Rooting the International Criminal Court’s “Africa Bias” in the Rome Statute Amanda Yuen
Abstract In recent years, the International Criminal Court (ICC) has faced accusations that it has an ‘Africa bias’ or ‘African Problem’ in which the court selectively pursues cases and crimes perpetrated in Africa. This paper takes a look at this issue by analyzing the founding document of the ICC, the Rome statute, and how the compromises and policies laid forth in this document inform this so-called ‘African bias’. It argues that when the Rome Statute was written, political jockeying and Western biases that had already existed within international law created today's so-called ‘African bias’. Rather than stating that there is an active prosecutorial bias against African nations or leaders, this paper seeks to understand the embedded inequities reflected in Rome and international law more broadly. This fundamentally flawed structuring can be seen in Article 16 and the disproportionate power given to the UN Security Council, the types of crimes listed under ICC jurisdiction, and the complementarity regime generally.
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