ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the Geneva Conventions and other components of the international humanitarian law (IHL) regime, do requires the State Parties to develop legal processes for prosecution. However, the normative value of this area of international law is more comprehensive and requires a range of positive actions such as identification of cultural property and dissemination of IHL which encourage compliance with IHL. The practice of holding individuals criminally responsible for certain categories of international crimes is a well-accepted element of IHL. In the last 20 years there has been a raft of procedural and practical developments in the area of international criminal law. However, the creation of a number of international enforcement mechanisms and the publicity given to the prosecution of war criminals, has sometimes overshadowed the wider and deeper obligations found in IHL. Eminent academics such as McCormack have led the way in raising the critical need for international prosecutions and the specific benefits that result in fair trials.
