DOI: https://doi.org/10.14710/dilrev.8.1.2023.41-58

PROSECUTING RAPE ATROCITIES IN TIGRAY: SHOULD INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT TAKE OVER THE CASE?

*Made Ananda Bella Cahyani  -  Faculty of Law, Universitas Udayana, Indonesia
I Made Budi Arsika  -  Faculty of Law, Universitas Udayana, Indonesia
Open Access Copyright (c) 2023 Diponegoro Law Review under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0.

Citation Format:
Abstract
Thousands of women in Tigray have experienced massive atrocities of rape since early November 2020, the beginning of the wage of war between the Tigray People’s Liberation Front and the Ethiopian Government. This article examines rape in Tigray as a war crime and analyzes the prospect of holding perpetrators criminally responsible before the International Criminal Court (ICC). This paper is legal research using the statutory, case, fact, and conceptual approaches. The result suggested that there exist war crimes of rape in Tigray. In order to achieve justice for the victims and the sake of a sense of the humanity of people over the world, the case must be tried before an impartial and reliable court, which in this regard, is the ICC. Facts that both Ethiopia and Eritrea are not state parties of the Rome Statute of the ICC do not prevent the case from being prosecuted before the ICC. The most potential means is that international society urges the United Nations Security Council to refer the present case before the ICC to hold the perpetrators criminally responsible.
Fulltext View|Download
Keywords: Prosecution; Rape; Tigray; War Crime; International Criminal Court

Article Metrics:

