S. Emerging Trends in International Justice

The increasing international geopolitical divisions and the resulting paralysis at the United Nations Security Council has thwarted the referral of the situations of Syria and Myanmar, countries beyond its jurisdictional reach, to the International Criminal Court (ICC). These same factors have also prevented the adoption of numerous humanitarian resolutions aimed at ameliorating conditions in those countries through United Nations Charter Chapter VII-mandated ceasefires and the delivery of humanitarian assistance.

A number of rule of law supporting UN Member States have become deeply frustrated by these blockages. In response they have begun to use public international law, international human rights treaties as well as their own national laws in innovative ways to obtain some accountability for the most serious international crimes. This development highlights a noteworthy new direction in international justice -- criminal and non-criminal -- for egregious offenses on a difficult international landscape. These states are forging new pathways to accountability for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.

The subject matter of the course is this evolution in the application of international law for accountability. We will use developments stemming from the conflicts in Syria and Myanmar as a lens.

The course will explore three key components of this trend. These are: 1) the use of the Convention to Prevent and Punish Genocide and the Convention Against Torture to litigate at the International Court of Justice; 2) the use of relevant provisions of the United Nations Charter by the UN General Assembly and the Human Rights Council to create new independent investigative mechanisms and 3) the use of universal jurisdiction law in Germany and Argentina.