CYIL 2013

THE ISSUE OF REPARATIONS BEFORE THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT THE ISSUE OF REPARATIONS BEFORE THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT CASE STUDY PROSECUTOR V. THOMAS LUBANGA DYILO Abstract : The following article is concerned with the issue of reparations before the International Criminal Court in its very first judgment, delivered in the case of Prosecutor v. Thomas Lubanga Dyilo . It analyzes the potential threats and challenges related to this issue, such as the method of calculating, the disbursement of the awards or the question of non-pecuniary damages, based on examples such as the ECHR, IACHR or the Liberty Fund of the Red Cross. It also addresses the issue of victims’ participation and the necessary improvements which need to be made with regard to it, as this is still vague and inconsistent at this point. Resumé : Článek se zabývá otázkou reparací před Mezinárodním trestním soudem, jak o nich rozhodl ve svém prvním rozsudku v případě Prosecutor v. Thomas Luban ga Dyilo . Článek analyzuje potenciální hrozby a výzvy týkající se této otázky, jako je způsob výpočtu, vyplácení přisouzených náhrad či problematiku nepeněžitého odškodnění, a to na základě příkladů, jako jsou Evropská úmluva o lidských prá vech (ECHR), Meziamerická komise pro lidská práva (IACHR) nebo Liberty fon dem Červeného kříže. Zabývá se také otázkou účasti obětí a nezbytnými zlepšeními v této oblasti, které musí být provedeny s ohledem na nejasnosti a nekonzistentnost v této oblasti. Key words : International Criminal Court, Reparations, Thomas Lubanga Dyilo, Trust Fund for Victims, Victims’ participation, Justice for victims, Restorative justice On the Author : Agata Foksa (1990) cum laude graduate of the International and European Law Programme (LLB) at the Hague University, LLM student of Wroclaw University, former intern at the Open Society Justice Initiative. Introduction Since 2009 the international community has been carefully observing how the International Criminal Court (ICC) is conducting its first trial against Thomas Lubanga Dyilo. From the very beginning it seemed like the Court’s viability was being tested, instead of the guilt of the accused. The judgment, which was issued on 14 March 2012, was welcomed ambiguously, starting with the very critical attitude embodied in headlines such as ‘The ICC’s First Trial: Milestones Mixed with Near Disasters’ and ‘Long Proceedings in Trial of Thomas Lubanga Finally Reach End’, and finishing with loudly expressed admiration: ‘NPWJ welcomes milestone of first ICC judgment in the Lubanga case and landmark decision for the protection of children’. Agata Foksa