ABSTRACT
Crimes against humanity and genocide were included as a category of international crimes in response to the horrors of the Holocaust committed by Nazi Germany. Since then, the law has come a long way. When the work on the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide was carried out, the number, position, and importance of companies were not as significant as they are today. As the economic and political power of corporations expands, there is increasing recognition that corporations should take greater responsibility for their actions. In light of the recent soft law regulations, changes in states’ law, and judicial developments, it no longer seems to be a matter of whether corporations are liable under international law, but rather how such liability should be implemented.
It is accepted that crimes under national law and international criminal law can be committed not only by perpetrators linked to a state, but also by non-state actors, like corporations. It appears possible to attribute any conduct of a natural person to a legal person, such as torture; cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment; war crimes; crimes against humanity; summary executions; prolonged arbitrary detention; and forced disappearances. Some scholars have even deemed that corporations may be prosecuted for any crime which they are capable of committing, even aiding and abetting rape or murder. However, the significant question addressed in this chapter is not about defining the scope of rights and freedoms which may be infringed by corporations, but whether such corporations can be found responsible specifically for genocide, and whether corporations can be held liable for that crime. In this respect the chapter tries to find answers to two main lines of questions: (1) Are corporations able to commit the crime of genocide, and if so, in what way? and (2) Are corporations subject to the Genocide Convention? If so, can they be held liable under international law?
The main research method used in this chapter is formal-dogmatic. The chapter focuses on analyses of, first of all, the provisions of the Genocide Convention, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), and some regional human rights regulations. Beyond the analyses of binding documents, the chapter focuses on basic soft law regulations in the area of business and human rights, specifically the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
