The Reckoning: The Battle for the International Criminal Court of Justice
Institutional Affiliation
- What type of cases does the ICC take?
The type of cases that ICC that take include the gravest crimes like genocide, crimes against humanity, politically instigated crimes, military cases, rebel commanders, ethnic instigated killings as well as bodily harm by members of illegal groups. Firstly, ICC takes cases involving genocide that is characterized as part of racial and ethnic murder or causing physical harm by illegal groups. ICC takes genocide-related crimes that may cause or might have caused mass killings or causing bodily harm. A good example can be cited as the Rwanda genocide that left thousands of innocent people dead.
- What is meant by the statement that the ICC is considered a “court of last resort”?
International criminal court is deemed as a court of last resort because it is the only court in the world that has the capacity to prosecute people found guilty of genocide crimes such as mass killings and causing war. Ideally, the main reason why ICC is considered as the court of last resort is that it is the last option that can prosecute individuals found guilty of genocide once the national jurisdiction fails to prosecute them.
3) Why is the U.S. not a member of the ICC?
The main reason why the U.S. is not a member of the ICC is that its constitution does not allow its citizens to be prosecuted in foreign countries. The U.S constitution does not include any clause of international courts, and therefore, being a member of the ICC would be contrary to their law. Another main reason why the U.S. is not a member of the ICC is that they fear it may prompt the prosecution of veterans whose actions may not have been well received in some countries while protecting the interest of the government.
4) Describe the ICC’s case against Al-Bashir of Sudan.
Al-Bashir of Sudan faces charges against genocide and war crimes. Although he is yet to be prosecuted, Al-Bashir is accused of genocide and war crimes. According to the provided video documenting how ICC operates, Al-Bashir faces bodily harm and causing the death of thousands of citizens. According to the video, Al-Bashir faces five counts of crimes against humanity.
5) Were you familiar with the ICC before you watched this video?
ICC is an international court, and its ability to prosecute those found to have committed crimes against humanity is known across the globe. Based on this, I can say that I was familiar with the ICC before watching this video. I have been an avid follower of the court’s proceedings as well as prosecution of Charles Taylor of Liberia and other convicted offenders.
6) What is your opinion of the ICC?
They say it is hard for a country to prosecute one of their own even after being found guilty of crimes against humanity. Based on this, I can say that my opinion about ICC is that it is a competent court because it provides justice to the wounded and families of deceased individuals. Some countries like Sudan would not be willing to prosecute one of their own, and therefore, I think having ICC to prosecute such individual is a good idea.
References
https://uhd.kanopy.com/video/reckoning-0.