The Effectiveness of the 1998 Rome Statute and the International Criminal Court in Preventing Impunity for War Criminals
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.62872/3cdj0g63Keywords:
Rome Statute 1998, International Criminal Court, war crimes, impunity, conflict of normsAbstract
War crimes are one of the serious violations of international humanitarian law that still raise the issue of impunity for the perpetrators. The presence of the 1998 Rome Statute and the International Criminal Court (ICC) is an effort by the international community to realize criminal accountability for war crimes perpetrators through a permanent international justice mechanism. This study aims to analyze the regulation of war crimes law enforcement based on the 1998 Rome Statute, assess the effectiveness of the ICC in preventing impunity, and examine the conflict of norms that are obstacles in its implementation. This study uses normative legal research methods with a statute approach, a case approach, and a conceptual approach. The legal materials used include the 1998 Rome Statute, the Charter of the United Nations, the 1949 Geneva Conventions, the judgments of the International Criminal Court, as well as various relevant legal literature. The results of the study show that the 1998 Rome Statute has provided a comprehensive legal basis through the principle of complementarity that places national jurisdiction as the main forum, while the ICC plays a complementary role when the state is unable or unwilling to prosecute war criminals. However, the effectiveness of the ICC in preventing impunity is still not optimal because the exercise of its authority depends on state cooperation. In addition, the conflict of norms between the principle of complementarity and state sovereignty, the jurisdiction of the ICC with the veto power of the United Nations Security Council, and the obligation to surrender suspects with the doctrine of immunity of the head of state are the main obstacles in the enforcement of international criminal law. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen the country's commitment to the Rome Statute, increase international cooperation, and harmonize international legal norms so that the goal of ending impunity for war criminals can be realized more effectively.
Downloads
References
Geneva Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, 12 August 1949; Antonio Cassese, International Criminal Law, 3rd ed. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013), hlm. 63.
Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, Pasal 17.
Robert Cryer et al., An Introduction to International Criminal Law and Procedure, 4th ed. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2019), hlm. 177.
William A. Schabas, The International Criminal Court: A Commentary on the Rome Statute, 2nd ed. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016), hlm. 447.
Antonio Cassese, International Criminal Law, 3rd ed. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013), hlm. 329.
Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, Pasal 17.
William A. Schabas, The International Criminal Court: A Commentary on the Rome Statute, 2nd ed. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016), hlm. 442.
Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, Pasal 8.
Robert Cryer et al., An Introduction to International Criminal Law and Procedure, 4th ed. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2019), hlm. 175.
International Criminal Court, Situation and Cases, 2026.
International Criminal Court, Decision on the Prosecution's Application for a Warrant of Arrest against Omar Hassan Ahmad Al Bashir, ICC-02/05-01/09 (4 Maret 2009).
International Criminal Court, Warrant of Arrest for Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, ICC-02/05-01/23 (17 Maret 2023).
International Criminal Court, Decision on the Prosecution's Application for a Warrant of Arrest, ICC-01/11-01/11 (27 Juni 2011).
Antonio Cassese, International Criminal Law, hlm. 345.
William A. Schabas, The International Criminal Court: A Commentary on the Rome Statute, hlm. 458.
Hans Kelsen, General Theory of Law and State (New Jersey: The Lawbook Exchange, 2006), hlm. 124.
H.L.A. Hart, The Concept of Law, 3rd ed. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012), hlm. 94.
Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court 1998, Pasal 17; Charter of the United Nations 1945, Pasal 2 ayat (1).
William A. Schabas, The International Criminal Court: A Commentary on the Rome Statute, 2nd ed. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016), hlm. 451.
Antonio Cassese, International Criminal Law, 3rd ed. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013), hlm. 348.
Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court 1998, Pasal 13 huruf (b); Charter of the United Nations 1945, Pasal 27 ayat (3).
Robert Cryer et al., An Introduction to International Criminal Law and Procedure, 4th ed. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2019), hlm. 198.
William A. Schabas, The International Criminal Court: A Commentary on the Rome Statute, hlm. 673.
Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court 1998, Pasal 27 dan Pasal 89.
The Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development v. The Southern Africa Litigation Centre and Others, ZACC 16, Mahkamah Konstitusi Afrika Selatan, 15 Maret 2016.
International Criminal Court, Warrant of Arrest for Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, Case No. ICC-02/05-01/23, 17 Maret 2023.
Antonio Cassese, International Criminal Law, hlm. 356.
Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, 17 July 1998, Preamble and Article 1.
Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, 17 July 1998, Preamble and Article 1.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Shindi, Angga Aldilla Gussman, Husni Thamrin (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
