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ICJ judge details the evolution of international criminal law

November 07, 2016

According to Robinson, the court has gone through both structural and normative changes since Nuremberg, especially in the areas of crime...

According to Robinson, the court has gone through both “structural” and “normative” changes since Nuremberg, especially in the areas of crimes against humanity and genocide.

Justice Patrick Robinson of the International Court of Justice spoke at Penn Law about the progress and changes in international criminal law since the Nuremberg trials.

By Maria Biery C’18

On November 1, Justice Patrick Robinson of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) spoke at Penn Law about the progress and changes in international criminal law since the Nuremberg trials. The event was held as part of the Dean’s Distinguished Speaker Series.

According to Robinson, the court has gone through both “structural” and “normative” changes since Nuremberg, especially in the areas of crimes against humanity and genocide.

As an example, in reference to the Geneva Conventions, he stated, “the importance of these conventions for the advancement in humanitarian protections cannot be overstressed.”

He also explained that another “central point of progress is the confirmation and development of the Nuremberg principle of individual criminal responsibility.” This principle “accounts for serious breaches of international humanitarian law.”

But, one of the greatest developments in international criminal law, in Justice Robinson’s opinion, was the emphasis on the rights of the accused.

“If an observer of the Nuremberg trials were to watch a trial today, he would find it hard to believe that the accused was charged with equivalent offenses,” said Robinson. “The major difference emanates from the development and codification of the principle of the right to a fair trial.”

He also noted that the expansion and scope of crimes has also developed since Nuremberg. He explained that the definition of crimes against humanity has expanded, and the Nuremberg trials did not address the issue of genocide at all.

Later, Robinson spoke specifically on the issue of genocide saying, “The crime of genocide, as you know, has a very specific mens rea, the intent to destroy in whole or in part. The mens rea of genocide poses a very high mark and has been difficult to prove.”

The ICJ, as of now, restricts the definition of genocide to the physical or biological destruction of a group, according to Robinson, but he also says there “have been questions as to whether the tribunals have been overly restrictive in adopting this definition.”

The court seems to have made progress since Nuremberg, Robinson argued. However, at the end of his speech he addressed the recent departure of three African countries from the International Criminal Court.

Robinson said that many feel the ICC was only set up to try Africans. While he noted that it is true that the court has only heard African cases, and this does hurt the credibility of the ICC, he informed the audience that they are currently researching and pursuing cases in places such as Afghanistan, Iraq, and the U.K.

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