The International Criminal Court

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Our world today is filled with awful crimes that interfere with societies happiness and well being each and everyday. Different countries struggle with severe crimes that put their fellow citizens and cities in danger each and everyday. Some people question how to deal with such terrible inhuman acts toward people and societies each and everyday. In order to keep the world in tacked and a safe place against such crimes the International Criminal Court was first talked about in the 1970s, but became ratified to begin pursuing cases in July of 2002. The International Criminal Court is designed to prosecute, and bring to justice those responsible for the worst crimes, including genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes, committed anywhere in the world (Hebel, n.d.) The ICC an independent international organization with 122 members, separate from the United Nations system (“Q&A: International criminal court,” 2011). It is the court of last resort, based out of Hague, Netherlands, and is only used when national authorities cannot or will not prosecute. The uniqueness of its purpose, structure, jurisdiction, and significance make its understanding essential to those studying public justice.

On July 17, 1998, a conference of 160 States established the first treaty-based permanent international criminal court (Hebel, n.d.). The treaty adopted is known as the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. It sets out the crimes falling within the jurisdiction of the ICC, the rules of procedure and the mechanisms for states to cooperate with the ICC (Hebel, n.d.). The main court of the ICC is in the Netherlands, but proceedings from the ICC may occur elsewhere in the world. The ICC is funded by 122 countries, and so...

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