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On the Current Trends towards Criminal Prosecution and Punishment of Breaches of International Humanitarian Law
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1998
Year
LawHumanitarian LawCriminal LawInternational CrimesInternational CourtSocial SciencesInternational Criminal LawInternational TribunalsCrime Against HumanityInternational RelationsInternational Criminal CourtsWar CrimesInternational LawInternational Humanitarian LawPublic International LawInternational Criminal JusticeInternational Criminal PracticeInternational OrganizationPolitical ScienceGlobal Justice
The article examines how the enforcement of international humanitarian law has shifted from limited prospects to a more effective phase with ad‑hoc tribunals, while acknowledging persistent challenges to individual criminal prosecution. The author analyzes historical barriers to tribunal development, the post‑Cold War surge in national willingness to establish criminal justice mechanisms, and identifies state sovereignty as a major obstacle to effective enforcement. The study concludes that international criminal tribunals are essential for delivering justice and upholding the rule of law.
This article focuses on the problems of, and prospects for, the enforcement of international humanitarian law through the prosecution and punishment of Individuals accused of violations of International humanitarian law by international or national tribunals. The author first examines the factors that historically prevented the development of International tribunals and then looks at recent events, namely the end of the Cold War and the subsequent unleashing of unparalleled forces of nationalism and fundamentalism in different parts of the world, which have created an increased willingness on the part of states to Institute mechanisms, both at the International and domestic levels, for international criminal justice. With the establishment of the ad hoc International Criminal Trubunals for the former Yugoslavia and for Rwanda, the enforcement of International humanitarian law has moved into a new and more effective phase. Yet, the clear merits of individual criminal prosecution by international tribunals cannot simply override the very real problems and obstacles they face. The author examines these problems, arguing that state sovereignty is a major obstacle to the effective enforcement of International criminal Justice. Nevertheless, the author concludes that justice can be done at the international level and that international criminal tribunals are vital in the struggle to uphold the rule of law.