Introduction
A crime against humanity is a crime where a serious attack has been operated on many human beings. The dignity of the human beings is attacked where they are humiliated or even killed in large numbers. Crimes against humanity are quite common especially in developing countries where the politics in these countries are not stabilized. Some of the attacks and killings are carried out by the government through agents who are sponsored. The individuals do not identify with the government and it is a bit difficult to know that it was an operation by the government. The attacks and killings may also be organized by some other groups and the government may be against it or tolerate it. For a violation of human dignity to be a crime against human right, it must be systematic or widespread. Some of these violations include: torture, murder, extortion, rape, religious prosecution, political prosecution, etc. The world is responsible for responding in a way that will help the citizens whose dignity have been exploited and punish those individuals responsible for the criminal acts. Political leaders in a number of countries have practiced the exercise and some have gone away with it. Most of these are dictators and they do not listen to the views of others. They will do anything to remain in their positions therefore avoid prosecution since in most cases they are protected by the constitution when in their positions. The International Criminal Court in Hague can help in bringing justice to those countries where the internal courts and the politicians are reluctant in forming transitional justice organizations such as the Truth and Justice Reconciliation Commission. However, both Hague and the transitional justice organizations have been criticized in their actions and the way that they carry out the cases on crimes against humanity. The paper will seek to analyze the issues surrounding crimes against humanity and the actions of the International Criminal Court and the transitional justice organizations.
The world and Crimes against Humanity
Crimes against humanity have been experienced and continue being experienced especially in African countries. Genocide in Rwanda, the issues in Darfur, South Africa, Sierra Leone, etc. are just but a few examples. Some other countries in Europe have also been affected and the impact of the events can still be seen today. The way that the world has responded to most of the crimes against humanity is inadequate (Thalia & Chris, 2002, pg.148). Most of the perpetrators of crime against humanity are never punished for their wrong and inhuman deeds. The world is mostly concerned with stopping the more killings or exploitations and the moment they are done, they become reluctant in investigating and prosecuting those individuals who are responsible for the acts. Very little has been done in investigations so that those who have participated in the events can be used to warn others who could be planning the same. Stopping the inhuman acts is a short term solution to the problem and the crimes against humanity might come to repeat themselves when least expected. Relying of the internal justice system to bring justice of individuals who lost their loved ones in a criminal act is not acceptable because in most cases, the political leaders who are part of the justice system are the organizers of these events and they will probably come up with laws that will favor them.
The world is help responsible in responding effectively to crimes against humanity and also in preventing the occurrence of such events in the future. To try and be more effective in dealing with crimes against humanity, effective policies should be laid down that will help in dealing with the situation. The policy makers should be adequately informed so that the laws that will come up with will show the seriousness in the exercise. The policies laid down are international and will affect all the countries in the world. Governments should be obliged to respond to crimes against humanity and take a serious action on the violators of the rights of its citizens. The non governmental organizations especially the United Nations are very important in the process. The world is also responsible for coming up with institutions that will help in dealing with cases of crime against humanity and the institutions should be supported financially so that their work is perfect. The world should also be wiling to carry out the exercises and never give up for this will ensure that the inhuman activities come to an abrupt end. A political will to carry out the investigations and prosecutions regardless of the costs or time that will be taken will make the whole exercise effective (Howard, 2002, prg.8). The right approach is however necessary to avoid issues such as the ones being experienced in Palestine and Israel where the government of the United States is also said to have contributed to the intensity of the war.
The International Criminal Court
The International criminal court is held responsible for prosecuting crimes against humanity amongst other crimes. It was established in 2002 and has performed several investigations and prosecuted the individuals found guilty on certain crimes. However, the international criminal court performs investigations in those cases where the national courts in the countries are unable to perform the investigations or they are reluctant in carrying out the investigations and prosecuting the suspects (Howard, 2002, prg.3). Most of the cases that it investigates are cases involving state parties or those that are brought by the United Nations Security Council. The international criminal court is known for its fairness as it cannot favor anybody regardless of their positions. The punishments are also proportional to the crimes committed and therefore an individual will pay according to the extent of his or her crime. Different individuals have different arguments on whether the international criminal court is more effective than the tribunal courts.
Both the international criminal court and the tribunal courts have been criticized for several issues associated with each of them. The international criminal court is said to take too long to prosecute an individual. This is a disadvantage to many people because the individual will still be enjoying life while others are mourning the loss of their loved ones. The process of investigation takes too long and even after the investigation, the proceedings in court might take years before they are heard (Danny, 2000, prg.7). All the cases that came before the current case must all be heard before the current case is heard. Some people have stayed in the prisons waiting for their cases to be heard until they have passed away. In addition, the process is quite expensive and the country might incur large sums of money in the process. The individuals who perform the investigations are not experts in the field of investigation and can only rely on the events that they have seen on the media. On the other hand only a few individuals who participated in the event are punished for the wrongs done. In most cases, the crimes against humanity are planned by few but very many people participate in it. Most of the people who did the real killings and other actions are likely to go away with it since the international criminal court is mostly concerned with the organizers. Grudges will arise among individuals since some will be confessing that they did the killing and other crimes and nothing happened to them.
