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The Interpretation of Slavery before the International Criminal Court: Reconciling Legal Borders?

Arapiles, Sara LU (2022) In Max Planck Yearbook of United Nations Law 25(1). p.416-456
Abstract
This article examines the interpretation of the definition of slavery/enslavement by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Ongwen case (2021) and its application to the facts of the case at hand. This examination is warranted because Ongwen represents the first case in which the ICC was tasked with deciding whether the crime of enslavement had been committed. This article illustrates that the ICC has been outward-looking, finding that judgments of other courts largely featured in the reasoning of the ICC when interpreting slavery. The detailed study in this article further reveals that, either directly or indirectly, theICC more specifically drew on the judgment of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia... (More)
This article examines the interpretation of the definition of slavery/enslavement by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Ongwen case (2021) and its application to the facts of the case at hand. This examination is warranted because Ongwen represents the first case in which the ICC was tasked with deciding whether the crime of enslavement had been committed. This article illustrates that the ICC has been outward-looking, finding that judgments of other courts largely featured in the reasoning of the ICC when interpreting slavery. The detailed study in this article further reveals that, either directly or indirectly, theICC more specifically drew on the judgment of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in the Kunarac case. The article shows that, in doing so, the ICC reconciled legal borders by incorporating in its decision elements of general international law, international human rights law, and international humanitarian law instruments to inform its understanding of slavery/ enslavement. The article highlights that the ICC contributed to norm consolidation globally. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Slavery, Enslavement, ICC, Ongwen, Rome Statute, 1926 Slavery Convention, Mänskliga rättigheter
in
Max Planck Yearbook of United Nations Law
volume
25
issue
1
pages
40 pages
publisher
Brill Nijhoff
external identifiers
  • scopus:85183383502
ISSN
1875-7413
DOI
10.1163/18757413_02501023
language
English
LU publication?
no
id
04951b55-e840-46e9-b088-78d1f3ba3c25
date added to LUP
2024-04-17 10:27:14
date last changed
2025-06-20 10:29:17
@article{04951b55-e840-46e9-b088-78d1f3ba3c25,
  abstract     = {{This article examines the interpretation of the definition of slavery/enslavement by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Ongwen case (2021) and its application to the facts of the case at hand. This examination is warranted because Ongwen represents the first case in which the ICC was tasked with deciding whether the crime of enslavement had been committed. This article illustrates that the ICC has been outward-looking, finding that judgments of other courts largely featured in the reasoning of the ICC when interpreting slavery. The detailed study in this article further reveals that, either directly or indirectly, theICC more specifically drew on the judgment of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in the Kunarac case. The article shows that, in doing so, the ICC reconciled legal borders by incorporating in its decision elements of general international law, international human rights law, and international humanitarian law instruments to inform its understanding of slavery/ enslavement. The article highlights that the ICC contributed to norm consolidation globally.}},
  author       = {{Arapiles, Sara}},
  issn         = {{1875-7413}},
  keywords     = {{Slavery; Enslavement; ICC; Ongwen; Rome Statute; 1926 Slavery Convention; Mänskliga rättigheter}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  pages        = {{416--456}},
  publisher    = {{Brill Nijhoff}},
  series       = {{Max Planck Yearbook of United Nations Law}},
  title        = {{The Interpretation of Slavery before the International Criminal Court: Reconciling Legal Borders?}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/18757413_02501023}},
  doi          = {{10.1163/18757413_02501023}},
  volume       = {{25}},
  year         = {{2022}},
}