The study of law and international relations should be one and the same thing. This is according to the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) Luis Moreno-Ocampo.<\/p>\n
\u00bbWe need a merger of law and international relations. And I hope that the University of Copenhagen will be a great place to start,\u00ab he said Monday at a lecture at the Faculty of Law, University of Copenhagen.<\/p>\n
Moreno-Ocampo is the first prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, the world\u2019s highest office of criminal justice.<\/p>\n
At the lecture he spoke about the situation of International Justice in war-torn areas like Darfur and the Democratic Republic of Congo.<\/p>\n
Most countries have a \u2018battered women\u2019 approach to the most heinous cases of genocide in these and other countries. Like battered women, they sincerely believe that if they ignore the violence and do not acknowledge it, the issues will resolve themselves. <\/p>\n
\u00bbWe need to develop newer strategies to avoid the battered women approach,\u00ab he said.<\/p>\n
Moreno-Ocampo proffered insights into the inner workings of the ICC at the lecture. To protect witnesses it conducts investigations discreetly, and uses records from the UN Commission of Enquiry and the minutes recorded during meetings with local leaders, political leaders and the Intelligence.<\/p>\n
The ICC strategy is to get the top criminals. By keeping quiet about their prosecutions they can move on the most important perpetrators.<\/p>\n
\u00bbThe legal system is not about having prisoners. We are prosecuting a few chosen cases with an aim to prevent further crimes\u00ab, said Mr Moreno-Ocampo in reply to a comment from the auditorium that queried the efficiency of the ICC.<\/p>\n
The new generation can open avenues to a swifter justice, he argued.<\/p>\n
Students have an important role to play in the judicial system because of their radical thinking, he stressed.<\/p>\n
According to Mr Moreno-Ocampo, what is required today is a better link between the fundamental rules of the judicial system of the bygone era and the new tools and innovative thinking style of the present generation.<\/p>\n
Mr Moreno-Ocampo pointed to the fundamental role Denmark might play in the deliverance of justice in Africa. <\/p>\n
Denmark has recently ratified the Rome treaty and supports the ICC whenever it decides to act. Mr Moreno-Ocampo suggested that Denmark should also link her developmental programs in Kenya with the Kenyan judicial system.<\/p>\n
Uni-avis@adm.ku.dk<\/p>\n