International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia

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International Criminal Tribunal
for the former Yugoslavia
ICTY logo.svg
Logo of the Tribunal
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
52°05′40″N4°17′03″E / 52.0944°N 4.2843°E / 52.0944; 4.2843
Established25 May 1993
Dissolved31 December 2017
Location The Hague, Netherlands
Coordinates 52°05′40″N4°17′03″E / 52.0944°N 4.2843°E / 52.0944; 4.2843
Authorized by United Nations Security Council Resolution 827
Judge term lengthFour years
Number of positions
Website www.icty.org OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg

The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) [lower-alpha 1] was a body of the United Nations that was established to prosecute the war crimes that had been committed during the Yugoslav Wars and to try their perpetrators. The tribunal was an ad hoc court located in The Hague, Netherlands.

Contents

It was established by Resolution 827 of the United Nations Security Council, which was passed on 25 May 1993. It had jurisdiction over four clusters of crimes committed on the territory of the former Yugoslavia since 1991: grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions, violations of the laws or customs of war, genocide, and crimes against humanity. The maximum sentence that it could impose was life imprisonment. Various countries signed agreements with the United Nations to carry out custodial sentences.

A total of 161 persons were indicted; the final indictments were issued in December 2004, the last of which were confirmed and unsealed in the spring of 2005. [1] The final fugitive, Goran Hadžić, was arrested on 20 July 2011. [2] The final judgment was issued on 29 November 2017 [3] and the institution formally ceased to exist on 31 December 2017. [4]

Residual functions of the ICTY, including the oversight of sentences and consideration of any appeal proceedings initiated since 1 July 2013, are under the jurisdiction of a successor body, the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT). [5]

History

Creation

Report S/25704 of the UN Secretary-General, including the proposed Statute of the International Tribunal, approved by UN Security Council Resolution 827 UN Secretary-General Report S25704.pdf
Report S/25704 of the UN Secretary-General, including the proposed Statute of the International Tribunal, approved by UN Security Council Resolution 827

United Nations Security Council Resolution 808 of 22 February 1993 decided that an "international tribunal shall be established for the prosecution of persons responsible for serious violations of international humanitarian law committed in the territory of the former Yugoslavia since 1991", and called on the Secretary-General to "submit for consideration by the Council ... a report on all aspects of this matter, including specific proposals and where appropriate options ... taking into account suggestions put forward in this regard by Member States". [6]

The Court was originally proposed by German Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel. [7]

Resolution 827 of 25 May 1993 approved the S/25704 report of the Secretary-General and adopted the Statute of the International Tribunal annexed to it, formally creating the ICTY. It was to have jurisdiction over four clusters of crimes committed on the territory of the former SFR Yugoslavia since 1991:

  1. Grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions
  2. Violations of the laws or customs of war
  3. Genocide
  4. Crime against humanity.

The maximum sentence the ICTY could impose for these crimes was life imprisonment.

Implementation

In 1993 the internal infrastructure of the ICTY was built. 17 states had signed an agreement with the ICTY to carry out custodial sentences. [8]

1993–1994: In the first year of its existence, the Tribunal laid the foundations for its existence as a judicial organ. It established the legal framework for its operations by adopting the rules of procedure and evidence, as well as its rules of detention and directive for the assignment of defence counsel. Together, these rules established a legal aid system for the Tribunal. As the ICTY was a part of the United Nations and was the first international court for criminal justice, the development of a juridical infrastructure was considered quite a challenge. However, after the first year, the first ICTY judges had drafted and adopted all the rules for court proceedings. [9]

1994–1995: The ICTY established its offices within the Aegon Insurance Building in The Hague (which was, at the time, still partially in use by Aegon) [10] and detention facilities in Scheveningen in The Hague (the Netherlands). The ICTY hired many staff members and by July 1994, the Office of the Prosecutor had sufficient staff to begin field investigations. By November 1994, the first indictments were presented to the Court and confirmed, and in 1995, the staff numbered over 200 persons from all over the world.

