Efficiency Lecture Question
In what ways could the ICC’s bureaucracy, finances, judicial election process, and relationship with the States Parties be reformed to increase its efficiency as an instrument for international justice?
Comment on the Efficiency Lecture Question: “In what ways could the ICC’s bureaucracy, finances, judicial election process, and relationship with the States Parties be reformed to increase its efficiency as an instrument for international justice?”
The ICC is limited in its ability to improve its own efficiency. The ICC should and must seek to limit the size of its bureaucracy, hold those who work for the ICC more accountable, and enforce the requirements for judges more stringently. However, before anything can truly change with regard to efficiency, states must make a commitment to recognizing the ICC as an independent instrument of international justice. Some of this will change with time. In general, the Office of the Prosecutor must continue its work and do all that it can with current resources. It must pursue meaningful convictions that consider the full impact of the defendant's crimes, it must strive to publicize its work through global media, and it must show its results to both those afflicted and the world. The ICC must show the world its accomplishments and its potential for good so that the people, not just governments, recognize its value and press their leaders to support it. If governments begin to accept the decisions of the ICC, aid in its apprehension, and help it assert diplomatic power, the ICC will be further legitimized in the eyes of the world and more capable of carrying out its duties as a institution of international criminal justice. This success will further legitimize its value, creating a positive feedback loop that will hopefully institutionalize the work of the ICC. Unfortunately, it is much easier for governments to disregard or even actively defy the actions of the ICC, and currently, this seems to be the norm. Governments prevent or attempt to slow evidence gathering by the OTP, judicial nominees are not subjected to the most rigorous standards, and the major powers of the world refuse to pledge full support for the court. It is only if these attitudes change that the court will ever function as an efficient instrument of justice.
M. Cherif Bassiouni
Professor of Law
Comment on the Efficiency Lecture Question: “In what ways could the ICC’s bureaucracy, finances, judicial election process, and relationship with the States Parties be reformed to increase its efficiency as an instrument for international justice?”
The ICC is limited in its ability to improve its own efficiency. The ICC should and must seek to limit the size of its bureaucracy, hold those who work for the ICC more accountable, and enforce the requirements for judges more stringently. However, before anything can truly change with regard to efficiency, states must make a commitment to recognizing the ICC as an independent instrument of international justice. Some of this will change with time. In general, the Office of the Prosecutor must continue its work and do all that it can with current resources. It must pursue meaningful convictions that consider the full impact of the defendant's crimes, it must strive to publicize its work through global media, and it must show its results to both those afflicted and the world. The ICC must show the world its accomplishments and its potential for good so that the people, not just governments, recognize its value and press their leaders to support it. If governments begin to accept the decisions of the ICC, aid in its apprehension, and help it assert diplomatic power, the ICC will be further legitimized in the eyes of the world and more capable of carrying out its duties as a institution of international criminal justice. This success will further legitimize its value, creating a positive feedback loop that will hopefully institutionalize the work of the ICC. Unfortunately, it is much easier for governments to disregard or even actively defy the actions of the ICC, and currently, this seems to be the norm. Governments prevent or attempt to slow evidence gathering by the OTP, judicial nominees are not subjected to the most rigorous standards, and the major powers of the world refuse to pledge full support for the court. It is only if these attitudes change that the court will ever function as an efficient instrument of justice.