Forging a Convention for Crimes against Humanity

'In closing, this is an outstanding and thought provoking work that will be an essential reference to academics, legal scholars, practitioners, human rights advocates and those who are engaged in the study and promotion of international criminal law. For international criminal law scholars especially, it will continue to be an essential tool for years to come.' Hilmi M. Zawati, Journal of International Criminal Justice

Leila Nadya Sadat is the Henry H. Oberschelp Professor at Washington University School of Law and Director of the Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute. She is also the holder of the Alexis de Tocqueville Distinguished Fulbright Chair at the University of Cergy-Pontoise, in Paris, France, for spring 2011. A distinguished expert in international criminal law and human rights, Sadat is the Director of the Crimes against Humanity Initiative, a three-year project to study the problem of crimes against humanity and draft a comprehensive convention addressing their punishment and prevention. A prolific scholar, Sadat is the author of The International Criminal Court and the Transformation of International Law: Justice for the New Millennium.

Preface; Foreword - the crimes against humanity initiative; 1. Crimes against humanity and the responsibility to protect Gareth Evans; 2. History of efforts to codify crimes against humanity: from the charter of Nuremberg to the statute of Rome Roger S. Clark; 3. The universal repression of crimes against humanity before national jurisdictions: the need for a treaty-based obligation to prosecute Payam Akhavan; 4. Revisiting the architecture of crimes against humanity: almost a century in the making with gaps and ambiguities remaining - the need for a specialized convention M. Cherif Bassiouni; 5. The bright red thread: the politics of international criminal law - the West African experience - a case study: operation justice in Sierra Leone David Crane; 6. Gender-based crimes against humanity Valerie Oosterveld; 7. 'Chapeau elements' of crimes against humanity in the jurisprudence of the United Nations ad hoc tribunals Gran Sluiter; 8. The definition of crimes against humanity and the question of a 'policy' element Gunal Mettraux; 9. Ethnic cleansing as euphemism, metaphor, criminology and law John Hagan and Todd J. Haugh; 10. Immunities and amnesties Diane Orentlicher; 11. Modes of participation Elies van Sliedregt; 12. Terrorism and crimes against humanity Michael P. Scharf and Michael A. Newton; 13. Crimes against humanity and the international criminal court Kai Ambos; 14. Crimes against humanity and the responsibility to protect David Scheffer; 15. Re-enforcing enforcement in a specialized convention on crimes against humanity: inter-state cooperation, mutual legal assistance, and the aut dedere aut judicare obligation Laura M. Olson; 16. Why the world needs an international convention on crimes against humanity Gregory H. Stanton; Appendice I. International convention on the prevention and punishment of crimes against humanity; Appendice II. Convention internationale pour la prvention et la rpression des crimes contre l'humanit; Appendice III. A comprehensive history of the international convention on the prevention and punishment of crimes against humanity.