How can UN human rights special procedures sharpen ICC fact-finding?

Abstract

This article explores how information gathered or received by the range of United Nations human rights special procedures investigative and monitoring mechanisms can help to improve International Criminal Court (ICC) fact-finding and sharpen the prosecutor's case. The author focuses on how the ICC could draw upon human rights fact-finding mechanisms (whether of the Human Rights Council or the Security Council), highlighting both limitations and potentialities of various fact-finding special procedures as well as those of the United Nations human rights treaty bodies, field presences deployed by the United Nations Office of the high commissioner for human rights and United Nations or regional peace-keeping operations and NGOs. It is argued that human rights fact-finding mechanisms should focus more on the eventuality of international or domestic criminal prosecutions and adjust their working methods accordingly. On the other hand, the ICC prosecutor should adopt a much more coherent, structured and balanced approach to the use of UN human rights fact-finding sources. The author concludes with a set of recommendations on the optimal relation between human rights and prosecutorial fact-finding.