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- Jenevieve Discar: Feasibility of Establishing an International Police Force: Arresting Capacity and Authority of Potential Partners to the ICC Introduction Among the various issues currently facing the International Criminal Court (ICC), one of the most widely discussed is the need for an ICC police force to effectuate arrests. Enforcing arrest mandates of an international tribunal has long been referred to as public... (more)
- emilygiven: Dissolving the Arrest Problem: Trials in Absentia at the International Criminal Court I. Introduction Since its inception in 2002, the Office of the Prosecutor (“OTP”) of the International Criminal Court (“ICC”) has issued thirty-six indictments for people allegedly involved in perpetrating international crimes in eight situation countries.1 Twenty-seven of those indictments were issued as arrest... (more)
- karen.kwok: Voluntary Surrender: An Overlooked Strategy to Strengthen Voluntary Cooperation to the International Criminal Court Cooperation with international justice depends on the law-enforcement action of sovereign States on their own territories or the voluntary action of individuals wherever they are. —Mr. M.J. Nolan, MP, Ireland Deputy Convenor of PGA’s International Law and Human Rights... (more)
- McElroy: Effectuating Arrest: A Comparative Study of the ICTY and ICC Situation Countries Introduction Since its inception in 2002, the International Criminal Court’s Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) opened formal investigations in eight countries: Uganda, Sudan, Libya, Côte d’ Ivoire, Congo, Central African Republic, Kenya, and Mali. With the exception of Mali (still in pre-trial... (more)
- John Litwin: Smarter Sanctions: The Use of Targeted Asset Freezes and Travel Bans by the ICC to Effectuate Arrests I. Introduction Of the myriad challenges facing the International Criminal Court (ICC) today, perhaps the most obstructive of its mandate to “put an end to impunity for the perpetrators” of international crimes1 is its frequent inability to effectuate the arrests of its indictees. Of the... (more)
- sukhija2013: Head of State Immunities and Article 98 of the Rome Statute: Interpretations That Avoid Obstacles to Cooperation in the Execution of ICC Arrest Warrants I. Introduction. One of the main obstacles of the International Criminal Court (“ICC” or “Court”) to achieving its objectives of ending impunity for “the most serious crimes of concern to the... (more)
- benshea: I. Introduction One of the greatest challenges facing the International Criminal Court (ICC) is securing the custody of the accused. Without an international police force, the ICC must rely on the cooperation of States to effectuate these arrests. Unfortunately, this system has not been adequate thus far. Nearly half of those with arrest warrants, 9 out of 21, are still at large.1 Furthermore, the whereabouts of... (more)
- Sandeep Prasanna: Can the International Criminal Court (ICC) rely on the International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO/Interpol) for effective assistance in securing the arrest of ICC indictees? Summary The International Criminal Police Organization (“ICPO” or “Interpol”) is an enormous intergovernmental organization that maintains an information-sharing network for member states’ national police bureaus to... (more)
- liss.ucla: How Regime Change Increases Arrest Frequency in International Criminal Courts Introduction The International Criminal Court has come under criticism for its failure to secure the arrests of many of the people for whom it has issued warrants.1 Under Article 59 of the Rome Statute, States Parties are responsible for execute warrants when instructed to do so by the Court.2 Other states may also arrest accused... (more)
- David Kramer: The Viability and Efficacy of International Bounty Hunters I. Introduction In its eleven-year history, the International Criminal Court (“ICC”) has indicted thirty persons. Nine, including Joseph Kony and Omar al-Bashir, remain at large.1 This paper analyzes what measures the ICC may take in order to reduce this unacceptable figure. Ultimately, it argues that an improbable... (more)
Comment on the Arrest Question: “What more can be done to secure the arrest and surrender of persons subject to arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court?”
While the use of bounty hunters may be an effective solution to the arrest issue, the idea of immunizing private parties who claim to act as bounty hunters strikes me as particularly troubling and impractical. A carte blanche for bounty hunters to arrest suspected war criminals by a wide variety of means seems to be a slippery slope, and a plan with which few nations would likely agree. Many countries, including world powers, but also nations in which war criminals “hide out,” would likely vehemently oppose this type of incursion on state sovereignty. Immunity may also legitimize means of arresting suspects that are not condoned by the international community, or even provide a shield to illegal and violent acts in the name of “international justice.” Instituting a licensing scheme would not likely reign in the actions of bounty hunters, particularly when the oversight or approval is tasked to the ICC itself, where resources are already scarce. The authority or precedent to provide immunity also seems lacking. The immunity of UN officials, rooted in a worldwide, well established, and widely accepted institution, is a far cry from providing immunity to private actors.