The International Criminal Court and Africa: Issues, Concerns, and Solutions

• In Event: Justice Challenges and Justice Solutions in Fragile and Developing Nations

Abstract

The principle of domestic jurisdiction in international law makes national governments responsible for protecting their citizens, investigating alleged abuses of human rights in their countries and bringing the perpetrators to justice.They governments may also extradite those accused of abuse of human rights to any other states prepared to give them a fair trial. Problem arises however, when governments are unable or unwilling to perform this duty or are themselves perpetrators of these crimes. The need therefore arises for the international community to act in order to protect helpless or defenseless citizens from being victims of crimes against humanity and human rights abuses, by bringing the perpetrators of these crimes to justice. The creation of the international Criminal Court (ICC), therefore, is intended to fills the void by fulfilling a central and pivotal role in international jurisprudence. However, serious and complex issues and concerns arise between the court and Africa. This paper, therefore, strives to explore the issues and concerns between the ICC and Africa with the intent to further insights and lessons on them and prescribe possible solutions for them.

Author

• Charles Ubah, Georgia College & State University