The tribunal courts have their advantages and disadvantages. The tribunal courts are formed in the countries where the crimes against humanity took place. Most of the individuals who participate in the criminal activities are likely to be prosecuted. Unfortunately, the individuals to select the truth and reconciliations commissions are the very individuals that participated in the crime (Chris, 2003, prg.5). The formation of such a commission is likely to be biased and the individuals will select their friends whom they can control. At the end of it all, those who did the actions on the ground are likely to suffer than the organizers themselves. There is no fairness in the commissions and an individual with a minor case might suffer than individuals who did the worst. Not unless a very strong team is selected to perform the investigations and prosecution, the truth and reconciliation commission can never be effective. The best truth and justice commission should involve both internal and external investigators and prosecutors who cannot be influenced by the leaders in high political positions. To a certain extent, the international criminal court will play a strong positive role than the truth and reconciliation commission.
The Transitional Justice Organizations
The transitional justice organizations such as the truth and justice reconciliation commission are formed with an intention to healing. Those who really suffered and those who lost their loved ones are expected to undergo a healing process. The international criminal court and the special tribunals formed in the individual countries are mostly formed to prosecute the criminals who participated in the events. Though the individuals who suffered and those who lost their loved ones feel that some justice has been done especially if the process of prosecution is fair, the pain suffered is still unbearable and a means to help them heal is still necessary. The process of healing helps an individual to cope with the past and manage to carry on (Marlies, 2006, pg.114). The truth and reconciliation commission might help in achieving this where the whole country is involved in the practice. However, the truth and reconciliation commissions have been criticized by many because they are formed in countries where the perpetrators are most likely to escape justice. The process mostly talks of forgiveness where the churches are encouraged to urge the individuals to forgive the enemies for the sake of the country. Under such conditions, very few individuals are willing to forgive the individuals who organized to cause damage and went on to performing the killings and other inhuman acts on them.
Failure to do justice cannot fulfill the needs of the victims and they will always be feeling the pain when they see the criminals still enjoying after such wrong deeds. The truth and justice commission is also likely to cause danger in the future since the individuals are not punished and therefore feel that even the next time they will also be forgiven. To many people, justice on a criminal is punishment where a murderer should also be murdered. For the truth and reconciliation commission to alleviate suffering, the perpetrators of the crimes must be punished fore the wrong deeds (Mechteld, 2007, 58). The process of healing can then be very effective. The process of investigation and prosecution also needs to be fair since the healing can never be effective if some individuals especially the key players are not prosecuted. If justice is done on the side on the perpetrators, the truth and reconciliation commission can be very effective in alleviating the suffering by those affected by the crimes against human rights.
The International Community and the Brutal Dictator’s Mistreatment
When perpetrators of crimes against humanity are brought to court, the court is expected to perform justice on them. The perpetrators also have their rights and these rights should never be ignored (Mark, 2003, pg.165). For example, until proven guilty the individuals are innocent and are not supposed to be mistreated unless it is a special case in investigations. Some cases have been heard where individuals who are perpetrators of crimes against humanity have been mistreated and even killed. If an individual is not receiving his or her rights as a suspect in a case who has not been proven guilty, the international community should intervene and request that the individuals receive their rights. This can be done by going to court and stopping the acts that are being performed on the perpetrators. In some other cases, a perpetrator may receive a punishment that is not in relation to the crime committed. An appeal by the international community will help review the case where the rights of the perpetrator will be observed.
Conclusion
Crimes against humanity are quite common today and a means of dealing with them should be put in place. The world has a responsibility to responding effectively to crimes against humanity not only to help in stopping the actions but also in preventing future occurrences. The world should come up with effective policies that will help in addressing the situation. The international criminal court is very fair in dealing with cases on crimes against humanity. Unfortunately, the process takes quite sometime and only a few individuals are prosecuted. This delay is as a result of the many cases pending in the courts that must first be dwelt with before a new case is prosecuted. On the other hand, a tribunal court may prosecute many individuals but is likely to be biased. Overall, the international criminal court will be more effective in the future in dealing with crimes against humanity. The transitional justice organizations like the truth and reconciliation commission will alleviate suffering only if they are not formed with intentions of saving the perpetrators. If justice is done to the perpetrators, the process of healing will be very effective. It is however hard since the intentions of the formation are always injustice to those who suffered and they are the major component in the healing process. The international community should intervene if the rights of the perpetrators are violated and it can proceed to the court to stop the violations.
Reference List
Chris, M. (2003). International War Crimes Tribunals.
Danny, Y. (2000). The Crimes against Humanity: The Struggle for Global Justice.
Howard, S. S. (2002). The International Criminal Court: Some Perspectives. Web.
Mark, L. (2003). Justice for Crimes against Humanity. Oxford: Hart Publishing, 162-171.
Marlies, G. (2006). The International Criminal Court: A Global Civil Society Achievement. New Jersey: Routledge Publishers, 111-116.
Mechteld, B. (2007). Genocide, Crimes against Humanity, War Crimes. New York: Intersentia, 56-62.
Thalia, A & Chris, C. (2002). The Critical Criminology Companion. New York: Hawkins Press, 147-148.