A DISCUSSION OF HUMAN RIGHTS

ROME STATUTE
OF THE
INTERNATIONAL
CRIMINAL
COURT
MODERN HUMAN RIGHTS

WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THE

ROME STATUTE? ROME STATUTE

When was it established? Connection to the UDHR

The Rome Statute is a treaty passed by the United
Nations on July 17, 1998. Through the Rome Statute,
the UN established an international criminal court.
This court would deal with cases like war crimes,
crimes against humanity, genocide and crimes of
aggression. The Rome Statute enforces international
law by outlining the function, jurisdiction and
structure of the International Criminal Court. It also
lies under the condition that its involvement is only
through the investigation and prosecution of said
crimes when and where states are unwilling to do so
themselves.
The Rome Statute’s primary purpose is to
prosecute individuals guilty of four core
international crimes. These crimes, mentioned
prior, are war crimes, crimes against humanity,
genocide, and crimes of aggression. This builds
on the UDHR by supporting the judicial rights of
persecuting guilty persons outlined in the
Declaration through a just system. Through the
Rome Statute and what it establishes, the ICC is
able to bring rights and justice to those who
were wrongly stripped of them.

STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES

Firstly, a weakness of the Rome Statute is that it doesn't outline universal jurisdiction for the ICC to
operate under. How the Rome Statute works is that states will in essence, sign up to participate in the
International Criminal Court. This makes the legal proceedings on an international scale, voluntary,
and allows violators of human rights to continue abusing the system by simply opting out of
participation in the ICC is all it takes to continue abusing the system. As for the strengths of the Rome
Statute, it provides justice for the powerless and most discriminated against, is a beacon of hope, a
path promoting global peace and is a victim-centered court; where the voice of victims is valued as a
rudimentary factor.

IS THE ROME
STATUTE KHMER ROUGE TRIBUNAL
EFFECTIVE? (EXTRAORDINARY CHAMBERS
IN THE COURTS OF CAMBODIA
(ECCC)), 1997-PRESENT

Ratko Mladic, former Bosinan Serb General, was

convicted of genocide, crimes against humanity,
and war crimes by the International Criminal
INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL
Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, sentenced to
life in prison by the International Criminal Court.
TRIBUNAL FOR THE FORMER
His crimes dating back to 1992 in Bosnia, found YUGOSLAVIA, 1993-2017
him responsible for the genocidal killing of 7000
Bosnian Muslims.

This is proof of the Rome Statute’s reach, justice INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL

being served for those unable to themselves. Other
TRIBUNAL FOR RWANDA
Ad Hoc Tribunals, such as the Khmer Rouge Tribunal,
(ICTR), 1994-2015
serve to tackle injustices on the most vile crimes of
humanity. With that being said, the ICC and the
Rome Statute are by no means perfect and have
plenty of room to improve.