Beyond Justice, Beyond Peace? Colombia, the Interests of Justice, and the Limits of International Criminal Law

This paper explores the role of Article 53 of the Rome Statute and its ‘interest of justice’ standard in Colombia. After first providing some background to the ICC’s involvement in Colombia in the context of the so-called Justice and Peace Law and the more recent Legal Framework for Peace, we critically explore the reasons why the principle of complementarity is the focus of contemporary debates on the ICC in that country. We suggest that this discussion often ends in stalemate, with little space to move forward. In light of this, in this article we propose an alternative way to advance the discussion; namely, Article 53. We then consider whether, in order to protect transitional justice mechanisms adopted by states in order to end conflicts and move towards national reconciliation, the OTP has the power under Article 53(1)(c) to stop a prosecution on the basis that it is not in the interests of justice. Much here depends upon whether justice is interpreted broadly or narrowly. Two questions are central: First, should transitional justice arrangements be permissible under the legal framework established by the Rome Statute? Second, should the OTP concern itself with matters pertaining to domestic politics or should it understand its role as being completely independent from national processes? We advocate a narrow reading of the concept of justice, meaning that the OTP cannot use Article 53(1)(c) to prevent ICC intervention on the basis that it risks disrupting a transitional justice mechanism

EU migration law: the opportunities and challenges ahead

The development of EU Immigration law and the challenges in relation to the EU Migration Code and the three new directives on third country national

EU migration law: the opportunities and challenges ahead

The development of EU Immigration law and the challenges in relation to the EU Migration Code and the three new directives on third country national

External relations law: how the outside shapes the inside

By offering its citizens an area of freedom, security and justice (AFSJ), the Union barely linguistically disguises an aspiration to assume core state functions. The carefully chosen term AFSJ is not only loaded with social contract connotations but also contains a spatial notion of territorial unity that has a state flavour to it. The strengthening of the policy fields brought together under the AFSJ has been explained as a necessary complement to the internal market compensating the removal of frontiers within the EU. However, AFSJ policies, arguably as all EU policies, are shaped by many pull and push forces, originating not only within the Union but also outside. This chapter explores the extent to which the AFSJ is influenced from the outside

EU Immigration and Asylum Law: (Text and Commentary). Vol. 2 EU Immigration Law

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Open borders in the nineteenth century : constructing the national, the citizen and the foreigner in South America

This working paper describes and explains the historical origins of the division between the national and the foreigner in South America. In the early nineteenth century, all the previously Spanish possessions in South America as well as Brazil achieved independence. With this new freedom, countries turned their attention to asserting their statehood through the delineation of three constitutive elements: government, territory and population. The new governments had to define who were going to be considered as nationals, citizens and foreigners, and the rights that pertained to each of these categories. These countries were all concerned with attracting new settlers and very early on introduced constitutional provisions on open borders and equal treatment for foreigners. White, male Europeans were the principal addresses of open borders provisions in an effort to entice them to settle in territories presented as empty to the exclusion of indigenous groups, bring new industries, and contribute to the whitening of mixed race populations. Whilst weak statehood came with independence, forming nations was a much longer process and States used migration and citizenship policies as tools to define nationhood