Download This PaperThe Elusive Essence of Crimes Against Humanity
For the Sake of Present and Future Generations: Essays on International Law, Crime and Justice in Honour of Roger S. Clark (Suzannah Linton et al. eds., Brill/Nijhoff, 2015).
23 Pages Posted: 28 Oct 2015 Last revised: 26 Aug 2021
Date Written: October 1, 2015
Abstract
As efforts to adopt an international convention on crimes against humanity gain momentum it becomes increasingly important for the international community to clarify the conceptual underpinnings of this category of international crimes. This book chapter seeks to contribute to that process by elucidating a tension between the two goals animating the definition: the goals of identifying crimes that ‘shock the conscience of humanity’ and of distinguishing crimes against humanity from ‘ordinary’ crimes subject to national adjudication.
Keywords: criminal law, international criminal law, crimes against humanity
JEL Classification: K10, K14, K33
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation