Document Type
Essay
Publication Title
Emory Int'l L. Rev. Recent Dev.
Publication Date
2021
Abstract
Across the world, cultural property has come under heavy fire in the midst of war. The proliferation of attacks against cultural property in armed conflicts around the world has underlined the need for effective protections for such property. If the International Criminal Court finds a way to extend jurisdiction to offences in these territories, Articles 8(2)(b)(ix) and 8(2)(e)(iv) of the Rome Statute will become the most important tools of prosecution. But the statute itself, while aiming at ending impunity, is bound by the pillars of criminal justice—lex praevia, lex certa, lex stricta, and lex scripta. This Article examines the Al Mahdi judgment, which provided some guidance on the scope of these provisions, for failing to appreciate certain nuances of the law and unpacks the divergence in the jurisprudence of the Court and calls for decisive clarification, particularly in light of the recent Ntaganda Trial Chamber judgment, which also examined Article 8(2)(e)(iv) of the Rome Statute.
Volume
35
First Page
58
Recommended Citation
Samira Mathias,
Prosecuting Crimes Against Culture: The Contributions of the Al-Mahdi and Ntaganda Cases to the ICC Approach to Cultural Property Protections,
35
Emory Int'l L. Rev. Recent Dev.
58
(2021).
Available at:
https://scholarlycommons.law.emory.edu/eilr-recent-developments/31