Politics & the ICC Lecture Question
To what extent should the ICC Office of the Prosecutor consider or engage in politics to advance international justice?
Comment on the Politics Lecture Question: “To what extent should the ICC Office of the Prosecutor consider or engage in politics to advance international justice?”
I believe that the ICC must engage in some politics in order to be an effective international body of justice. Politics does not need to be high profile actions, but it can and should entail talks and negotiations with powerful players on the international justice scene. The ICC must keep rapport with the UN Security Council and other UN bodies because it is not a self-sufficient, funded organization. Its internal organization inevitably will affects its choice of whether to engage in politics or not. However, the ICC should not allow partisanship to creep into its decision-making powers—the balance must be between engaging in effective politics but also remaining unaligned with any particular sovereign state or national entity.
Dr. Richard H. Steinberg
Professor of Law
Comment on the Politics Lecture Question: “To what extent should the ICC Office of the Prosecutor consider or engage in politics to advance international justice?”
I believe that the ICC must engage in some politics in order to be an effective international body of justice. Politics does not need to be high profile actions, but it can and should entail talks and negotiations with powerful players on the international justice scene. The ICC must keep rapport with the UN Security Council and other UN bodies because it is not a self-sufficient, funded organization. Its internal organization inevitably will affects its choice of whether to engage in politics or not. However, the ICC should not allow partisanship to creep into its decision-making powers—the balance must be between engaging in effective politics but also remaining unaligned with any particular sovereign state or national entity.