ICC investigation and Prosecutions
Jurisdictional Triggers
Whether
after or
during the commission of alleged atrocity crimes, the ICC can
only exercise jurisdiction over such crimes in one of three ways
🙁 NB: only these three parties below can move the court to investigate hence prosecute perpetrators).
- Where a State Party refers the crimes to the Court (State Party Referral),
- Where the UN Security Council refers the crimes to the Court (UN Security Council Referral), or
- Where the ICC Prosecutor initiates a preliminary examination into the crimes (Propio Motu Investigation)
State Party Referral
A
State Party referral is when any country that has ratified the Rome Statute (making them a State Party) refers alleged atrocity crimes to the ICC Prosecutor. The atrocities must have been committed:
- on the territory of the State Party that makes the referral or on the territory of another State Party; or
- by a national from the referring State Party or another State Party.
Most ICC cases have arisen where a State Party has referred alleged atrocity crimes to the ICC Prosecutor that have been committed on its own territory. This is sometimes called a “self-referral”, and includes the ICC investigations into crimes in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo,
Uganda, the
Central African Republic (twice self-referred),
Mali, and
Gabon.
Example Cases 2013 Comoros Referral 2012 Mali Self Referral
UN Security Council Referral
The
UN Security Council (UNSC) may refer alleged atrocity crimes committed in any country to the ICC Prosecutor by passing a resolution authorized by the
UN Charter.
- In March 2005, the UNSC referred the situation in Darfur, Sudan, to the ICC.
- In February 2011, the UNSC referred the situation in Libya to the ICC.
If a permanent member of the UNSC vetoes a resolution to refer a situation to the ICC, the Court cannot gain jurisdiction. The permanent members of the UNSC are China, France, Russia, United States of America, and United Kingdom. In May 2014, Russia and China vetoed the referral of Syria to the ICC.
Example Cases 2005 UNSC Resolution 1593 - Sudan Referral 2011 UNSC Resolution 1970 - Libya Referral
Proprio Motu Investigations
The ICC Prosecutor may start a preliminary examination
proprio motu (“on one’s own initiative” in Latin), into alleged atrocity crimes that have occurred either:
- on the territory, or by a national, of any State Party; or
- on the territory, or by a national, of a non-State Party that has consented to the jurisdiction of the ICC.
The ICC Prosecutor must receive approval from judges to open a formal investigation after completing her preliminary examination.
Example Cases 2015 Preliminary Examination - Afghanistan 2015 Preliminary Examination - Iraq
Preliminary Examination
Phases of Analysis
Whether alleged atrocities are referred to the ICC Prosecutor, or she uses her
proprio motu power, a case always begins with what is called a “preliminary examination”. Each preliminary examination has four phases of analysis: initial, jurisdictional, admissibility, and interest of justice assessments.
The ICC Prosecutor may move to a formal investigation if all four of these requirements are satisfied.
Initial Assessment
The ICC Prosecutor must first determine whether the alleged crimes satisfy fundamental jurisdictional requirements of the
Rome Statute, specifically
temporal,
territorial,
subject matter, and
personal jurisdiction.
Temporal Jurisdiction
The ICC can
only exercise jurisdiction over crimes committed after July 1, 2002 (the date that the
Rome Statute went into force). If the alleged crimes occurred prior to this date, the case cannot move forward at the ICC
Territorial Jurisdiction
The ICC can
only exercise jurisdiction in the territory of
State Parties, non-State Parties that consent to jurisdiction, or non-State Parties that are referred to the Court by the UN Security Council. If the alleged crimes occurred on a State that does not meet these requirements, the case cannot move forward at the ICC.
Subject Matter Jurisdiction
An alleged crime
must be either a war crime, a crime against humanity, or genocide, as defined in the
Rome Statute. If the alleged crime does not fall within one of these definitions, the case cannot move forward at the ICC.
Personal Jurisdiction
The ICC can
only investigate and prosecute “natural persons” who are over the age of
18. The ICC cannot investigate or prosecute governments, corporations, political parties, or rebel movements, but may investigate individuals who are members of groups.
Also, the ICC can
only exercise jurisdiction over nationals from a state within the Court’s jurisdiction (e.g. State Party; non-State Party that consents to jurisdiction or was referred by the UN Security Council).
Admissibility Assessment
Even when the temporal, territorial, subject matter, and personal jurisdictional requirements are satisfied, the
Rome Statute limits the types of cases that “admissible” at the ICC. The ICC Prosecutor must determine whether another court (domestic or international) is properly investigating and prosecuting the alleged crimes (this concept is called “
complementarity”), and whether the alleged crimes are the gravest of crimes (this concept is called “
gravity”).
Complementarity
The principle of “complementarity” means the ICC “complements” other courts that have jurisdiction over the alleged crimes. This principle makes the ICC a “court of last resort”. The ICC Prosecutor must determine if another court is “genuinely able and willing” to investigate and potentially prosecute the case, or already has. If another court is properly investigating or prosecuting the alleged crimes, the case cannot move forward at the ICC.
Gravity
The alleged crimes must be the gravest of atrocity crimes. The ICC Prosecutor determines gravity by looking at the
scale,
nature,
manner, and
impact of the alleged crimes.
