The book examines the principle of complementarity in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and the implications of that principle for the suppression of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes on the domestic level. The book is set against the general background of the national suppression of these crimes, its potential and pitfalls. It traces the evolution of complementarity as a principle governing the allocation of the respective competences of the ICC and national criminal jurisdictions, and its translation into one of the central requirements for the admissibilit ... More

The book examines the principle of complementarity in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and the implications of that principle for the suppression of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes on the domestic level. The book is set against the general background of the national suppression of these crimes, its potential and pitfalls. It traces the evolution of complementarity as a principle governing the allocation of the respective competences of the ICC and national criminal jurisdictions, and its translation into one of the central requirements for the admissibility of situations and cases before the ICC. It provides a critical and comprehensive analysis of the provisions in the Rome Statute and the Rules of Procedure and Evidence relevant to complementarity. In so doing, it addresses the notions of ‘unwillingness’ and ‘inability’, and the procedural framework for the application, invocation, and litigation of questions of admissibility. The early practice of the ICC in operationalizing complementarity is also considered. The book further devotes attention to the question whether and to what extent the Rome Statute in general, and the regulation of complementarity in particular, imposes on States Parties an obligation to investigate and prosecute core crimes domestically. In that context, it analyses the room for States to opt for substitutes of criminal proceedings, such as truth commission processes and the granting of amnesties. Finally, the book examines the potential of the complementary regime to function as a catalyst for States to conduct domestic criminal proceedings vis-à-vis core crimes.