October 3, 2003

International human rights violations focus of conference

The international community has counteracted human rights violations for the past century. However, not until now is the world establishing the first permanent International Criminal Court (ICC), headquartered in The Hague. The priority of the court is to secure peace, justice, and human rights by punishing individuals who are responsible for acts of genocide, crimes against humanity, crimes of aggression, and war crimes. This includes individuals who commit murder, torture, slavery, various sexual offenses, and apartheid.

The court's goal is to peacefully secure the rights and responsibilities of individuals, both government officials and private citizens, through justice. Exactly how the court will achieves this goal, as well as its jurisdiction and structure, are the main topics of an international conference hosted by Loyola's International Law Student Association and the School of Law.

"International Criminal Law: The Expansion of Individual Rights and Responsibilities for Human Rights Violations" is the title of the conference that runs Thursday - Saturday, October 16 to 18.

Four panels, presented by scholars from around the world, will discuss international criminal law, with an emphasis on the establishment of the International Criminal Court. The Hon. Maureen Clark, who is currently drafting the new policy for the court, will present the keynote lecture on October 18, at the end of panel discussions. Clark was elected and sworn in to a nine-year term as trial judge to the International Criminal Court in March. She has expertise in criminal law, with extensive experience in both the prosecution and defense of serious crimes.

The panel discussions will be conducted on Saturday. The first panel will discuss the procedures that the international community has developed in the past century to achieve justice for all individuals. The second panel will discuss the Rome Statute, which established the International Criminal Court. The third panel will discuss the United States opposition to the Rome Statute and the affects of this decision. The fourth panel will discuss possible alternatives to international criminal prosecutions.

The United Nations first recognized a need to establish an international court 50 years ago to prosecute such crimes as genocide. Then in 1993, when the conflict in the former Yugoslavia commanded national attention with acts of genocide and crimes against humanity in the guise of "ethnic cleansing," the United Nations moved aggressively to establish an International Criminal Court.

The court was approved in 1998. The court has three primary functional divisions: the judges, the registrar, and the prosecutors. There are 18 judges, who are elected by the Assembly of States Parties.

Through this conference, Loyola explores the issues of international criminal law to educate students and practitioners about the legal and political implications of this ever evolving and argumentative area of law.

Carly St. Romain, A'06, Intern, Offices of Public Affairs and Publications