Sudanese rebels Abdallah Banda Abakaer Nourain and Saleh Mohammed Jerbo Jamus
were charged by the ICC with the killing of twelve (12) African Union peacekeepers in 2007. Despite the relatively small number of deaths, the Court found that the crime was an attack on the millions of civilians the peacekeepers were sent to protect and, therefore, met the gravity
threshold.
Interests of Justice Assessment
Even when the jurisdictional and admissibility requirements are met, the ICC Prosecutor has the discretion to determine whether moving a case forward at the ICC serves the “interests of justice.” The Prosecutor may decide not to move forward with an investigation or prosecution if she decides that there are substantial reasons to believe that this is not in the interests of justice. A Pre-Trial Chamber can review this decision.
Investigation
Investigative Process
The ICC
Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) may turn a preliminary examination into a formal investigation called a situation (such as the situation in
Libya) if the four phases of analysis in a preliminary examination are satisfied.
In an investigation, the OTP gathers as much information as possible to uncover the truth about the alleged crime as well as to determine who is most responsible. An investigation may include:
- Inspection where the alleged crime occurred;
- Collection of evidence like cellphone data, emails, radio intercepts, videos, photographs, minutes of meetings, military and police communications, speeches and forensic material such as exhumation reports;
- Interviewing witnesses and victims;
- Consultation with relevant experts and specialists;
- Analysis of financial transactions.
The OTP is legally required to take whatever steps are necessary to gather all evidence which is relevant to an alleged crime, including incriminating and exonerating evidence. Before trial starts, the Prosecutor must disclose a great deal of evidence to the Defense. This includes all the evidence the Prosecutor intends to rely upon at trial, and any evidence which tends to show the innocence of the accused or which affects the credibility of prosecution evidence.
Cooperation and Assistance
The ICC cannot act unilaterally because:
- It does not have its own police force or independent enforcement powers
- It cannot enter or obtain evidence in sovereign countries without the country’s permission.
As a result, the ICC and its organs (e.g. the OTP) depends on the “cooperation and assistance” of countries in order to facilitate investigations and prosecutions. Cooperation and assistance may include:
- Allowing access to documents and other evidence;
- Tasking domestic personnel to assist OTP personnel
- Helping locate witnesses and victims; and
- Assisting in the identification of crime sites.
Arrest Warrant & Summons
Initialization of Warrants and Summons
Once evidence establishes reasonable grounds to believe a person is responsible for an atrocity crimes, the ICC Prosecutor may request the Pre-Trial Chamber to issue a
summons or
arrest warrant.
A
summons can be issued if the Pre-Trial Chamber is satisfied that the person will appear in the courtroom, and can contain conditions sufficient to ensure the person’s appearance.
An
arrest warrant can be issued if the Pre-Trial Chamber believes that the arrest of the person is necessary to ensure that the person appears at trial. It can also be issued if the judges think it is necessary to ensure that the person does not obstruct the investigation, or to prevent the person from continuing to commit crimes similar to those he or she is suspected of committing.
Cooperation and Assistance
Carrying out an arrest warrant depends on the cooperation of the country where the fugitive is located, and of its police force. The ICC has no police force of its own.
The case of
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir illustrates a problem that the ICC continually faces. Two arrest warrants for crimes against humanity, war crimes, and/or genocide have been issued by the ICC. However, President al-Bashir is still at large. While the arrest warrants have reduced the number of countries he can safely travel to, he nevertheless continues to travel to many countries including ICC States Parties without being arrested. Al-Bashir’s trial will not occur until Sudan or another country is willing to arrest and transfer him to the ICC.
The Court, despite continuing difficulties, has also seen successful cooperation from States Parties. On May 23, 2008, the Pre-Trial Chamber issued an arrest warrant for
Jean-Pierre Bemba of the Central African Republic. Following his arrest a day later on July 1, 2008, a Belgian court ruled that Bemba should be sent to the ICC. The Belgian court order was executed and Bemba made his initial appearance before the ICC on July 4, 2008.
The ICC has also received cooperation from countries that are not member states. In March 2013, for example, the United States and Rwanda cooperated to transfer
Bosco Ntaganda of the Democratic Republic of Congo to The Hague. Ntaganda was subject to an ICC arrest warrant and had turned himself into the United States embassy in Rwanda. Neither Rwanda nor the United States are ICC States Parties.
Confirmation of Charges
Confirm or Dismiss Charges
After an individual’s initial appearance, the Pre-Trial Chamber (PTC) must hold a hearing within a reasonable amount of time to confirm or dismiss the charges presented by the Prosecutor. The PTC can either:
- Confirm the charges and send the case to the Trial Chambers for trial (at this point the individual becomes the “Accused”); or
- Dismiss the charges and set the individual free; or
- Pause the hearing to request the Prosecutor to produce additional evidence or change the charges with the evidence presented.
If charges are dismissed, the ICC Prosecutor can provide additional evidence at a later time in order to convince the PTC to confirm the original charges. Alternatively, the ICC Prosecutor can start the whole process over again with different charges.