What’s the ICC?

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The International Criminal Court, also known as the ICC, is an independent judicial organization that reserves the right to try people accused of the world’s most serious crimes. These include forced pregnancy in a war situation, extermination of an ethnic group, and forcible population transfer. The existence of this international tribunal is supported by a document known as the Rome Statute. Most, but not all, countries in the world are signatories, also called states parties, to the Rome Statute.

The International Criminal Court entered into force on 1 July 2002. Since its establishment, the ICC has been based in The Hague, the Netherlands. However, the court is not obliged to remain in that place. The court is funded by its state parties and by voluntary donations from other entities, such as international organizations.

According to the Rome Statute, the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court is limited to cases involving “the most serious crimes of concern to the entire international community”. These crimes generally fall into three categories, which are genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. There is a fourth category, the crime of assault, over which the court has reserved the right to exercise jurisdiction. However, when the court went into effect in 2002, a provision defining such an offense had not been adopted.

States signatories to the Rome Statute recognize the International Criminal Court’s definitions of its three areas of jurisdiction as an international standard. For example, genocide is recognized by all States parties as “acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group”. The acts outlined for this crime include killing members of the group, imposing measures to prevent the birth of children in the group, or forcibly transferring children to another group.

The ICC cannot exercise jurisdiction over events that occurred before July 1, 2002. Nor can it exercise jurisdiction over events that occurred before the Rome Statute is signed by a particular state. Because the International Criminal Court is intended to complement national governments, it does not exercise jurisdiction when bona fide criminal investigations or prosecutions by a national government are underway.

The structure of the court can be narrowed down to three well-defined bodies. First, there’s the presidency, which is made up of three judges elected by their peers to serve three-year terms. These people act as an administrative authority of the court.
Secondly, there is a judicial division divided into three parts. The investigation section is a body of judges empowered to issue arrest warrants or summons for suspects. This body also holds hearings to confirm charges when such individuals appear before the court.
The trial section hears and judges criminal cases. These judges assume that the defendant is innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt and recognize the defendant’s legal rights. If they find the defendant guilty, they can order imprisonment and compensation. Subsequently, the appeals section deals with the appeals brought by the convicted persons and by the recipients of compensation orders.

The third organ of the court is the Public Prosecutor’s Office. This office receives referrals for cases suggested by states parties and the United Nations Security Council. This office can also initiate cases. If authorization for an investigation is authorized by the Investigation Branch, the Public Prosecutor’s Office acts as the investigator. When there is probable cause, this office will attempt to prosecute.

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