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Increasing Case Traffic: Expanding The International Criminal Court's Focus On Human Trafficking Cases, Nadia Alhadi

Michigan Journal of International Law

Human trafficking falls within the jurisdictional competence of the International Criminal Court (“ICC”) as one of the article 7 crimes against humanity, whether committed in an atmosphere of conflict or in times of relative peace. Despite the ICC’s jurisdiction, as well as the globally pervasive nature of peacetime trafficking in particular, the ICC has not yet heard a human trafficking case.

Accountability at the international level, however, is crucial, and the ICC’s oversight has the potential to fill gaps in the current anti-trafficking regime. This note explores this potential, and then examines whether the text of the Rome Statute or …

Sovereign Immunity, The Au, And The Icc: Legitimacy Undermined, Christa-Gaye Kerr

Michigan Journal of International Law

This note examines how the International Criminal Court’s indictment of African leaders has led to a breakdown in the relationship between the Court and the African Union and offers solutions to repair this relationship. In particular, the ICC’s blanket rejection of sovereign immunity and its close relationship with the UNSC delegitimize the Court. As an organization that relies on the cooperation of states across the world, this is something the Court cannot afford. The ICC’s decade-long fight with the African Union over the disproportionate number of charges leveled against African nationals has weakened its stature with African states. This has …

A Higher Authority: Canada’S Cannabis Legalization In The Context Of International Law, Antonia Eliason, Robert Howse

Michigan Journal of International Law

Part I of this Article provides an overview of some of the key terms and provisions of Canada’s Cannabis Act. Part II looks at the Cannabis Act in the context of the International Drug Conventions, examining how the various convention provisions might apply, looking first at the Single Convention and then at the 1988 Convention and how that convention fits with Canadian constitutional provisions. Part III focuses on the international human rights framework and how the Cannabis Act might be viewed as compatible with international human rights law even where incompatible with the International Drug Conventions. This Part also offers …

The Michigan Guidelines On The Exclusion Of International Criminals

Michigan Journal of International Law

With a view to promoting a shared understanding of the proper approach to Article 1(F)(a) exclusion from refugee status, we have engaged in sustained collaborative study and reflection on relevant norms and state practice. Our research was debated and refined at the Sixth Colloquium on Challenges in International Refugee Law, convened in March 2013 by the University of Michigan’s Program in Refugee and Asylum Law. These Guidelines are the product of that endeavor, and reflect the consensus of Colloquium participants on how decision makers can best ensure the application of Article 1(F)(a) in a manner that conforms to international legal …

Targeting And The Concept Of Intent, Jens David Ohlin

Michigan Journal of International Law

International law generally prohibits military forces from intentionally targeting civilians; this is the principle of distinction. In contrast, unintended collateral damage is permissible unless the anticipated civilian deaths outweigh the expected military advantage of the strike; this is the principle of proportionality. These cardinal targeting rules of international humanitarian law are generally assumed by military lawyers to be relatively well-settled. However, recent international tribunals applying this law in a string of little-noticed decisions have completely upended this understanding. Armed with criminal law principles from their own domestic systems — often civil law jurisdictions — prosecutors, judges and even scholars have …

Principled Exclusion: A Revised Approach To Article1(F)(A) Of The Refugee Convention, Jennifer Bond

Michigan Journal of International Law

The focus of this contribution is Article 1(F)(a), a section of the exclusion clause that has increased in both use and profile in recent years. Article 1(F)(a) applies to individuals who may be implicated in crimes against peace (more commonly known today as crimes of aggression), war crimes, or crimes against humanity as such crimes are defined in relevant international instruments. Where a decision maker finds that “there are serious reasons for considering that” an asylum seeker has committed one of these acts, the remainder of the Refugee Convention does not apply, and any protections to which the claimant would …

Prohibiting Sex Purchasing And Ending Trafficking: The Swedish Prostitution Law, Max Waltman

