Luke Moffett,Justice for Victims before the International Criminal Court

Abstract

Justice for victims is often declared as another purpose of international criminal law, to the extent this is consistent with its other retributive and utilitarian goals. As victim-oriented rhetoric has become increasingly entrenched in the normative framework of international criminal law, academic debate has developed on what constitutes justice for victims and the role of victims within international criminal proceedings. Justice for Victims before the International Criminal Court constitutes a significant contribution to this discussion. Drawing on a combination of victimology, criminal legal theory and human rights law, Luke Moffett has developed an impressively pragmatic and comprehensive theory of justice for victims. Moffett employs this theory as a framework to analyse the first decade of practice of the International Criminal Court (ICC), drawing on not only the Court’s decisions and transcripts, but also on his own qualitative field work in northern Uganda. The book first establishes the theoretical and historical context, outlining a theory of justice for victims and tracing the historical development of the role of victims within international criminal justice mechanisms. Moffett proceeds to analyse the ICC’s ability to bring justice to victims, paying particular attention to victims’ recognition, participation, protection and reparation. Subsequent chapters examine the impact of the ICC on the ground and the importance of the principle of complementarity. This is accomplished through an in-depth analysis of the ICC’s impact on victims in northern Uganda and an examination of the impact the ICC has had on domestic justice mechanisms within the countries related to ongoing ICC investigations. Throughout the book, Moffett employs victimological and legal theory to highlight the ways in which international and domestic justice mechanisms have succeeded or failed to deliver justice for victims, thus creating a text that is thematically consistent and coherent.