The Centrality of Rights and Fairness in International Criminal Trials

Abstract

This Chapter examines why fairness and rights are central in international criminal trials. I show that this centrality is accepted and seen as important. I examine what rights are in international criminal trials – what they are, who they attach to, and why they matter. I also examine the ‘rights’ of other trial parties and participants (the prosecution and the victims), arguing that these trial participants do not have rights in the same way the accused does. Rather, they have interests, competencies, some duties – and some limited rights. I also examine the question of how rights are positioned in relation to truth-seeking in international criminal procedure. I then examine the idea of ‘fairness’ in international criminal trials, and show that fairness is generally considered to be a crucial aspect of international criminal procedure, and this centrality of fairness is accepted and protected, by a wide array of both practitioners and scholars. I argue that fairness holds several uses: it may be an interpretive tool for trial chambers; an epistemic enabler; a legitimating force; and a tool to assist the system of law to achieve its aims.