The Relationship Between State and Individual Responsibility for International Crimes

295 Pages·2009·2.87 MB·English

by  Beatrice I. Bonafè

Th e Relationship Between State and Individual
Responsibility for International Crimes

Th e Relationship Between State
and Individual Responsibility
for International Crimes
By
Beatrice I. Bonafè
LEIDEN • BOSTON
2009
On the cover: Public Announcement of the Establishment of the Studium Iuris in Macerata in
1920 (detail). Fresco by Giulio Rolland, XIX Century. University of Macerata, Aula Magna.
Th is book is printed on acid-free paper.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Bonafe, Beatrice I.
Th e relationship between state and individual responsibility for international crimes / by
Beatrice I. Bonafe.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-90-04-17331-6 (hardback : alk. paper)
1. Criminal liability (International law) 2. International off enses. 3. Government liability.
4. Administrative responsibility. 5. Superior orders (Criminal law) I. Title.
K5301.B66 2009
345’.04—dc22
2008051891
ISBN: 978 90 04 17331 6
Copyright 2009 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, Th e Netherlands.
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printed in the netherlands
Contents
Acknowledgments .................................................................................. ix
List of Abbreviations .............................................................................. xi
Introduction ........................................................................................... 1
Part I
General Approaches to the Relationship Between State and Individual
Responsibility for International Crimes
Chapter 1 Th e General Framework of the Relationship Between
State and Individual Responsibility for International Crimes .............. 11
1. Clarifying Some Basic Concepts .................................................... 11
A. Individual Criminal Responsibility .......................................... 12
B. Aggravated State Responsibility ................................................ 17
2. Th e Overlap Between State and Individual Responsibility for
International Crimes ..................................................................... 23
A. Aggression ............................................................................... 25
B. War Crimes .............................................................................. 27
C. Crimes against Humanity ........................................................ 28
D. Genocide and Torture ............................................................ 29
3. Th e Relationship Between State and Individual Responsibility for
International Crimes in the Works of the ILC ............................... 32
4. Historical Overview ...................................................................... 35
Chapter 2 Th eoretical Approaches to the Relationship Between State
and Individual Responsibility for International Crimes ...................... 43
1. Dual Responsibility for International Crimes ................................. 43
2. Diverging Approaches to the Relationship Between State and
Individual Responsibility for International Crimes ......................... 45
A. Th e Separation of State and Individual Responsibility .............. 46
B. Individual Criminal Responsibility as Part of State
Responsibility ........................................................................... 52
vi Contents

3. Th e Individual-Oriented and State-Oriented Conceptual
Schemes ......................................................................................... 63
A. Individual-Oriented Conceptual Scheme ................................. 63
B. State-Oriented Conceptual Scheme ......................................... 64
4. Concluding Observations .............................................................. 66
Part II
Th e Overlap Between State and Individual Responsibility for
International Crimes in International Practice
Chapter 3 Th e Overlap of the Material Element: Th e Seriousness
Requirement ...................................................................................... 71
1. Two Diff erent Concepts of Seriousness .......................................... 72
A. Th e Seriousness Requirement under Aggravated State
Responsibility ........................................................................... 75
B. Th e Seriousness Requirement under International Criminal
Law .......................................................................................... 81
2. Th eoretical Approaches to the Seriousness Requirement ................ 88
3. Th e Seriousness Requirement as Applied in International Case
Law ............................................................................................... 90
A. War Crimes .............................................................................. 90
B. Crimes against Humanity ........................................................ 94
C. Crimes against Humanity: Th e Role of the General Criminal
Context .................................................................................... 99
D. Genocide .................................................................................. 104
E. Aggression ................................................................................ 108
4. Concluding Observations .............................................................. 114
Chapter 4 Th e Overlap of the Psychological Element: Mens Rea v.
Fault .................................................................................................. 119
1. Th e Psychological Element and State Responsibility ....................... 120
2. Th eoretical Approaches to the Psychological Element .................... 124
3. Th e Psychological Element as Applied in the International Case
Law ............................................................................................... 126
A. Genocide .................................................................................. 127
B. Genocide: Th e Role of the General Criminal Context ............... 131
C. War Crimes .............................................................................. 137
D. Aggression ................................................................................ 138
4. Concluding Observations .............................................................. 144
Contents vii

Chapter 5 Defences and Circumstances Precluding Wrongfulness ....... 147
1. Th eoretical Approaches to the Relationship Between Defences and
Circumstances Precluding Wrongfulness ........................................ 148
2. Overlapping Defences and Circumstances Precluding
Wrongfulness ................................................................................. 150
A. Th e Scope of the Overlap Between Defences and Circumstances
Precluding Wrongfulness .......................................................... 153
B. Th e Particular Case of the Crime of Aggression ......................... 156
C. Concluding Remarks ................................................................ 157
3. Circumstances Precluding Wrongfulness and International
Criminal Law ................................................................................ 158
4. Concluding Observations .............................................................. 165
Chapter 6 Ascribing Responsibility for Collective Crimes: Modes of
Liability ............................................................................................. 167
1. Linking Individual Liability to Collective Criminal Conduct ......... 168
2. Th e Crime of Membership in a Criminal Organization .................. 169
3. Modes of Collective Liability under International Criminal Law .... 172
4. Joint Criminal Enterprise and Mass Atrocities ............................... 181
5. Modes of Collective Liability and State Responsibility ................... 186
6. Concluding Observations .............................................................. 190
Chapter 7 Establishing State and Individual Responsibility for
International Crimes .......................................................................... 193
1. Issues of State Responsibility before International Criminal
Tribunals ....................................................................................... 194
2. Connections in the Establishment of State and of Individual
Responsibility ................................................................................ 202
3. Establishing State and Individual Responsibility for Aggression ..... 210
4. Concluding Observations .............................................................. 216
Part III
Th e Relationship Between State and Individual Responsibility
for International Crimes
Chapter 8 Complementarity Between State and Individual
Responsibility for International Crimes .............................................. 221
1. Th e Relationship Between State and Individual Responsibility
for International Crimes according to International Practice .......... 221
viii Contents

2. A Functional Analysis of State and Individual Responsibility for
International Crimes ...................................................................... 224
A. Th e Functions of International Criminal Law and State
Responsibility ........................................................................... 226
B. Th e Functions of State Responsibility and International
Criminal Law ............................................................................ 233
3. Th e Complementarity Between State and Individual Responsibility
for International Crimes ................................................................ 237
Chapter 9 Towards a Dual Responsibility Paradigm? ........................... 239
1. Th eoretical Approaches and the Complementarity Between State
and Individual Responsibility for International Crimes .................. 239
2. Th e Th eoretical Framework Explaining the Complementarity
Between State and Individual Responsibility for International
Crimes ........................................................................................... 244
3. Towards a Dual Responsibility Paradigm? ...................................... 252
Bibliography ........................................................................................... 257
List of Cases .......................................................................................... 273
Index ...................................................................................................... 279
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank my family, my friends and the members of the Institute of
International and European Law of the University of Macerata for their constant
support and encouragement.
I would furthermore like to express my profound gratitude to Professor
Philip Alston, Professor Antonio Cassese, Professor Pierre-Marie Dupuy, Professor
Giorgio Gaja, Professor Paolo Palchetti, Guido Acquaviva, Mel Marquis, and last
but not least Marco Maria Sigiani. Without them this book would never have
seen the light of day.
Special thanks are due to Professor Enzo Cannizzaro for his precious guidance
throughout the preparation of this book.
Needless to say, I bear sole responsibility for any errors or omissions.