U.S. revoked the visa for the ICC prosecutor. That bodes poorly for international criminal justice
Last Friday the United States revoked the entry-visa for the International Criminal Court’s prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda of Gambia. In November 2017, Bensouda had asked ICC judges to authorize an investigation into alleged war crimes in Afghanistan by, among others, U.S. troops. Many human rights groups welcomed the request, but the court has not yet authorized an investigation.
The visa revocation comes as no surprise. Relations between the ICC and the United States had gotten better for a period, despite the fact that the United States is not a member state and does not recognize the court’s authority over Americans. But once Donald Trump took office, and especially after he appointed John Bolton as national security adviser last April, relations were almost certain to become more difficult.
The ICC was established in 1998, although it took another four years to enter into force, as the world’s first permanent international criminal court. Its mandate is to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the crime of aggression.
The ICC has 122 member states, including Afghanistan. The court’s jurisdiction applies only if national courts are unwilling or unable to investigate or prosecute such crimes. When these conditions are fulfilled, the ICC system applies to cases in which the accused is a national of an ICC member state; where the alleged crime occurred in an ICC member state; or when the U.N. Security Council refers a case to it. Scholars have argued that the ICC’s existence deters abuses, especially by governments that want international legitimacy.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/the-us-revoked-the-visa-for-the-icc-prosecutor-that-bodes-poorly-for-international-criminal-justice/ar-BBVJ6x7?li=BBnbfcL
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