Resource Library

The Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL or Special Court) was established in 2002 when the two United Nations (UN) ad hoc international tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and for Rwanda had already existed for several years and when the first lessons could be drawn from their experi...

The Special Court for Sierra Leone-which began with the hope that it would be accessible to millions of Sierra Leoneans- has fallen short of its domestic goals. The decision to try Taylor in The Hague, rather than in Freetown, and the lack of adequate outreach activities made the cour...

ICTJ calls on African states parties to the International Criminal Court to ensure fair and effective justice for serious crimes committed against Africans and others. Written in the lead up to the Rome Statute Review Conference in Kampala, May 2010.

Background on the 2004 ICC arrest warrant for Bosco Ntaganda, wanted for war crimes allegedly committed in the DRC including civilian massacres and the recruitment of child soldiers. In 2009, the Congolese government decided not to arrest Bosco, and instead appointed him a deputy comm...

Situation brief on the International Criminal Court's prosecution against Thomas Lubanga, the former leader of the Union des Patriotes Congolais (UPC) who has been charged with genocide and crimes against humanity. Due to problems with the prosecutor's proposed use of evidence, the tr...

Background on the role of amnesty in processes of transitional justice and the 2009 DRC Amnesty Law. Given a fragile justice system and culture of impunity, this law risks rewarding blanket amnesty for all crimes committed in the DRC. ICTJ gives suggestions to break the culture of imp...

Background on conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the Central African Republic (CAR) in the context of Jean-Pierre Bemba’s trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC). The ICC is preparing to prosecute Bemba of the DRC for alleged rapes, torture and murders that...

Situation brief on the International Criminal Court's upcoming pretrial hearings on whether to pursue charges against Jean-Pierre Bemba for crimes his troops allegedly committed in the Central African Republic (CAR) in 2002-03. The ICC prosecutor opened an investigation in May 2007 in...

The situation in Uganda presented a challenging first case for the International Criminal Court (ICC). The origins of the conflict between the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and the government are complex, and many people in the north resent the government for failing to protect them fr...