Victims' Rights and Advocacy at the International Criminal Court (PDF)

Victims' Rights and Advocacy at the International Criminal Court is the first detailed analysis of the newly-recognized right of victims to participate in the trials of their accused abusers. Author T. Markus Funk draws on his extensive background in international criminal law and litigation to walk the reader through this unique - and, indeed, controversial - body of procedural and substantive rights for victims of atrocity crimes. To set the stage for his analysis, Mr. Funk provides a historical account of the ICC's creation and the origins of victims' rights. In addition, Mr. Funk gives the reader practical guidance on what it takes to litigate cases before the Court. This background, in turn, allows the reader to work through a number of key questions: How does the ICC function and how is it structured? What are the legal, theoretical, and political pillars upon which the ICC is built? What is the proper role for victims in atrocity crimes litigation? How successfully has the ICC lived up to its promises to victims? How does one become an ICC victim representative, prosecutor, or judge, and what does it take to fulfill the mandate of these positions? What are the costs and benefits sovereign nations must weigh before joining the ICC? What institutional flaws have kept the ICC, as well as other predecessor ad hoc tribunals, from meeting the weighty expectations they have set for themselves and the world community?In addition to addressing these key issues, Mr. Funk proposes concrete reforms to help the ICC fulfill its mission of effectively redressing past atrocities, while preserving the rights of both victims and the accused. The book also presents a detailed explanation of the ICC's rules of procedure and evidence and other practical issues impacting the Court's daily litigation practice. Featuring a foreword by Paolina Massidda, Principal Counsel of the Office of Public Counsel for Victims at the International Criminal Court, Victims' Rights and Advocacy at the International Criminal Court equips lawyers, victim advocates, academics, government officials, and other interested Court observers and decision-makers with a thorough understanding of the promises and potential pitfalls of victim advocacy, and, indeed, advocacy in general, at the ICC. The book, therefore, is an indispensable guide to anyone interested in this new, important and constantly-evolving juridical body.