Operation

The Tribunal building in The Hague ICTY.JPG
The Tribunal building in The Hague

In 1994 the first indictment was issued against the Bosnian-Serb concentration camp commander Dragan Nikolić. This was followed on 13 February 1995 by two indictments comprising 21 individuals which were issued against a group of 21 Bosnian-Serbs charged with committing atrocities against Muslim and Croat civilian prisoners. While the war in the former Yugoslavia was still raging, the ICTY prosecutors showed that an international court was viable. However, no accused was arrested. [11]

The court confirmed eight indictments against 46 individuals and issued arrest warrants. Bosnian Serb indictee Duško Tadić became the subject of the Tribunal's first trial. Tadić was arrested by German police in Munich in 1994 for his alleged actions in the Prijedor region in Bosnia-Herzegovina (especially his actions in the Omarska, Trnopolje and Keraterm detention camps). He made his first appearance before the ICTY Trial Chamber on 26 April 1995, and pleaded not guilty to all of the charges in the indictment. [12]

1995–1996: Between June 1995 and June 1996, 10 public indictments had been confirmed against a total of 33 individuals. Six of the newly indicted persons were transferred in the Tribunal's detention unit. In addition to Duško Tadic, by June 1996 the tribunal had Tihomir Blaškić, Dražen Erdemović, Zejnil Delalić, [13] Zdravko Mucić, [14] Esad Landžo and Hazim Delić in custody. Erdemović became the first person to enter a guilty plea before the tribunal's court. Between 1995 and 1996, the ICTY dealt with miscellaneous cases involving several detainees, which never reached the trial stage.

Indictees and accomplishments

The Tribunal indicted 161 individuals between 1997 and 2004 and completed proceedings with them as follows: [15] [16]

The indictees ranged from common soldiers to generals and police commanders all the way to prime ministers. Slobodan Milošević was the first sitting head of state indicted for war crimes. [17] Other "high level" indictees included Milan Babić, former President of the Republika Srpska Krajina; Ramush Haradinaj, former Prime Minister of Kosovo; Radovan Karadžić, former President of the Republika Srpska; Ratko Mladić, former Commander of the Bosnian Serb Army; and Ante Gotovina (acquitted), former General of the Croatian Army.

The very first hearing at the ICTY was a referral request in the Tadić case on 8 November 1994. Croat Serb General and former President of the Republic of Serbian Krajina Goran Hadžić was the last fugitive wanted by the Tribunal to be arrested on 20 July 2011. [2]

An additional 23 individuals have been the subject of contempt proceedings. [18]

In 2004, the ICTY published a list of five accomplishments "in justice and law": [19] [20]

  1. "Spearheading the shift from impunity to accountability", pointing out that, until very recently, it was the only court judging crimes committed as part of the Yugoslav conflict, since prosecutors in the former Yugoslavia were, as a rule, reluctant to prosecute such crimes;
  2. "Establishing the facts", highlighting the extensive evidence-gathering and lengthy findings of fact that Tribunal judgments produced;
  3. "Bringing justice to thousands of victims and giving them a voice", pointing out the large number of witnesses that had been brought before the Tribunal;
  4. "The accomplishments in international law", describing the fleshing out of several international criminal law concepts which had not been ruled on since the Nuremberg Trials;
  5. "Strengthening the Rule of Law", referring to the Tribunal's role in promoting the use of international standards in war crimes prosecutions by former Yugoslav republics.

Closure

The United Nations Security Council passed resolutions 1503 in August 2003 and 1534 in March 2004, which both called for the completion of all cases at both the ICTY and its sister tribunal, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) by 2010.

In December 2010, the Security Council adopted Resolution 1966, which established the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT), a body intended to gradually assume residual functions from both the ICTY and the ICTR as they wound down their mandate. Resolution 1966 called upon the Tribunal to finish its work by 31 December 2014 to prepare for its closure and the transfer of its responsibilities. [5]

In a Completion Strategy Report issued in May 2011, the ICTY indicated that it aimed to complete all trials by the end of 2012 and complete all appeals by 2015, with the exception of Radovan Karadžić whose trial was expected to end in 2014 and Ratko Mladić and Goran Hadžić, who were still at large at that time and were not arrested until later that year. [21]

The IRMCT's ICTY branch began functioning on 1 July 2013. Per the Transitional Arrangements adopted by the UN Security Council, the ICTY was to conduct and complete all outstanding first-instance trials, including those of Karadžić, Mladić and Hadžić. The ICTY would also conduct and complete all appeal proceedings for which the notice of appeal against the judgement or sentence was filed before 1 July 2013. The IRMCT will handle any appeals for which notice is filed after that date.

The final ICTY trial to be completed in the first instance was that of Ratko Mladić, who was convicted on 22 November 2017. [22] The final case to be considered by the ICTY was an appeal proceeding encompassing six individuals, whose sentences were upheld on 29 November 2017. [23]

Organization

While operating, the Tribunal employed around 900 staff. [24] Its organisational components were Chambers, Registry and the Office of the Prosecutor (OTP).

