Differentiation of criminal liability for war crimes

Abstract

The article is devoted to the study of the system of means of differentiation of criminal liability for war crimes provided by the General and Special Parts of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. An analysis of the norms of the institute of release from punishment and its serving, the institute of criminal record, which reduced the criminal-legal influence on servicemen who committed war and general criminal offenses. A comprehensive analysis of the norms of military legislation and the norms of the institute of criminal responsibility and punishment of minors on the expediency of mitigating the liability of minors. Prevention and counteraction to crimes against the established order of military service (war crimes) is one of the areas of criminal law policy of the state. Responsibility for committing this category of crimes is provided by the norms of Section XIX of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (hereinafter – the Criminal Code of Ukraine). These norms provide criminal protection of a wide range of content and scope of public relations. The legislator as a subject of differentiation of criminal responsibility has created in the General and Special parts of the criminal law a system of means of differentiation of criminal responsibility for war crimes. However, the analysis of this system, conducted through the prism of the implementation of the principle of justice in its criminal law, provides grounds for some unbiased criticism. The purpose of this article is to examine the system of means of differentiation of criminal liability for war crimes provided by the General and Special Parts of the Criminal Code of Ukraine and to suggest ways of its legislative improvement. Key words: differentiation of criminal responsibility, war crimes, limits of criminal-legal influence, punishment, criminal record, serviceman, military service.