Evaluating the Evidence by the UN International Investigative Mechanisms: a New Challenge for the International Criminal Court?

Abstract

International criminal courts and tribunals have faced a number of challenges with respect to the assessment of evidence. For the International Criminal Court (icc) there are pressing questions regarding the best interpretation of the relevant provisions in the Rome Statute (rs). To this point, the assessment of documentary evidence conveyed by the UN Independent Investigative Mechanisms (iims) constitutes a rather unexplored area. Accordingly, the present study will reflect upon the challenges posed for the icc, in case the Court proceeds to evaluate the evidence collected by those mechanisms. Special focus will be upon the working methodology of the IIM on Syria and Myanmar. Based on the Court’s recent case-law and, in particular on the Ongwen judgment, the study will further analyze the applicability of the three-prong test of Article 69(4)rs with a view to clarifying the evidentiary standard-setting of the Court.