Michigan Journal of International Law

At the symposium on "Successes and Failures in International Human Trafficking Law" at the University of Michigan Law School in February 2011, I addressed the topic of international sex trafficking law, particularly the Swedish law that prohibits the purchase of sex while simultaneously decriminalizing the prostituted person. Being asked to address trafficking, I was surprised by the name given to my panel: "Kidnapped at Home, Sold Abroad: Sex Trafficking in the International Community." This surprise was owing to the fact that in the most current international instrument defining trafficking, the United Nation's so-called Palermo Protocol, nowhere is the term "kidnapping" …

Widening Our Lens: Incorporating Essential Perspectives In The Fight Against Human Trafficking, Jonathan Todres

Michigan Journal of International Law

In 2000, the international community formally launched the modern movement to combat human trafficking with the United Nations' adoption of the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, Supplementing the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (Trafficking Protocol). With the Trafficking Protocol, the international community created a new cornerstone upon which to build a global initiative to combat this modem form of slavery. As the first major international treaty on human trafficking in half a century, the Trafficking Protocol represented a significant step forward. One hundred forty-seven countries are now party to the …

Israel, Palestine, And The Icc, Daniel Benoliel, Ronen Perry

Michigan Journal of International Law

In the wake of the Israel-Gaza 2008-09 armed conflict and recently commenced process at the International Criminal Court (ICC), the Court will soon face a major challenge with the potential to determine its degree of judicial independence and overall legitimacy. It may need to decide whether a Palestinian state exists, either for the purposes of the Court itself, or perhaps even in general. The ICC, which currently has 113 member states, has not yet recognized Palestine as a sovereign state or as a member. Moreover, although the ICC potentially has the authority to investigate crimes which fall into its subject-matter …

The Victims Of Victim Participation In International Criminal Proceedings, Charles P. Trumbull Iv

Michigan Journal of International Law

This Article proceeds as follows. Part I discusses the emerging norms regarding victims' rights in international law and the factors that influenced the victim participation scheme in the Rome Statute. Section A focuses on the victims' rights movement in domestic and international law; Section B examines the case law on victim participation from several treaty-based international human rights tribunals; and Section C explains how criticisms of the ICTY and the ICTR resulted in extensive rights for victims in the ICC. Next, Part II explains the statutory framework that governs the victims' role in ICC proceedings. It then discusses the emerging …

Criminal Conspiracy Law In Japan, Chris Coulson

Michigan Journal of International Law

Part II of this Note describes CATOC's group criminality requirement. Part III outlines the provisions of several versions of Japan's conspiracy bill and compares these provisions to common-law conspiracy. Part IV analyzes Japan's conspiracy law by examining both substantive and procedural laws in Japan related to criminal conspiracy, as well as criticism within Japan of the conspiracy bills.

Sexual Slavery And The International Criminal Court: Advancing International Law, Valerie Oosterveld

Michigan Journal of International Law

This Article explores the advancement of the international crime of sexual slavery, from its initial inclusion in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court through further development in the delineation of the ICC's Elements of Crime document. This Article begins with a detailed exploration of the negotiation process that led to the inclusion of the crime of sexual slavery in the Rome Statute. The first Section describes the decision to include both sexual slavery and enforced prostitution as crimes, as well as the debate on listing sexual slavery as a crime separate from that of enslavement. Next, the Section …

Continuing Crimes In The Rome Statute, Alan Nissel

Michigan Journal of International Law

One of the most ambitious goals of the International Criminal Court is to balance the ideal of ending impunity with the legalistic protection of the accused from the arbitrary application of law. Accordingly, the main task of this Article will be to determine when continuing crimes will fall under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court according to the established primary and secondary sources of international law-i.e., within the rule of law.

Some Troubling Elements In The Treaty Language Of The Rome Statute Of The International Criminal Court, Catherine R. Blanchet

Michigan Journal of International Law

This Note will examine problems that arise from the language of the Rome Statute itself. Part II will examine the potential strategic uses of the Rome Statute's jurisdictional aspects. It will also examine how the fairness concerns raised by this potential usage are exacerbated when the potential State abuser is a permanent member of the Security Council. Part III will look at the language of the Rome Statute's definition of crimes against humanity. It will also examine the various and varying interpretations of this language by the scholars and commentators who have examined the issue.

