The assessment of the rule of severity in the proceedings of the International Criminal Court

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 PhD Candidate

2 international law Department , law faulty Qom university

3 Professor of jurisprudence and Islamic law, Islamic Azad University, Sawah, Iran

Abstract

Despite the seriousness of the nature of all crimes under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal (ICC), due to its limited capacity to deal with all of them. Adequate intensity, as the objective element, is the most important mechanism for selecting and prioritizing crimes and the condition of the court. At, the lack of definition of this criterion and its components in the Rome Statute has given rise to a different interpretation of it. The key question is, what is the criterion for assessing the severity of the acceptance of cases under the jurisdiction of the Court, and what threshold of severity is required? In response to this issue, the scope, the nature, impact, and manner of committing a crime and rank or the role of the perpetrator are components of the assessment of the rule of severity However, in the criteria of assessment, and the level of severity thresholds in the divine divine approach. "Acceptance of the situation" and "acceptance of the case" are not the same criteria, while according to the statute, two different assessments of the concept of an intensity are not acceptable In addition, there is disagreement over the threshold of severity. Although the Tribunal's function in recent years has shown a diminution of views, the concept, criterion and scope of this rule and the threshold for the selection of clear claims are unclear, and the legitimacy of the Court is challenged. This issue has been investigated by descriptive-analytical method.

Keywords


Buchan, Russell (2014) "The Mavi Marmara Incident and the International Criminal Court ", Criminal Law Forum, Vol.25. pp 465–503.
DeGuzman, Margaret.M (2009) "Gravity and the Legitimacy of the International Criminal Court", Fordham International Law Journal, Vol. 32. pp.1400-1465
DeGuzman, Margaret, M. (2015) "What is the Gravity Threshold for an ICC Investigation? Lessons from the Pre-Trial Chamber Decision in the Comoros Situation", 19 ASIL INSIGHTS (August 11, 2015), available at http://www.asil.org/insights/volume/19/issue/19/what-gravity-threshold-icc-investigation-lessons-pretrial-chamber (14 october 2019).
El Zeidy, Mohamed (2008) "The Gravity Threshold under the Statute of the International Criminal Court", Criminal Law Forum", Vol. 19, pp. 35-57
El Zeidy, Mohamed, (2008) The Principle of Complementarity in International Criminal Law: Origin, Development and Practice, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers.
Heller Kevin, Jon. (2009) "Situational Gravity under the Rome Statute", Carsten Stahn & Larissa van den Herik, Future Directions in International Criminal Justice", (TMC Asser Press). pp.227-253.
Mba Chidi Nmaju, (1999) "The Principle of Complementarity", in Roy S. Lee (ed.) The International Criminal Court: The Making of the Rome Statute, Issues, Negotiations, Results, The Hague: Kluwer Law International.
Huber Florian and Ambos (2011) "The Colombian Peace Process and the Principle of Complementarity of the International Criminal Court: Is there sufficient willingness and ability on the part of the Colombian authorities or should the Prosecutor open an investigation now?", lnstitute for Criminal Law and Justice, Available at> http://www.department- goettingen.de/data/documents/Veroeffentlichungen/epapers/Colombianpeaceprocessandcomplementarity.pdf. (4 october 2019)
Longobardo,Marco (2016) " Factors Relevant For the Assessment of Sufficient Gravity: The ICC. Proceedings and the Elements of International Crimes", Questions of Intrenational Law, Vol 33.pp. 21-41
Mba Chidi, Nmaju (2009) "Violence in Kenya: Any Role for the ICC in the Quest for Accountability?,” African Journal of Legal Studies, Vol. 3, pp. 78-95.
O’Brien, Melanie, (2012) " Prosecutorial Discretion as an Obstacle to Prosecution of United Nations Peacekeepers by the International Criminal Court The Big Fish/Small Fish Debate and the Gravity Threshold" Journal of International Criminal Justice, Vol. 10, pp. 525–545.
Osiel, Mark (2007)"How Should the ICC Office of the Prosecutor Choose its Cases? The Multiple Meanings of ‘Situational Gravity", The Hague Justice Portal, available at: http://www.haguejusticeportal.net/index.php?id=10344. (4 october 2019)
 Ray, Murphy (2006) "Gravity Issue And The International Criminal Court", Criminal Law Forum, pp.281-315.
Schabas, William, (2010) "Victor’s Justice: Selecting “Situations, at the International Criminal Court", Journa of Marshall Law Review, Vol. 43. pp. 535-552.
Schabas, William A. (2008) "Prosecutorial Discretion v. Judicial Activism at the International Criminal Court", Journal of International Criminal Justice, Vol. 6, pp.731-761.
Schabas, William (2011) An Introduction to International Criminal Court, Cambridge University Press.
SáCouto, Susana, and Cleary, Katherine A. (2008) "The Gravity Threshold of the International Criminal Court", American University Washington College of Law, Vol. 23, pp.807-850.
Doduments
the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. (17 July 1998).
Policy Paper on Preliminary Examinations (4 October 2010).
Paper on some policy issues before the office of the prosecutor, (2 September 2003).
Rules of Procedure and Evidence of the International Criminal Court. (30 June 2000) .
Strategic Plan, 2016-2018, ICC-OTP, (16 November 2015).
Report of the International Law Commission on the work of its forty-sixth session (UN Doc. A/49/10).
Report on the Preparatory Committee for the Establishment of an International Criminal Court (UN
 Doc. A/Conf. 183/2/Add.1).
Report on the activities performed during the first three years, 2006. Available at> https://www.legal-   tools.org/doc/c7a850/pdf. (24 February 2019).
Report on Preliminary Examination Activities –from years,2014 to 2018. Available at https://www.legal-tools.org/en/browse/ltfolder/0_34993/0 (20 February 2019).
Report on the activities performed during the first three years, (12 September 2006).
 ILC, ‘Summary Record of the 2330th Meeting’ (1994) YB Intl L Commission vol 1.
ICC-OTP, Policy Paper on Preliminary Examination (November 2013- ICC-OTP, Response to Communications Received Concerning Iraq.
ICC-OTP, Statement by Luis Moreno-Ocampo (24 October 2005( .
ICC Press Release, ICC Judges Request Clarification and Additional Information with Regard to the Situation in Kenya (19 February 2010(.
Situation on Registered Vessels of Comoros, Greece and Cambodia: Article 53(1) Report (6 November 2014).
 