Article Info
Section: Articles
Language : EN
Recent articles
IMPROVEMENT OF SUBSTANTIVE PROVISIONS OF THE VALIDITY OF AGREEMENT IN THE INDONESIAN CIVIL CODE RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF FOREIGN SHIPS TO INDONESIAN ARCHIPELAGIC SEA LANES PASSAGE REFORMULATION OF CONSUMER PROTECTION LEGAL POLICIES IN THE DIGITAL BUSINESS ERA IN INDONESIA More recent articles
Most cited articles
RISK MANAGEMENT IN THE PROVISION OF PEOPLE’S BUSINESS CREDIT AS IMPLEMENTATION OF PRUDENTIAL PRINCIPLES THE FUNCTION OF IDEAL LAW IN PREPARATION REGULATION LEGISLATION IN ORDER TO CREATING EQUITABLE REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT JUSTICE A YEARNING IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CONTRACT IN THE SOCIETY LEGAL PERSPECTIVE ON ASEAN ECONOMIC COMMUNITY SHARIA GOVERNANCE ON ISLAMIC BANKING: SPIRITUAL RIGHTS PERSPECTIVE ON CONSUMER PROTECTION IN INDONESIA More cited articles
  1. Amanuel, Tedros. “Pursuant to Article 15 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, an Open Communication to Office of the Prosecutor (OTP), on Grave Violations of Human Rights in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia, Falling within the Jurisdiction of the Internati.” Aigaforum. Last modified 2021. Accessed July 1, 2021. http://aigaforum.com/article2021/Open-letter-to-the-Office-of-the-Prosecutor-of-the-ICC.htm
  2. Amnesty International. The Massacre in Axum. London: Amnesty International, 2021
  3. Associated Press. “‘This Is Genocide’: Ethiopia Attempts to Erase Tigrayan Ethnicity.” Daily Sabah. Last modified 2021. Accessed June 14, 2021. https://www.dailysabah.com/world/africa/this-is-genocide-ethiopia-attempts-to-erase-tigrayan-ethnicity
  4. Bachmann, Sascha Dominik Dov, and Eda Luke Nwibo. “Pull and Push’- Implementing the Complementarity Principle of the Rome Statute of the ICC within the AU: Opportunities and Challenges.” Brooklyn Journal of International Law 43, no. 2 (2018): 457–543. https://brooklynworks.brooklaw.edu/bjil/vol43/iss2/10/
  5. BBC News. “Ethiopia’s Tigray Crisis: Debretsion Gebremichael, the Man at the Heart of the Conflict.” BBC News. Last modified 2020. Accessed June 22, 2021. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-54972908
  6. ———. “Ethiopia Tigray Crisis: Rockets Hit Outskirts of Eritrea Capital.” BBC News. Last modified 2020. Accessed June 22, 2021. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-54942546
  7. Benoliel, Daniel, and Ronen Perry. “Israel, Palestine, and the ICC.” Michigan Journal of International Law 32, no. 1 (2010): 73–127. https://repository.law.umich.edu/mjil/vol32/iss1/2/
  8. Diantha, I Made Pasek. Hukum Pidana Internasional Dalam Dinamika Pengadilan Pidana Internasional. Jakarta: Prenada Media Group, 2014
  9. Ethiopian Human Rights Commission. “Tigray: Maikadra Massacre of Civilians Is a Crime of Atrocity,” 2020
  10. Europe External Programme with Africa. Gender Based Violence in Tigray 08 March 2021 Special Briefing No. 3 Situation Report EEPA HORN, 2021. https://www.eepa.be/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Briefing-Gender-Based-Violence-in-Tigray-8-March-EEPA-Horn-No.-3-08-march-2021FIN.pdf
  11. Fitzgerald, Ayumary M. “Crimes Against Humanity in Venezuela: Can the ICC Bring Justice to Venezuelan Victims?” University of Miami International and Comparative Law Review 26, no. 1 (2018): 127–164. https://repository.law.miami.edu/umiclr/vol26/iss1/5/
  12. Gregory, Andy. “Ethiopia ‘at War’ with Leaders of Tigray Region, Military Declares.” Independent. Last modified 2020. Accessed June 23, 2021. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/ethiopia-civil-war-tigray-tplf-abiy-latest-b1627418.html
  13. Haque, Adil A. “Whose Armed Conflict? Which Law of Armed Conflict?” Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law 45, no. 3 (2017): 475–493. https://digitalcommons.law.uga.edu/gjicl/vol45/iss3/3/
  14. Houreld, Katharine. “Health Official Alleges ‘Sexual Slavery’ in Tigray.” Reuters. Last modified 2021. Accessed June 14, 2021. https://www.reuters.com/world/special-report-health-official-alleges-sexual-slavery-tigray-women-blame-2021-04-15/
  15. Human Rights Watch. “Ethiopia: Unlawful Shelling of Tigray Urban Areas.” Human Rights Watch. Last modified 2021. Accessed June 14, 2021. https://www.hrw.org/node/377842/printable/print
  16. ———. “Q&A: Conflict in Ethiopia and International Law.” Human Rights Watch. Last modified 2020. Accessed June 14, 2021. https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/11/25/qa-conflict-ethiopia-and-international-law
  17. ICC. Prosecutor v. Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo (ICC-01/05 -01/08) (2016)
  18. ———. Prosecutor v. Joseph Kony et Al, ICC-02/04-01/05-377 (2009)
  19. ICTR. Prosecutor v. Nyiramasuhuko et Al (ICTR-98-42-T) (2011)
  20. ———. Prosecutor v. Orić (IT-03-68-T) (2006)
  21. ICTY. Prosecutor v. Ljube Boškoski and Johan Tarčulovski (IT-04-82-T) (2008)
  22. ———. Prosecutor v. Radovan Karadžić (IT-95-5/18-T) (2016)
  23. ———. Prosecutor v. Tadić (Case No. IT-94-1-T) (1997)
  24. Insecurity Insight. Sexual Violence in Ethiopia’s Tigray Region. Geneva, 2021. https://insecurityinsight.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Sexual-Violence-in-Ethiopia-Tigray-Region-30-March-2021.pdf
  25. International Criminal Court (ICC). Prosecutor v. Lubanga (ICC-01/04-01/06-803-TEN) (2007)
  26. International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR). Prosecutor v. Rutaganda (ICTR-96-3-T) (2010)
  27. International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY). Prosecutor v. Jadranko Prlić (IT-04-74-T) (2013)
  28. International Crisis Group. “Clashes over Ethiopia’s Tigray Region: Getting to a Ceasefire and National Dialogue.” International Crisis Group. Last modified 2020. Accessed June 22, 2021. https://www.crisisgroup.org/africa/horn-africa/ethiopia/ethiopias-clash-tigray-getting-ceasefire-and-national-dialogue
  29. ———. “Crisis Watch.” International Crisis Group. Last modified 2020. Accessed June 22, 2021. https://www.crisisgroup.org/crisiswatch
  30. Irving, Emma. “The Other Side of the Article 21(3) Coin: Human Rights in the Rome Statute and the Limits of Article 21(3).” Leiden Journal of International Law 32, no. 4 (2019): 837–850. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/leiden-journal-of-international-law/article/other-side-of-the-article-213-coin-human-rights-in-the-rome-statute-and-the-limits-of-article-213/B48B305A27B512600E635542C4A4AB61
  31. Jaya, Belardo Prasetya Mega, and Ariesta Wibisono Anditya. “Effectiveness Of The International Criminal Court’s Jurisdiction In Impunity Prevention.” Justitia et Pax 36, no. 1 (2020): 1–22. https://ojs.uajy.ac.id/index.php/justitiaetpax/article/view/2966
  32. Kassa, Lucy, and Anna Pujol-Mazzini. “‘We’Re Here to Make You HIV Positive’: Hundreds of Women Rush to Tigray Hospitals as Soldiers Use Rape as Weapon of War.” The Telegraph. Last modified 2021. Accessed June 14, 2021. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/women-and-girls/make-hiv-positive-hundreds-women-rush-tigray-hospitals-soldiers/
  33. Kleffner, Jann K. “The Legal Fog of an Illusion: Three Reflections on ‘Organization’ and ‘Intensity’ as Criteria for the Temporal Scope of the Law of Non-International Armed Conflict.” International Law Studies 95 (2019): 161–178. https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/ils/vol95/iss1/5/
  34. Lokot, Michelle. “Challenging Sensationalism: Narratives on Rape as a Weapon of War in Syria.” International Criminal Law Review 19 (2019): 844–871. https://brill.com/view/journals/icla/19/5/article-p844_844.xml
  35. Morris, Madeline. “The Jurisdiction Of The International Criminal Court Over Nationals Of Non-Party States (Conference Remarks).” ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law 6, no. 2 (2000): 363–369. https://nsuworks.nova.edu/ilsajournal/vol6/iss2/8/
  36. Muktasim, Teuku, and Mahfud Mahfud. “Juridical Analysis Of The Implications Of Security Council Referral In Regards To The Obligation Of Non-State Parties To Cooperate With The International Criminal Court.” Jurnal Ilmiah Mahasiswa Bidang Hukum Pidana 3, no. 1 (2019): 99–112. https://jim.usk.ac.id/pidana/article/view/15576
  37. Murad, Mishal. “The Ethiopian Conflict Explained.” Research Society of International Law (RSIL). Last modified 2021. Accessed June 23, 2021. https://rsilpak.org/2021/the-ethiopian-conflict-explained/
