Hostis Humani Generis: Universal Jurisdiction in English Criminal Law and Grave Breaches of the Geneva Conventions in Ukraine
Cambridge Law Review, Vol. 8, No. 2 (forthcoming 2023)
32 Pages Posted: 6 May 2023 Last revised: 19 Sep 2023
Date Written: March 30, 2023
Abstract
In the wake of Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, perhaps no avenue of international legal study has seen as much interest as universal jurisdiction. With this recent spotlight, the robust, yet in many respects inadequate, incorporation of universal jurisdiction over certain violations of international humanitarian law within English criminal law is worth examination. This article provides a theoretical, doctrinal, and statutory overview of universal jurisdiction over grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions in English law, reviewing its origin in egra omnes obligations and analyzing its jurisdictional framework. Based on preliminary evidence, members of the Russian armed forces and Kremlin-aligned separatist militias in Eastern Ukraine, operating under the overall control of the Russian Federation appear prima facie liable for gross transgressions of international humanitarian law justiciable before English courts. English criminal law is well suited for the prosecutions of such perpetrators, and with the universality principle promising to play a cardinal role in post-conflict transitional justice in Ukraine, this paper illustrates how the United Kingdom’s professed commitments to justice and accountability in Ukraine can manifest into tangible commitments to effective prosecution. Accordingly, prosecutions before the International Criminal Court and Ukrainian domestic courts entangled with challenges constrains that will undoubtedly result in accountability gaps, prosecutions of grave breaches under the principle of universal jurisdiction promises to help combat impunity in the face of such a large potential caseload of international crimes in Ukraine.
Keywords: International humanitarian law, grave breaches, universal jurisdiction, war crimes, Russia, Ukraine
JEL Classification: K14, K33, N44
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation