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.

The ICC to the Rescue… Kind of, Maybe.

I received the above snippet from a friend (and friend of the blog) and wanted to share it with readers. It appeared in a recent New Yorker article entitled “The Preist, the Killers, and a Looming Genocide” which covers how … Continue reading

Posted in Central African Republic (CAR), International Criminal Court (ICC) | 6 Comments

What Counts as Evidence of Syria’s War Crimes?

Over the past couple of weeks, I have been ‘investigating’ ongoing efforts by private non-governmental organizations to document and collect evidence of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Syria. The following is a snippet from an article that I … Continue reading

Posted in Human Rights, International Criminal Court (ICC), Justice, Syria, UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria, War crimes | Tagged , | 4 Comments

The ICC, Israel, and Palestine – The Time Has Come The Walrus Said To Talk of Many Things

Toby Cadman joins JiC for this guest-post on why there is seemingly a reluctance on the part of the Palestinian Authority to sign the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC).  Toby is a barrister from 9 Bedford Row. He is defence counsel at the Bangladesh … Continue reading

Posted in Guest Posts, Human Rights, International Criminal Court (ICC), Israel, Palestine, Palestine and the ICC | Tagged | 2 Comments

JiC Hits a Million Hits

At some point last week, Justice in Conflict reached an important landmark: its one-millionth hit. I wanted to take this opportunity to thank all of our readers for your interest and support. It means the world to me. The blog … Continue reading

Posted in JiC News | 3 Comments

An Uncomfortable Look in the Mirror: Canada in the World, Before and After the Ottawa Shootings

Amongst many Canadians, a popular response to the shootings in Ottawa that claimed the life of Nathan Cirillo earlier this week has been: “This doesn’t happen here… This is Canada.” And that’s true enough. Political violence of the sort we … Continue reading

Posted in Canada | Tagged | 13 Comments

The ICC, Kenyatta and African States

It has been a dramatic and remarkable few days at the International Criminal Court (ICC). For the first time ever, an elected President appeared before the Court. So concerned was Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta that, on the eve of his appearance … Continue reading

Posted in Justice, Kenya, Kenya and the ICC | Tagged , | 8 Comments

The Complementarity Turn in International Criminal Justice

It is no secret. The last few months and years have not been kind to the International Criminal Court (ICC). Fairly or not, the Court has been the target of a growing chorus of criticisms which insist that it unfairly targets African states … Continue reading

Posted in Complementarity, ICC Prosecutor, International Criminal Court (ICC), International Criminal Justice | 5 Comments

Justifying Justice: Verdicts at the ECCC

Kirsten Ainley, an Assistant Professor of International Relations at the LSE and the Director of the Centre for International Studies, joins JiC for a guest-post on the recent verdicts at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia. Kirsten has published on the … Continue reading

Posted in Cambodia, Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), Human Rights, International Law, Justice, Transitional Justice | Tagged | 4 Comments

Laying the Law for a Future Syria

The following is an interview conducted by Adrian Gallagher with Yasmine Nahlawi of the Syrian Legal Development Programme. Adrian is a lecturer at Leeds University and the author of Genocide and Its Threat to Contemporary International Order.  2015 will mark the 10th … Continue reading

Posted in Guest Posts, International Law, Justice, Syria | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

International Justice and ISIS – An ICC Intervention in Iraq?

Despite ongoing violence and the alleged massacre of eighty Yazidi men in northern Iraq by Islamic State militants, there is remarkably little debate about whether or not the deteriorating situation in northern Iraq should be referred to the International Criminal Court … Continue reading

Posted in International Criminal Court (ICC), International Criminal Justice, Iraq, ISIS | 12 Comments