  38. Nichols, Michelle. “Men Forced to Rape Family Members in Ethiopia’s Tigray, U.N. Says.” Reuters. Last modified 2021. Accessed June 14, 2021. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ethiopia-conflict-un/men-forced-to-rape-family-members-in-ethiopias-tigray-u-n-says-idUSKBN2BH2ZC
  39. Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict. “United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Ms. Pramila Patten, Urges All Parties to Prohibit the Use of Sexual Violence and Cease Hostilities in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia.” United Nations. Last modified 2021. Accessed June 14, 2021. https://www.un.org/sexualviolenceinconflict/press-release/united-nations-special-representative-of-the-secretary-general-on-sexual-violence-in-conflict-ms-pramila-patten-urges-all-parties-to-prohibit-the-use-of-sexual-violence-and-cease-hostilities-in-the
  40. Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). “Ethiopia: Persistent, Credible Reports of Grave Violations in Tigray Underscore Urgent Need for Human Rights Access – Bachelet.” Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). Last modified 2021. Accessed June 21, 2021. https://www.ohchr.org/en/2021/03/ethiopia-persistent-credible-reports-grave-violations-tigray-underscore-urgent-need-human?LangID=E&NewsID=26838
  41. ———. “Statement of the Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights Situation in Eritrea, Mr Mohamed Abdelsalam Babiker.” Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). Last modified 2021. Accessed July 1, 2021. https://www.ohchr.org/en/statements/2021/02/statement-special-rapporteur-situation-human-rights-situation-eritrea-mr-mohamed?LangID=E&NewsID=26795
  42. Omna Tigray. Weaponized Sexual and Gender-Based Violence during the Genocidal War in Tigray, 2021. https://omnatigray.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/April-2021-SGBV-Report.pdf
  43. Russell-Brown, Sherrie L. “Rape as an Act of Genocide.” Berkeley Journal of International Law 21, no. 2 (2003): 350–374. https://lawcat.berkeley.edu/record/1118668
  44. Schabas, William A. An Introduction to the International Criminal Court. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 2001
  45. Siswanto, Arie. “Pengadilan Hibrida (Hybrid Court) Sebagai Alternatif Penanganan Kejahatan Internasional.” Refleksi Hukum: Jurnal Ilmu Hukum 10, no. 1 (2016): 33–54. https://ejournal.uksw.edu/refleksihukum/article/view/536
  46. Sivakumaran, Sandesh. The Law of Non-International. Armed Conflict. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012
  47. Special Court For Sierra Leone. Prosecutor v. Issa Hassan Sesay, Morris Kallon, Augustine Gbao (Case No. SCSL-04-15-A) (2009)
  48. Storchi, Alessandro. “Sexual Slavery as a War Crime: A Reform Proposal.” Michigan Journal of International Law 42, no. 2 (2021): 369–402. https://repository.law.umich.edu/mjil/vol42/iss2/5/
  49. Szpak, Agnieszka. “Legal Classification of the Armed Conflict in Ukraine in Light of International Humanitarian Law.” Hungarian Journal of Legal Studies 58, no. 3 (2017): 261–280. https://akjournals.com/view/journals/2052/58/3/article-p261.xml
  50. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Tigray.” Britannica. Last modified 2015. Accessed September 29, 2021. https://www.britannica.com/place/Tigray-historical-region-Ethiopia
  51. UN Security Council. Resolution 1593. S/RES/1593 (2005), 2005
  52. ———. Resolution 1970. S/RES/1970 (2011), 2011
  53. UNFPA Ethiopia. Preparedness and Response Plan for the Tigray Crisis, 2020. https://ethiopia.unfpa.org/sites/default/files/resource-pdf/unfpa_tigray_crisis_preparedness_and_response_plan.pdf
  54. UNHCR. “UNHCR and Partners Urgently Seek US$156 Million to Support Refugees Fleeing Ethiopia’s Tigray Crisis.” UNHCR. Last modified 2020. Accessed June 22, 2021. https://www.unhcr.org/news/briefing-notes/unhcr-and-partners-urgently-seek-us156-million-support-refugees-fleeing
  55. United Nations. Penal Matters of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. Treaty Collection, 2021
  56. United Nations Security Council (UNSC). Conflict-Related Sexual Violence, 2021
  57. Yideg, Bamlak, and Peteti Premanandam. “The 1976 TPLF Manifesto.and Political Instability in Amhara Region, Ethiopia.” Research Review International Journal of Multidisciplinary 4, no. 1 (2019): 300

Last update:

No citation recorded.

Last update: 2024-07-26 00:07:31

No citation recorded.