Harmen van der Wilt – författare

International crimes, such as crimes against humanity, genocide and war crimes, are committed by individuals. However, individuals rarely commit such crimes for their own profit. Instead, such crimes are often caused by collective entities. Notable examples include the 'dirty war' in Argentina in the 1970s and 1980s, the atrocities committed during the Balkan Wars in the early 1990s and the crimes committed during the ongoing armed conflicts in the Darfur area in Sudan. Referring to Darfur, the Prosecutor of the ICC noted in 2008 that, although he had indicted a few individuals, 'the information gathered points to an ongoing pattern of crimes committed with the mobilisation of the whole state apparatus'. This book reviews the main legal avenues that are available within the international legal order to address the increasingly important problem of system criminality and identifies possible improvements.

The Law and Practice of Extradition provides an in-depth overview of extradition law and practice, providing students with an understanding of how key elements have been shaped by the state, the fugitive and the international community.The process of globalisation has offered huge opportunities for organised crime, both in terms of expansion of operations and the possibility to evade justice, confronting states with considerable challenges. The Law and Practice of Extradition addresses all key topics in this fast-evolving area, including extradition and international crimes, terrorism and human rights.This textbook is particularly suitable for master's and post-doctoral students with a basic background knowledge of international law, criminal law and international relations, and will interest legal practitioners who seek a better understanding of extradition.

The Law and Practice of Extradition provides an in-depth overview of extradition law and practice, providing students with an understanding of how key elements have been shaped by the state, the fugitive and the international community.The process of globalisation has offered huge opportunities for organised crime, both in terms of expansion of operations and the possibility to evade justice, confronting states with considerable challenges. The Law and Practice of Extradition addresses all key topics in this fast-evolving area, including extradition and international crimes, terrorism and human rights.This textbook is particularly suitable for master's and post-doctoral students with a basic background knowledge of international law, criminal law and international relations, and will interest legal practitioners who seek a better understanding of extradition.

The boundaries between core crimes and transnational crimes are blurring. Should prosecution and trial of transnational crimes be transferred from national to international jurisdictions? Or should criminal law repression in respect of such crimes remain the prerogative of the state? Cutting edge contributions to this book demonstrate that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ answer to these questions.Addressing the distinctions and commonalities of transnational and international crimes, eminent contributors discuss the implications of this relationship in the realm of law enforcement. This book critically reflects on the connection between ‘core crimes’ of the International Criminal Court including; war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide, aggression, and several newly emerging transnational crimes. In view of this gradual merger of the categories, one of the major questions is whether the distinction in legal regime is still warranted. Significantly, the human rights consequences of transnational criminal law enforcement are brought to attention in this timely study. Academics and students of law, officials, policy makers and practicing criminal lawyers, will all greatly benefit from the crucial insight into the future of handling transnational crime.Contributors include: I. Bantekas, M. Bo, N. Boister, H. Bosdriesz, I. Braber, N. Bussolati, A. Chehtman, M.L. Ferioli, S. Gless, C. Jalloh, G. Nessi, H. Olasolo, C. Paulussen, H. van der Wilt, D. van Leeuwen, S. Wirken

This timely book explores how the domestic courts of states across Europe, North America and Oceania have defined and applied their substantive laws in universal jurisdiction trials for core international crimes. It considers what ‘universal justice’ actually looks like in the national courtrooms of diverse states and probes the extent to which there is uniformity in the pursuit to punish universally condemned crimes.Expert contributors analyse the relevant domestic laws in each state and examine their compatibility with the established international legal standards on war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. Using a consistent analytical structure, they present selected universal jurisdiction trials from these states and study the charged crimes, modes of liability and grounds for excluding criminal responsibility. Chapters address definitional challenges associated with universal jurisdiction and discuss whether the need to punish internationally condemned crimes in such trials has prompted uniformity in how this is done. Universal Jurisdiction over Core International Crimes: Law & Practice is a vital read for legal scholars in international criminal and jurisdictional law. National courts, legislatures and policymakers involved in the investigation and prosecution of international crimes will also greatly benefit from the book’s theoretical and practical insights.

Genocide is widely acknowledged as ‘the crime of crimes’. Such universal condemnation understandably triggers both loose talk (calling each and every massacre ‘genocide’) and utter reluctance in political circles to use the ‘G-word’. The social construction of genocide reflects the deeper question whether the rigid legal concept of genocide – as it emerges in the Genocide Convention and has been maintained ever since – still corresponds with the historical and social perception of the phenomenon. This book is the product of an intellectual encounter between scholars of historical and legal disciplines which have joined forces to address this question. The authors are strongly inspired by the idea that the multi-disciplinary research of and education on genocide may contribute to a more appropriate reaction and prevention of genocide.

Jus cogens is a formidable yet elusive concept of international law. Since its incorporation in the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties some 35 years ago, it has made tentative inroads into international legal practice. But its role in international law is arguably less prominent than might have been expected on the basis of its powerful potential and in view of wider developments in international law that call for constitutionalisation and hierarchy, including the processes of fragmentation and humanization. This volume of the Netherlands Yearbook of International Law sets out to clarify the concepts and doctrines relevant to jus cogens and to sharpen the debate on its theoretical foundations, functions and legal effects. To that purpose, the volume brings together contributions on the genesis and function of jus cogens, on the application of jus cogens in specialised areas of international law and on its enforcement and legal consequences.Together, they reinforce the understanding of jus cogens as a hierarchical concept of international law and shed light on its potential for further development.

This volume of the Netherlands Yearbook of International Law (NYIL) addresses the question how the assumption that states have a common obligation to achieve a collective public good can be reconciled with the fact that the 195 states of today’s world are highly diverse and increasingly unequal in terms of size, population, politics, economy, culture, climate and historical development.  The idea of common but differentiated responsibilities is on paper the perfect bridge between the factual inequality and formal equality of states. The acknowledgement that states can have common but still different – more or less onerous – obligations is predicated on the moral and legal concept of global solidarity.  This book encompasses general contributions on the function and the content of the related principles, chapters that describe and evaluate how the principles work in a specific area of international law and chapters that address their efficiency andbroader ramifications, in terms of compliance, free-rider behaviour and shifting balances of power.  The originality of the book resides in the integration of conceptual, comparative and practical dimensions of the principles of global solidarity and common but differentiated responsibilities. The book is therefore highly recommended reading for both academics with a theoretical interest and those working within international organisations. The Netherlands Yearbook of International Law was first published in 1970. It offers a forum for the publication of scholarly articles in a varying thematic area of public international law.