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ABSTRACT
Many African countries gained political independence in the 1960s. This era of independence came with promises and great expectations of economic, political and social development. Fifty years later, it is certain that the promises and expectations of independence have not been easily realised. Perennial violent conflicts have continued to ravage many countries in Africa, causing the catastrophic breakdown of law and order. Therefore, one of the major issues in conflict resolution discourse in Africa is how to develop functional mechanisms for the prevention of violent conflicts. This article examines the capacity of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to act as a mechanism for conflict prevention in Africa. Notwithstanding the doubts and uncertainties associated with the impact of law on conflict transformation, this article argues in the main that the ICC contributes to conflict prevention in Africa by expressing global norms of international law, challenging the culture of impunity in some countries, contributing to general deterrence, speedily intervening in some violent conflicts, and contributing to building some records of atrocities by identifying who did what.
Notes on contributor
Linus Nnabuike Malu is a Ph.D. student at the University of New England, Australia ([email protected])
Notes
1 Some of the countries that gained political independence in the 1960s are: Benin (1960), Burundi (1962), Cameroon (1960), the Central African Republic (1960), Chad (1960), Côte d’Ivoire (1960), the Democratic Republic of the Congo (1960), Gabon (1960), Kenya (1963), Nigeria (1960), Senegal (1960), and Togo (1960).
2 Meredith, State of Africa, 2.
3 du Plessis, The International Criminal Court that Africa Wants, 2.
4 Ramsbotham, Woodhouse, and Miall, Contemporary Conflict Resolution, 199.
5 Ibid., 118.
6 Ibid., 109.
7 OAU, ‘Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management and Resolution.’
8 Bujra, African Conflicts: Causes and Environment.
9 African leaders replaced the OAU during its 4th Extraordinary Meeting in Sirte, Libya and signed the AU Constitutive Act in Lome, Togo.
11 Ibid.
12 Ibid.
13 AU, ‘Protocol to Establishment of Peace and Security Council,’ article 3(a)–3(e).
14 Bujra, African Conflicts: Causes and Environment.
15 Harsch, ‘UN Seeking to Avert a “New Rwanda”.’
17 Harsch, ‘UN Seeking to Avert a “New Rwanda”.’
18 Lotze and Leijenaar, ‘African Standby Force Beyond 2015’.
19 Harsch, ‘UN Seeking to Avert a “New Rwanda”.’ http://www.un.org/africarenewal/magazine/july-2004/un-seeking-avert-new-rwanda.
20 ICC, ‘Rome Statute,’ preamble.
21 Ibid.
22 Ibid.
23 Ibid., article 1.
24 Ibid., article 13(a).
25 Ibid., article 13(b).
26 Ibid., article 13(c).
27 The Government of Côte d’Ivoire requested the ICC to investigate the crimes committed in the country, but the country at that time had not ratified the Rome Statute, so the Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) had to initiate the intervention.
28 Arief et al., International Criminal Court Cases in Africa.
29 Drumbl, Atrocity, Punishment and International Law, 10.
30 Adam, ‘Neither Liberal nor Peace,’ 136.
31 Schabas, ‘International Law and Responses to Conflict,’ 615.
32 Ibid., 617.
33 Goldstone and Bass, ‘Lessons from the International Criminal Tribunals,’ 53.
34 Onwudiwe, Odo, and Oyeozili, ‘Deterrence Theory.’
35 Hopkins-Burke, An Introduction to Criminology, 10.
36 Amann, ‘Assessing the Criminal Adjudication of Human Rights Atrocities,’ 170.
37 Meijers and Glasius, ‘Expression of Justice or Political Trial?’, 725.
38 Akhavan, ‘Beyond Impunity,’ 8.
39 Amann, ‘Assessing the Criminal Adjudication of Human Rights Atrocities,’ 171.
40 Rosenberg, ‘International Criminal Court and Prevention of Mass Atrocities,’ 1.
41 Akhavan, ‘Beyond Impunity,’ 9.
42 Akhavan, ‘Beyond Impunity,’ 8.
43 Isiguzo, ‘Inciting Statement.’
44 Goldstone and Bass, ‘Lessons from the International Criminal Tribunals,’ 55.
45 Ibid.
46 Momodu, ‘First Liberian Civil War (1989–1996).’
47 Harsch, ‘UN Seeking to Avert a “New Rwanda”.’
48 Ibid.
49 Ibid.
50 Case no. ICTR 97-23-S.
51 Case no. ICTR-96-4-T.
52 Case no. ICTR-97-32-I.
53 Clarke, Fictions of Justice, 3.
54 Ðukić, ‘Transitional Justice and the International Criminal Court.’
55 Teitel, Transitional Justice, 224.
56 Roht-Arriaza, ‘New Landscape of Transitional Justice,’ 1.
57 Ibid., 6.
58 Chetail, ‘Introduction: Post-Conflict Peacebuilding,’ 23; Doswald-Beck, ‘International Crimes,’ 158; Teitel, Transitional Justice, 226.
59 Turano, ‘Gender Dimension of Transitional Justice Mechanisms,’ 1069.
60 Schabas, ‘International Law and Responses to Conflict,’ 615.
61 Akhavan, ‘Beyond Impunity,’ 10.
62 Roht-Arriaza, ‘New Landscape of Transitional Justice,’ 3.
63 Ibid.
64 Clamp, Restorative Justice in Transition, 27.
65 Schabas, ‘International Law and Responses to Conflict,’ 614.
66 Goldstone and Bass, ‘Lessons from the International Criminal Tribunals,’ 59.
67 Schabas, ‘International Law and Responses to Conflict,’ 615.
68 Kritz, ‘Role of Law in the Post-Conflict Phase.’