The Principle Of Complementarity: A New Machinery To Implement International Criminal Law, Mohamed M. El Zeidy

Michigan Journal of International Law

According to the doctrine of State sovereignty each State has the right to exercise its jurisdiction over crimes committed in its territory-known as the territoriality principle. Even if the crimes committed are of a type that affects the international community as a whole, States are often hesitant to have their own nationals tried by an international judicial organ. History demonstrates that States rarely waived this right, which is inherent to their sovereignties, and did not rely exclusively on international justice. Rather they always preferred to exercise their jurisdiction exclusively, and only occasionally, when coerced by special circumstances, have they accepted …

Extraditing Israeli Citizens To The United States- Extradition And Citizenship Dilemmas, Yaffa Zilbershats

Michigan Journal of International Law

This article will address the problems of extraditing Israeli citizens to the United States from both a normative and substantive perspective. The analysis will lead to a conclusion that the United States and Israel should adopt an amendment to the United States-Israel extradition treaty based on the new provision of the Israeli law regarding the extradition of its citizens. This analysis will also support general conclusions regarding the definitions of extradition and citizenship.

The Statute Of The International Criminal Court And Third States, Gennady M. Danilenko

Michigan Journal of International Law

This paper examines the principal legal and political effects of the Rome Statute on non-parties. In particular, it explores the significance of the creation of a new powerful international institution for all members of the international community. It discusses the jurisdictional reach of the ICC which will inevitably affect all States. This paper also analyzes possible application of some provisions of the Rome Statute to non-States Parties in so far as these may reflect or generate customary international law. It suggests that despite the traditional principle of treaty law, according to which treaties do not bind Third States, the Rome …

Grotius Repudiated: The American Objections To The International Criminal Court And The Commitment To International Law, Marcell David

Michigan Journal of International Law

This article analyzes the American objections to the Statute. Part I describes the historical precedents for a permanent international criminal court and the drafting process undertaken. Part I concludes with a summary of the sections of the Statute which are implicated by the American objections. These statutory sections include the Statute's definitions of crimes, the role of the Prosecutor, the Court's anticipated relationship with the U.N. Security Council, and the Court's anticipated jurisdiction over states not party to the Statute. Part II selects three recent or current instances where the United States has used armed force, and analyzes the claims …

Article 36 Of The Vienna Convention On Consular Relations: A Search For The Right To Consul, Mark J. Kadish

Michigan Journal of International Law

This paper addresses Article 36 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, a treaty provision which is often violated by the United States.

Note, The United States, Israel And Their Extradition Dilemma, Sheryl A. Petkunas

Michigan Journal of International Law

Part I of this note will examine the different approaches taken by the Second, Seventh and Ninth Circuits in their application of the Treaty's political offense exception. Part II will discuss the conflict that may arise from Israel's application of a domestic law which contravenes the purpose of the Treaty. Part III will address both the need for the United States and Israel to reconcile problems in applying the political offense exception through renegotiation and the dilemma arising from the failure of the Israeli government and the Knesset to coordinate policy with regard to the extradition of nationals.

Human Rights V. Extradition: The Soering Case, Stephan Breitenmoser, Gunter E. Wilms

Michigan Journal of International Law

The European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms is widely regarded as the most dynamic and effective of the various international human rights instruments. Its impact on the judiciary of the twenty-three Western European Member States, as well as its pace-setting role for other international mechanisms for the protection of human rights, has recently been confirmed by the unanimous judgment of the European Court of Human Rights in Soering v. United Kingdom. In its judgment delivered on July 7, 1989, the Court held that the United Kingdom would act in violation of article 3 of …

Criminal Law And The European Communities: Defining The Issues, Christine Van Den Wyngaert

Michigan Journal of International Law

While the development of a common criminal justice policy lies more within the general objectives of the Council of Europe, of which all states composing the European Communities are members, there are nevertheless a number of problems which are specific to the Communities and which may call for a special response on their part. This article makes a short tour d'horizon of the different issues at stake and briefly describes the efforts which have been or are being undertaken to resolve them.