Lateral view of the building ICTY 2006-01-16.jpg
Lateral view of the building

Prosecutors

The Prosecutor was responsible for investigating crimes, gathering evidence and prosecutions and was head of the Office of the Prosecutor (OTP). [25] The Prosecutor was appointed by the UN Security Council upon nomination by the UN Secretary-General. [26]

The last prosecutor was Serge Brammertz. Previous Prosecutors have been Ramón Escovar Salom of Venezuela (1993–1994), however, he never took up that office, Richard Goldstone of South Africa (1994–1996), Louise Arbour of Canada (1996–1999), and Carla Del Ponte of Switzerland (1999–2007). Richard Goldstone, Louise Arbour and Carla Del Ponte also simultaneously served as the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda until 2003. Graham Blewitt of Australia served as the Deputy Prosecutor from 1994 until 2004. David Tolbert, the President of the International Center for Transitional Justice, was also appointed Deputy Prosecutor of the ICTY in 2004. [27]

Chambers

Chambers encompassed the judges and their aides. The Tribunal operated three Trial Chambers and one Appeals Chamber. The President of the Tribunal was also the presiding Judge of the Appeals Chamber.

Judges

At the time of the court's dissolution, there were seven permanent judges and one ad hoc judge who served on the Tribunal. [28] [29] A total of 86 judges have been appointed to the Tribunal from 52 United Nations member states. Of those judges, 51 were permanent judges, 36 were ad litem judges, and one was an ad hoc judge. Note that one judge served as both a permanent and ad litem judge, and another served as both a permanent and ad hoc judge.

UN member and observer states could each submit up to two nominees of different nationalities to the UN Secretary-General. [30] The UN Secretary-General submitted this list to the UN Security Council which selected from 28 to 42 nominees and submitted these nominees to the UN General Assembly. [30] The UN General Assembly then elected 14 judges from that list. [30] Judges served for four years and were eligible for re-election. The UN Secretary-General appointed replacements in case of vacancy for the remainder of the term of office concerned. [30]

On 21 October 2015, Judge Carmel Agius of Malta was elected President of the ICTY and Liu Daqun of China was elected Vice-President; they assumed their positions on 17 November 2015. [31] His predecessors were Antonio Cassese of Italy (1993–1997), Gabrielle Kirk McDonald of the United States (1997–1999), Claude Jorda of France (1999–2002), Theodor Meron of the United States (2002–2005), Fausto Pocar of Italy (2005–2008), Patrick Robinson of Jamaica (2008–2011), and Theodor Meron (2011–2015). [28] [32]

