Post-conflict justice : issues and approaches

Abstract

In July 2002, the International Criminal Court (ICC) began operations as the primary international institution for the prosecution of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide or international crimes. During the 1990s, the United Nations Security Council authorized international war crimes tribunals for conflicts in the Balkans and in Rwanda. Despite the important developments that these institutions made in international criminal law, these courts have not contributed to the longterm capacity of post-conflict states to operate under the rule of law. In the late 1990s the United Nations started to use new types of hybrid tribunals designed to prosecute international crimes in post-conflict states that combined the power and expertise of the international community with the indigenous law and legal community. This thesis will use case studies to make a detailed evaluation of the institutions and the options facing the individual states and the international community when designing policies or authorizing a tribunal to try international crimes in a post-conflict environment.