  
pp. 134-141
Author(s):  
Kim Thuy Seelinger ◽  
Naomi Fenwick ◽  
Khaled Alrabe
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Sexual Violence ◽  
International Criminal ◽  
International Criminal Justice ◽  
Amicus Curiae ◽  
Sexual Slavery ◽  
Sexual Crimes ◽  
International Crimes ◽  
Life Sentence ◽  
Game Changer

This chapter details the preparation and submission of the amicus curiae brief on sexual violence to the Extraordinary African Chambers (EAC). The amicus curiae brief offered by over a dozen experts on the prosecution of sexual violence under international law may have been a game changer for the Hissène Habré trial, both in terms of its relevance as a mechanism of international criminal justice, as well as in highlighting the EAC's power to address crimes of sexual violence despite their omission from original charges. Among other international crimes, Habré had been convicted of rape and sexual slavery as a crime against humanity and as a form of torture. The affirmation of Habré's life sentence for massive sexual violence committed by his Documentation and Security Directorate (DDS) agents was hailed as a tremendous victory for international criminal justice and the rights of sexual violence survivors. However, the conviction for sexual crimes was not complete and its path was not linear.

Reforming the International Criminal Court (icc) to Achieve Increased State Cooperation in Investigations and Prosecutions of International Crimes

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-61
Author(s):  
Jeremy Sarkin
Keyword(s):  
International Criminal Court ◽  
International Criminal ◽  
The United States ◽  
Criminal Court ◽  
Human Rights Protection ◽  
Defensive Strategies ◽  
International Crimes ◽  
Set Up ◽  
United Nations System ◽  
State Cooperation

This article examines the issue of state cooperation with the International Criminal Court (icc), and why it is vitally needed to achieve the institution’s mandate, including that of human rights protection. The article examines why state cooperation with the icc is so important and what issues undermine it, including disputes with the African Union, but many other issues as well. It surveys what the icc has done to promote cooperation and what steps ought to be taken to try and enhance state cooperation in the future. This is timely as the icc has set up a review process in 2020 to deal with a range of problems including state non-cooperation. The article therefore examines the practices and procedures of the Court, matters concerning its judges and staff, issues around the appointment of a new prosecutor, as well as and judicial appointments, as well as its jurisprudence. The article examines the issues that ought to be addressed, as well as how a variety of actors could better assist the Court, including the Security Council, the wider United Nations system, and the methodology for doing so. The article also reviews what defensive strategies can be taken up to defend the Court, including against aggressive anti-icc actors, such as the United States of America, who are ramping up their attacks on the Court and its personnel.

scholarly journals Risky dis/entanglements: Torture and sexual violence in conflict

2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 1035-1058 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harriet Gray ◽  
Maria Stern
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Violence ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
Sexual Torture ◽  
Political Form

Conflict-related sexual violence has become increasingly recognized in international spaces as a serious, political form of violence. As part of this process, distinctions between the categories of ‘sexual violence’ and ‘torture’ have blurred as scholars and other actors have sought to capitalize on the globally recognized status of torture in raising the profile of sexual violence. This move, while perhaps strategically promising, even already fruitful, prompts us to heed caution. What might we inadvertently engender by further pursuing such positioning? While torture and sexual violence have both been widely framed within the academic literature as strategic in recent decades, only torture, and not sexual violence, has emerged from elements of this literature as (potentially) legitimate, despite the slippages between them as categories of violence. This article offers one avenue for thinking through what an invigorated focus on sexual torture as a category of violence might unwittingly render possible, and thus for reflecting on the possible stakes of collapsing the categories of sexual violence and torture. Ultimately, we argue that we should perhaps resist the urge to frame sexual violence as torture and instead cleave to the sticky signifier of ‘the sexual’, despite the ways in which it has served to normalize, perpetuate and obfuscate grievous harms throughout history.

Close to Home

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 219-242
Author(s):  
Kim Thuy Seelinger
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Violence ◽  
Ad Hoc ◽  
International Criminal ◽  
War Crimes ◽  
Criminal Court ◽  
International Crimes ◽  
National Courts ◽  
Local Justice ◽  
Forced Prostitution ◽  
Historical Antecedents

Abstract For decades, the ad hoc tribunals and the International Criminal Court have taken the presumptive spotlight in prosecuting international crimes cases, including those involving conflict-related sexual violence. However, recent progress in prosecuting conflict-related sexual violence in national courts has started to both fulfil and complicate the notion of ‘complementarity’ between these two arenas of international criminal justice. This article presents the historical antecedents and current diversity of national courts addressing conflict-related sexual violence. It first casts back to the 1940s, to the little-known efforts of the United War Crimes Commission that guided national authorities in their prosecution of wartime atrocities including rape and forced prostitution. It then focuses on three kinds of national courts addressing conflict-related sexual violence today: military tribunals, hybrid tribunals and ‘purely domestic’ specialized chambers, highlighting key case studies and different ways these courts have engaged international actors. In conclusion, the article confirms the growing importance and diversity of national courts in the prosecution of conflict-related sexual violence, identifying ways the international community can better support survivors’ access to this more local justice.

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