International jurisdiction is exercised by international criminal tribunals to prosecute war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity. It is derived from international law and treaties, including the establishment of the International Criminal Court. Territorial jurisdiction is the norm, but international jurisdiction has expanded due to the development of humanitarian law. The ICC exercises complementary jurisdiction when a country is unable to prosecute the accused. Some oppose international jurisdiction, preferring territorial jurisdiction.
International jurisdiction is the exercise of judicial authority over a person accused of war crimes, genocide or crimes against humanity by an international criminal tribunal for the purpose of deciding guilt and punishment. It falls within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and special international criminal tribunals periodically established to assess violations of human rights and humanitarian law in specific countries. The authority for an international jurisdiction system derives from international law and the adoption of treaties establishing the ICC and related human rights and humanitarian law documents that have been ratified by many countries around the world.
As a rule, the jurisdiction is territorial. The responsibility rests with a country to prosecute people for crimes committed within its borders. It goes against the long-standing notion of national supremacy to allow any country or outside entity to reach out to a country and exercise authority over matters and citizens that the country controls.
The development of international law and the adoption of the notion of fundamental human rights have changed the jurisdictional landscape. As a result of the atrocities committed by the Nazis in World War II and the subsequent cases of genocide and devastating state or military actions against civilian populations, the world developed principles of humanitarian law which were eventually ratified in a treaty. International tribunals have been established in countries as needed to prosecute those accused of crimes. Their international jurisdiction and authority derived from the country itself and from the resolution of wartime conflict.
In 2002, the international community established the ICC as a forum for violations of human rights and humanitarian law. The ICC asserts international jurisdiction over a person in any case where the country where the acts were committed is unable to effectively prosecute the accused. In this way, the ICC exercises complementary jurisdiction, or jurisdiction in lieu of a country’s natural jurisdiction in the matter.
International jurisdiction is an integral part of the ICC’s authority and tends to expand further as more countries adopt principles that protect civilian populations and condemn atrocities. There are opponents, however, who believe that this type of jurisdiction is too arbitrary, disorganized and not firmly rooted in the procedure of law. They believe that territorial jurisdiction has historically been a suitable mechanism for exercising state control over individuals and that it is still the best method, even in cases of crimes against populations that shock consciences.
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