In Defense of Hybridity: Towards a Representational Theory of International Criminal Justice

Abstract

In this article in the Symposium on Milosevic & Hussein on Trial, the author proposes a critical & normative "representational theory" of what international criminals should be tried by in a hybrid tribunal framework that surpasses complementarity & primacy, & mitigates the lack of dimension in purely international or domestic trials. A discussion of universality issues regarding sovereignty & complementarity, & the complications of "ownership" in international crimes supports the assertion that the hybrid nature of the theory as a representation of crimes & acknowledgement of the affected communities. Comparative analysis between complementarity & hybridity are applied to the cases of Milosevic & Hussein to support the argument that, if the goals of international criminal justice are to give the best "representation" possible, a hybrid of international & domestic trials must be applied to the two trials. J. Harwell