Name [28] [32] [29] State [28] [32] [29] Position(s) [28] [32] [29] Term began [28] [32] [29] Term ended [28] [32] [29]
Georges Abi-Saab Flag of Egypt.svg  Egypt Permanent17 November 19931 October 1995
Koffi Afande Flag of Togo.svg  Togo Permanent12 December 201330 June 2016
Antonio Cassese Flag of Italy.svg  Italy Permanent / President17 November 199317 February 2000
Jules Deschênes Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada Permanent17 November 19931 May 1997
Adolphus Karibi-Whyte Flag of Nigeria.svg  Nigeria Permanent / Vice-President17 November 199316 November 1998
Germain Le Foyer De Costil Flag of France.svg  France Permanent17 November 19931 January 1994
Li Haopei Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg  China Permanent17 November 19936 November 1997
Gabrielle McDonald Flag of the United States.svg  United States Permanent / President17 November 199317 November 1999
Elizabeth Odio Benito Flag of Costa Rica.svg  Costa Rica Permanent / Vice-President17 November 199316 November 1998
Rustam Sidhwa Flag of Pakistan.svg  Pakistan Permanent17 November 199315 July 1996
Ninian Stephen Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia Permanent17 November 199316 November 1997
Lal Chand Vohrah Flag of Malaysia.svg  Malaysia Permanent17 November 199316 November 2001
Claude Jorda Flag of France.svg  France Permanent / President19 January 199411 March 2003
Fouad Riad Flag of Egypt.svg  Egypt Permanent4 October 199516 November 2001
Saad Saood Jan Flag of Pakistan.svg  Pakistan Permanent4 September 199616 November 1998
Mohamed Shahabuddeen Flag of Guyana.svg  Guyana Permanent / Vice-President16 June 199710 May 2009
Richard May Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom Permanent17 November 199717 March 2004
Florence Mumba Flag of Zambia.svg  Zambia Permanent / Vice-President17 November 199716 November 2005
Rafael Nieto Navia Flag of Colombia.svg  Colombia Permanent17 November 199716 November 2001
Ad litem3 December 20015 December 2003
Almiro Rodrigues Flag of Portugal.svg  Portugal Permanent17 November 199716 November 2001
Wang Tieya Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg  China Permanent17 November 199731 March 2000
Patrick Robinson Flag of Jamaica.svg  Jamaica Permanent / President16 October 19988 April 2015
Mohamed Bennouna Flag of Morocco.svg  Morocco Permanent16 November 199828 February 2001
David Hunt Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia Permanent16 November 199814 November 2003
Patricia Wald Flag of the United States.svg  United States Permanent17 November 199916 November 2001
Liu Daqun Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg  China Permanent / Vice-President3 April 200031 December 2017
Carmel Agius Flag of Malta.svg  Malta Permanent / President; Vice-President14 March 200131 December 2017
Mohamed Fassi-Fihri Flag of Morocco.svg  Morocco Ad litem14 March 200116 November 2001
10 April 20021 November 2002
Theodor Meron Flag of the United States.svg  United States Permanent / President14 March 200131 December 2017
Fausto Pocar Flag of Italy.svg  Italy Permanent / President14 March 200131 December 2017
Mehmet Güney Flag of Turkey.svg  Turkey Permanent11 July 200130 April 2015
Maureen Harding Clark Flag of Ireland.svg  Ireland Ad litem6 September 200111 March 2003
Fatoumata Diarra Flag of Mali.svg  Mali Ad litem6 September 200111 March 2003
Ivana Janu Flag of the Czech Republic.svg  Czech Republic Ad litem6 September 200111 September 2004
Amarjeet Singh Flag of Singapore.svg  Singapore Ad litem6 September 20015 April 2002
Chikako Taya Flag of Japan.svg  Japan Ad litem6 September 20011 September 2004
Sharon Williams Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada Ad litem6 September 200117 October 2003
Asoka de Zoysa Gunawardana Flag of Sri Lanka.svg  Sri Lanka Permanent4 October 20015 July 2003
Amin El Mahdi Flag of Egypt.svg  Egypt Permanent17 November 200116 November 2005
O-Gon Kwon Flag of South Korea.svg  Korea, South Permanent / Vice-President17 November 200131 March 2016
Alphons Orie Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands Permanent17 November 200131 December 2017
Wolfgang Schomburg Flag of Germany.svg  Germany Permanent17 November 200117 November 2008
Per-Johan Lindholm Flag of Finland.svg  Finland Ad litem10 April 200217 October 2003
Volodymyr Vasylenko Flag of Ukraine.svg  Ukraine Ad litem10 April 200225 January 2005
Carmen Argibay Flag of Argentina.svg  Argentina Ad litem5 November 200218 January 2005
Joaquín Martín Canivell Flag of Spain.svg  Spain Ad litem2 May 200327 September 2006
Inés Weinberg de Roca Flag of Argentina.svg  Argentina Permanent17 June 200315 August 2005
Jean-Claude Antonetti Flag of France.svg  France Permanent1 October 200331 March 2016
Vonimbolana Rasoazanany Flag of Madagascar.svg  Madagascar Ad litem17 November 200316 March 2006
Albertus Swart Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands Ad litem1 December 200316 March 2006
Kevin Parker Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia Permanent / Vice-President8 December 200328 February 2011
Krister Thelin Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden Ad litem15 December 200310 July 2008
Chris Van Den Wyngaert Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium Permanent15 December 200331 August 2009
Iain Bonomy Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom Permanent7 June 200431 August 2009
Hans Brydensholt Flag of Denmark.svg  Denmark Ad litem21 September 200430 June 2006
Albin Eser Flag of Germany.svg  Germany Ad litem21 September 200430 June 2006
Claude Hanoteau Flag of France.svg  France Ad litem25 January 200527 September 2006
György Szénási Flag of Hungary.svg  Hungary Ad litem25 January 200530 May 2005
Andrésia Vaz Flag of Senegal.svg  Senegal Permanent15 August 200531 May 2013
Bakone Moloto Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa Permanent17 November 200531 December 2017
Frank Höpfel Flag of Austria.svg  Austria Ad litem2 December 20053 April 2008
Janet Nosworthy Flag of Jamaica.svg  Jamaica Ad litem2 December 200526 February 2009
Árpád Prandler Flag of Hungary.svg  Hungary Ad litem7 April 20067 June 2013
Stefan Trechsel Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg   Switzerland Ad litem7 April 20067 June 2013
Antoine Mindua Flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.svg  Congo, Democratic Republic of the Ad litem25 April 200630 July 2016
Ali Nawaz Chowhan Flag of Pakistan.svg  Pakistan Ad litem26 June 200626 February 2009
Tsvetana Kamenova Flag of Bulgaria.svg  Bulgaria Ad litem26 June 200626 February 2009
Kimberly Prost Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada Ad litem3 July 200631 March 2010
Ole Støle Flag of Norway.svg  Norway Ad litem13 July 200610 June 2010
Frederik Harhoff Flag of Denmark.svg  Denmark Ad litem9 January 200728 August 2013
Flavia Lattanzi Flag of Italy.svg  Italy Ad litem2 July 200731 March 2016
Pedro David Flag of Argentina.svg  Argentina Ad litem27 February 200813 September 2011
Elizabeth Gwaunza Flag of Zimbabwe.svg  Zimbabwe Ad litem3 March 20088 June 2013
Michèle Picard Flag of France.svg  France Ad litem3 March 20088 June 2013
Uldis Kinis Flag of Latvia.svg  Latvia Ad litem10 March 200818 April 2011
Christoph Flügge Flag of Germany.svg  Germany Permanent18 November 200831 December 2017
Melville Baird Flag of Trinidad and Tobago.svg  Trinidad and Tobago Ad litem15 December 200831 March 2016
Burton Hall Flag of the Bahamas.svg  Bahamas, The Permanent7 August 200930 July 2016
Ad hoc3 October 201631 December 2017
Howard Morrison Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom Permanent31 August 200931 March 2016
Guy Delvoie Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium Permanent1 September 200930 July 2016
Prisca Matimba Nyambe Flag of Zambia.svg  Zambia Ad litem1 December 200918 December 2012
Arlette Ramaroson Flag of Madagascar.svg  Madagascar Permanent19 October 201121 December 2015
Khalida Khan Flag of Pakistan.svg  Pakistan Permanent6 March 201221 December 2015
Bakhtiyar Tuzmukhamedov Flag of Russia.svg  Russia Permanent1 June 201221 December 2015
William Sekule Flag of Tanzania.svg  Tanzania Permanent18 March 201330 April 2015
Mandiaye Niang Flag of Senegal.svg  Senegal Permanent30 October 201331 March 2016

