ABSTRACT

As we discussed earlier ( Chapter 10 ), one aspect of the universal principle of jurisdiction acknowledges that some activities, undertaken by both states and individuals, require an authority vested in all community members to punish these acts wherever or whenever they may occur, even absent a link between the state and the parties or the acts in question. 1 Throughout the earlier chapters, we have noted the evolution of international law with respect to these questions as well as the areas where they overlap with more traditional areas of the law. We pointed out earlier ( Chapters 1 and 11 ) that individuals normally do not represent a subject of international law, although the scope of human rights law ( Chapter 15 ) has expanded over the past 60 years. International criminal law (ICL) forms a subcategory of the human rights regime. Not every human rights norm falls into the category of ICL. Certain crimes, however, have such international significance that the community of nations has felt compelled to make those who commit them directly subject to international law.