The day the trial of Thomas Lubanga resumed at the International Criminal Court (ICC) on 7 January 2010 was marked by the testimony of Radhika Coomaraswamy, the UN secretary general’s special representative for children and armed conflict. During her testimony, Coomaraswamy reminded ICC judges that with regard to defining “child soldiers” it is important to [...]
The International Criminal Court (ICC) is by essence complementary to national criminal jurisdictions of States Parties. It is only seized if the State party is unwilling or unable genuinely to carry out the investigation or the prosecution (Art. 17(1) (a and b) of the Rome Statute).
The Democratic Republic of the Congo falls into the situation [...]
After the death of its President, Lansana Conté, in December 2008, Guinea experienced a coup d’état led by Moussa Dadis Camara, head of the Guinean junta. After taking power, Camara promised to refrain from running for office during the transitory period expected to end in January of 2010. In September 2009, however, Dadis Camara [...]
The International Criminal Court (ICC) handed down an Appeal Judgment this afternoon that effectively excludes crimes of sexual slavery and inhuman treatment from the on-going trial of rebel leader Thomas Lubanga, from Ituri, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Thomas Lubanga is on trial in The Hague for recruiting and actively using children under 15 years as [...]
On 2 December 2009, the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) delivered a summary of the judgment reversing the decision of Pre-Trial Chamber II that had granted the request of Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo for interim release. It is worth recalling that Pre-Trial Chamber II had asserted that “changed circumstances” had warranted the modification [...]