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      The universal jurisdiction of South African criminal courts and immunities of foreign State officials

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          Abstract

          Under the "complementarity" regime of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), the jurisdiction of the ICC is secondary to the jurisdiction of domestic courts. States Parties, not the ICC, have the primary responsibility of investigating and prosecuting international crimes. The ICC acts only when States are "unable" or "unwilling" to prosecute. As a State Party, in order to give effect to the complementarity principle, South Africa enacted the Implementation of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court Act 27 of 2002, which determines the modalities of prosecuting perpetrators of the crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in South African courts. The Implementation Act also provides that South African courts will have jurisdiction over these crimes not only when they are committed on the territory of South Africa but also when they are committed outside the Republic. By granting South African courts jurisdiction over a person who commits a crime outside the Republic when that person is later found on South African territory, without regard to that person's nationality or the nationality of the victims, the Implementation Act empowers South African courts with universal jurisdiction over international crimes. This paper seeks to determine whether and to what extent foreign State officials, such as foreign heads of State, heads of government and ministers of foreign affairs, can plead immunity when they are accused of international crimes before South African courts when exercising their universal jurisdiction in terms of the Implementation Act and in accordance with the complementarity regime of the Rome Statute. In other words, the article endeavours to determine whether international law rules regarding immunities of State officials may or may not limit the ability of South African courts to exercise universal jurisdiction over international crimes committed in foreign States.

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          International Law: A South African Perspective

          J. Dugard (2000)
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            International Criminal Law

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              An Introduction to International Criminal Law and Procedure

              This market-leading textbook gives an authoritative account of international criminal law, and focuses on what the student needs to know - the crimes that are dealt with by international courts and tribunals as well as the procedures that police the investigation and prosecution of those crimes. The reader is guided through controversies with an accessible, yet sophisticated approach by the author team of four international lawyers, with experience both of teaching the subject, and as negotiators at the foundation of the International Criminal Court and the Rome conference. It is an invaluable introduction for all students of international criminal law and international relations, and now covers developments in the ICC, victims' rights, and alternatives to international criminal justice, as well as including extended coverage of terrorism. Short, well chosen excerpts allow students to familiarise themselves with primary material from a wide range of sources. An extensive package of online resources is also available.
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                Author and article information

                Contributors
                Role: ND
                Journal
                pelj
                PER: Potchefstroomse Elektroniese Regsblad
                PER
                Publication of North-West University (Potchefstroom Campus)
                1727-3781
                2015
                : 18
                : 7
                : 2561-2603
                Affiliations
                [1 ] University of Rwanda
                Article
                S1727-37812015000700006
                10.4314/pelj.v18i7.05
                ef17e11e-9ef8-4a0d-818a-d9b98da5a25c

                This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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                Product

                SciELO South Africa

                Self URI (journal page): http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_serial&pid=1727-3781&lng=en
                Categories
                Law

                General law
                universal jurisdiction,complementarity,Rome Statute,Implementation Act,immunity ratione personae,immunity ratione materiae,international crimes

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