Caces
Prosecutor v. Abu Garda (ICC-02/05-02/09-243-Red) Pre-Trial Chamber I (8 February 2010). Prosecutor v. Muthaura, Kenyatta and Ali (ICC-01/09-02/11-338) Pre-Trial Chamber II (19 September 2011).
Prosecutor v. Muthaura, Kenyatta and Ali (ICC-01/09-02/11-382-Red) Pre-Trial Chamber II (23 January 2012).
Prosecutor v. Lubanga (ICC-01/04-01/06-8-US-Corr) Pre-Trial Chamber I (24 February 2006).
 
Situations
the- Situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (ICC-01/04-169) Appeals Chamber (13 July 2006.
the- Situation in Uganda (ICC-02/04-01/05-1) Pre-Trial Chamber II (8 July 2005).
the Situation in the Republic of Kenya (ICC-01/09-3) Pre-Trial Chamber II (26 November 2009).
the Situation in the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire (ICC-02/11-3) Pre-Trial Chamber III (23 June 2011).
the - Situation in The Republic of Cóte d'Ivoire (ICC-02/11-14) Pre-Trial Chamber- ICC-OTP, Draft Policy.
Situation on Registered Vessels of Comoros, Greece and Cambodia: Article 53(1) Report (6 November 2014). Available at> - https://www.icc-cpi.int/itemsDocuments/2017-PE-rep/2017-otp-rep- PE_ENG.pdf,p 65-66..(( 5 February 2019)
Decision on the Prosecutor’s request for authorization of an investigation.Available at>https://www.icc-cpi.int/CourtRecords/CR2016_00608.PDF,p 23 (1 February 2019).