Author Archives: Mark Kersten

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About Mark Kersten

Mark Kersten is an Assistant Professor in the Criminology and Criminal Justice Department at the University of the Fraser Valley in British Columbia, Canada, and a Senior Consultant at the Wayamo Foundation in Berlin, Germany. Mark is the founder of the blog Justice in Conflict and author of the book, published by Oxford University Press, by the same name. He holds an MSc and PhD in International Relations from the London School of Economics and a BA (Hons) from the University of Guelph. Mark has previously been a Research Associate at the Refugee Law Project in Uganda, and as researcher at Justice Africa and Lawyers for Justice in Libya in London. He has taught courses on genocide studies, the politics of international law, transitional justice, diplomacy, and conflict and peace studies at the London School of Economics, SOAS, and University of Toronto. Mark’s research has appeared in numerous academic fora as well as in media publications such as The Globe and Mail, Al Jazeera, BBC, Foreign Policy, the CBC, Toronto Star, and The Washington Post. He has a passion for gardening, reading, hockey (on ice), date nights, late nights, Lego, and creating time for loved ones.

Dreaming of Justice Part 2: Leveraging Universal Jurisdiction for Accountability in Myanmar

The following is the second instalment in a four-part series by Jenna Dolecek on justice and accountability for victims and survivors of atrocities committed in Myanmar. For the first part of the series, please see here. When it comes to accountability for … Continue reading

Posted in Burma/Myanmar, Guest Posts, International Court of Justice (ICJ), International Criminal Justice, Myanmar, Transitional Justice, Universal Jurisdiction | 2 Comments

Dreaming of Justice Part One: What Justice Means to Myanmar’s Communities

The following is the first instalment in a four-part series by Jenna Dolecek on justice and accountability for victims and survivors of atrocities committed in Myanmar. Jenna is an international criminal investigations consultant who investigated crimes committed in Myanmar through … Continue reading

Posted in Bangladesh, Burma/Myanmar, International Court of Justice, International Court of Justice (ICJ), International Criminal Court (ICC), International Law, Myanmar, Rohingya | Tagged | Leave a comment

Forget elbows; we need a spine: If Ottawa won’t condemn Trump’s violations of international law, who will speak out when he comes for Canada?

It is not just the attack on Venezuela, breaches of the United Nations’ Charter, or the use of illegal force that still somehow left a dictatorship in place. It is not just the threats to annex Greenland or to make Canada the … Continue reading

Posted in International Criminal Court (ICC), United States, Russia, Canada, Ukraine, Venezuela, Palestine, Israel, International Law, United Nations, Greenland | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

To Prosecute or Not to Prosecute: Maduro’s Indictment, Head-of-State Immunity, and the United States’ Instrumentalisation of Non-Recognition

Mayya Chaykina join JiC for this post on the issue of head of state immunity and the prosecution of Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro. Mayya is a master’s student in law at Sciences Po Paris. Her work focuses on international criminal law, mass … Continue reading

Posted in Guest Posts, International Law, United States, Venezuela | Tagged , | 5 Comments

The ICC, Trump, and Venezuela: A collision course and Catch-22 over who prosecutes Nicolás Maduro?

Many are wondering: could the International Criminal Court (ICC) conclude that the conduct of the United States in its attacks on Venezuelans, including suspected drug traffickers and other civilians, warrant investigation and prosecution as war crimes? But there’s another ICC-related … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | 7 Comments

Violating international law to get rid of dictators is alluring but wrong – and dangerous

There is an alluring idea that anything – including illegal action – should be taken to protect people from dictators. It is that reasoning that some are tapping into to insist that American military strikes on Venezuela and the kidnapping of President Nicolas Maduro … Continue reading

Posted in International Law, Iraq, Libya, Ukraine, United Nations, United States, Venezuela, War crimes | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

After the Trial Ends: Why Residual Mechanisms Deserve Our Attention

The following is a guest-post on the afterlife of international criminal tribunals, written by Maria Elander, Rachel Killean and Mark Drumbl. Maria is an Associate Professor and the Associate Dean, Research and Industry Engagement in the La Trobe Law School. … Continue reading

Posted in Central African Republic (CAR), Chambres Africaines Extraordinaires (CAE), Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), Guest Posts, International Criminal Justice, International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), Kosovo Relocated Specialist Judicial Institution (KRSJI), Kosovo Specialist Chambers, Lebanon, Sierra Leone, Special Court for Sierra Leone, Special Court for SIerra Leone (SCSL), Special Criminal Court, Special Tribunal for Lebanon | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

More of the same, or changes on the way? For the first time in a decade, the Canadian War Crimes Program sheds light on what it has been up to.

Atrocities in Sudan, Gaza, and Ukraine raise a question: do people in countries far away, like Canada, have a role in addressing the suffering of others? While these conflicts can appear remote, affecting only distant strangers, the horrors they produce … Continue reading

Posted in Ahmed Eldidi, Canada, Canadian War Crimes Program, Gaza, Hamas, International Criminal Justice, Islamic State, Israel, Palestine, RCMP Structural Investigation, Structural Investigation, Ukraine, Universal Jurisdiction, War crimes | Tagged | 2 Comments

The ‘Pearce case: Is the Netherlands providing justice for crimes against migrants and refugees in Libya?

The following is a guest post by Cristina Orsini, a Senior Programmes Advisor with Lawyers for Justice in Libya, contributing to litigation and advocacy on human rights violations and international crimes. Cristina is also a PhD Researcher in Law at the … Continue reading

Posted in Human Smuggling, Human Trafficking, Libya, Migration, Refugees, The Netherlands | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Signs of resilience amidst troubling times in The Hague: Some thoughts on the good and the bad from this year’s Assembly of States Parties

“We will continue our work undeterred.” That was the message from senior staff and prosecutors at the yearly Assembly of States Parties (ASP) of the International Criminal Court. While admitting that times are difficult, ICC officials repeatedly emphasized that their … Continue reading

Posted in Argentina, Assembly of States Parties, Cybercimres, Germany, ICC President, ICC Prosecutor, ICC Sanctions, International Criminal Court (ICC), Israel, Libya, Palestine, Palestine and the ICC, Ukraine, Venezuela | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments