Institutions and Economics

 Drew Augustine

Institutions and Economics

Who prosecutes and sentences people in positions of power and those that commit crimes against humanity? You may think it is the International Criminal Court but, “36 indictments, two convictions and six acquittals, with several decisions pending” (Abebe) show that the I.C.C. is not doing a great job of prosecuting and sentencing anyone. The I.C.C. was meant to hold trials for people that committed crimes against humanity and war crimes. It is very difficult to coordinate and organize this due to the international scale. Since the I.C.C. has not experienced much success in doing their job, we should do away with it and look to local and regional courts to handle these matters. 

The International Criminal Court is extremely expensive to fund. This money can be spent in many other places especially considering the courts success rate. Although the idea of the I.C.C. seems like it would work, a closer look at it shows that many things were overlooked in its creation and it is not set up for success. It seems like the right thing to do to prosecute someone that breaks human rights laws on the international scale but that way of thinking is flawed. It is much easier to arrest and prosecute someone from poorer states like those in Africa but when it comes to arresting someone from a powerful state it is much more difficult. Daniel Abebe mentions how African countries are targeted because the people come from poor countries even though crimes are committed throughout the world. 

Money has been poured into the I.C.C. and it has not shown great results. We should turn our focus to local and regional courts instead. Local and regional courts have the ability to operate more effectively than the I.C.C. because they know the area and situations on a closer level. Asking the judges to rule on a case and place they do not know is difficult for the judges of the I.C.C. Switching to a more local and regional level stops this problem and gives states and regions a chance to handle these problems on their own. 

The idea of an International Criminal Court seems like a good idea but it is too difficult to have it operate effectively. Instead we should focus on local and regional courts to deal with these matters. They will rule on those that commit crimes against humanity because they will have a better understanding of these situations. 

Works Cited

“A Global Court's Effectiveness.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 11 Dec. 2014, https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2014/12/11/do-we-need-the-international-criminal-court.

Comments

  1. Jack CahalaneMay 10, 2022 at 8:45 PM

    I think your evaluation of the potential pitfalls of NGOs and IGOs is valuable. I think that in addressing these pitfalls, the world can become a safer place in the pursuit of the common goal wherein governments across the globe can be assisted by organizations strictly outside of national boundaries.

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  2. IngridMay 11, 2022 at 11:20 AM

    I like your critique of the ICC in reference to the expensive budget that has not proportionately benefitted the world in the way that it is meant to. I agree that there is an unnecessary amount of funds that are being wasted on incomplete trials that do not achieve the justice that is required to handle people in positions of power. Unfortunately, when there is power and money, it is easy for people to slip through the cracks and not take accountability.

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