Registry

The Registry was responsible for handling the administration of the Tribunal; activities included keeping court records, translating court documents, transporting and accommodating those who appear to testify, operating the Public Information Section, and such general duties as payroll administration, personnel management and procurement. It was also responsible for the Detention Unit for indictees being held during their trial and the Legal Aid program for indictees who cannot pay for their own defence. It was headed by the Registrar, a position occupied over the years by Theo van Boven of the Netherlands (February 1994 to December 1994), Dorothée de Sampayo Garrido-Nijgh of the Netherlands (1995–2000), Hans Holthuis of the Netherlands (2001–2009), and John Hocking of Australia (May 2009 to December 2017).

Detention facilities

A typical 10 m single cell at the ICTY detention facilities ICTY Detention Unit cell.jpg
A typical 10 m single cell at the ICTY detention facilities

Those defendants on trial and those who were denied a provisional release were detained at the United Nations Detention Unit on the premises of the Penitentiary Institution Haaglanden, location Scheveningen in Belgisch Park, a suburb of The Hague, located some 3 km by road from the courthouse. The indicted were housed in private cells which had a toilet, shower, radio, satellite TV, personal computer (without internet access) and other luxuries. They were allowed to phone family and friends daily and could have conjugal visits. There was also a library, a gym and various rooms used for religious observances. The inmates were allowed to cook for themselves. All of the inmates mixed freely and were not segregated on the basis of nationality. As the cells were more akin to a university residence instead of a jail, some had derisively referred to the ICT as the "Hague Hilton". [34] The reason for this luxury relative to other prisons is that the first president of the court wanted to emphasise that the indictees were innocent until proven guilty. [35]

Controversies

Criticisms of the court include:

See also

Notes

  1. Officially the "International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1991"

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Further reading

  1. McAllister, Jacqueline R. (January 2020). "Deterring Wartime Atrocities: Hard Lessons from the Yugoslav Tribunal". International Security. 44 (3): 84–128. doi:10.1162/isec_a_00370. S2CID   209892079.