Rome Statute
The 1998 treaty that established the International Criminal Court and defines its jurisdiction, crimes, procedures, and institutional structure.
International Criminal Court: A permanent international court that prosecutes individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and aggression. The Statute created this court and supplies its legal authority.
Genocide: Acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group. The Statute makes genocide one of the crimes within the Court's jurisdiction.
Nuremberg trials: Postwar military tribunals that prosecuted leading Nazi officials for crimes under international law. Their precedents helped shape the idea of individual accountability that informed the treaty.
International Court of Justice: The principal judicial organ of the United Nations, which settles disputes between states and gives advisory opinions. Unlike the International Criminal Court, it does not prosecute individuals for crimes.
Rome Statute ratification: A state's formal act of becoming bound by the Rome Statute under international law. Ratification generally subjects a state to the treaty's obligations and jurisdictional framework.
Complementarity: The principle that the International Criminal Court acts only when national authorities are unwilling or unable genuinely to prosecute. This principle limits the Court's role in cases otherwise within its jurisdiction.
Crimes against humanity: Specified acts, such as murder or enslavement, committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack against civilians. The Statute defines these crimes independently of whether an armed conflict exists.
International Law Commission: A United Nations body that promotes the progressive development and codification of international law. Its draft statute for an international criminal court helped revive formal treaty negotiations.
International criminal tribunal: A court established to prosecute individuals for crimes under international law, often with a limited mandate. The Rome Statute created a permanent court rather than a tribunal limited to one conflict.
Kampala Amendments: The 2010 amendments to the Rome Statute that defined the crime of aggression and set conditions for its prosecution. They made the Statute's aggression provisions operational after adoption and ratification.