Meaning Making in International Criminal Law

Ciara Laverty, PhD (2022) Leiden University, is a legal and policy consultant in the fields of international criminal law, human rights and transitional justice. She has published research in these fields, in particular on the topics of sexual and reproductive rights and sexual and gender-based violence.

• AcknowledgmentsIntroduction1 Theoretical Framework1 International Criminalisation as Constitutive Process1.1 Durkheim and the Productive Politics of Criminal Law1.2 Crimes as Public Wrongs: Thinking Backwards1.3 Domestic Theories of Criminalisation: Form without International Content2 International Criminal Law as Discursive Project2.1 Expressive Theories of International Criminal Law2.2 Law as Discourse and Narrative3 Methodological Approach3.1 Selection of Crimes3.2 Methodology3.2.1 Historical-Normative Roots3.2.2 Legal Definitions3.2.3 Normative Themes in the Case Law3.2.4 Narratives During Proceedings2 Attacks on Cultural Property1 Historical-Normative Roots in International Law2 Definitions of Attacks on Cultural Property in International Criminal Law2.1 icty Statute2.2 Rome Statute2.3 eccc3 Normative Themes in the Case Law3.1 Cultural Property as a Normatively Distinct Category3.2 Cultural Internationalism3.3 Object-Centrism3.4 Functionalism3.4.1 Functions3.4.2 Social Meaning3.4.3 Emotions4 Narratives of Cultural Value During Trial Proceedings4.1 International Public Opinion4.2 Remodelling the Landscape4.3 Individuals and Cultural Property4.4 Social and Religious Practices4.5 ‘Like Beings without Soul, History or Memory’4.6 Living Buildings5 Conclusion3 Pillage1 Historical-Normative Roots in International Law2 Definitions of Pillage in International Criminal Law2.1 Legal Elements2.2 Gravity2.3 Pillage as Persecution3 Normative Themes in the Case Law3.1 Scale3.2 Use Value3.3 Ownership4 Narratives During Proceedings4.1 Subsistence and Survival4.2 Culture and Emotion5 Conclusion4 Sexual Violence1 Historical-Normative Roots in International Law2 Definitions of Rape and Sexual Violence in International Criminal Law2.1 Consent vs. Coercive Circumstances2.2 Violence and Aggression2.3 Human Dignity2.4 Sexual Autonomy3 Normative Themes in the Case Law3.1 Normative Statements3.1.1 Physical and Moral Integrity3.1.2 Sexual Autonomy and Integrity3.2 Normative Themes3.2.1 Rape as a Weapon of War3.2.2 Harm to the Conjugal Order3.2.3 Shame and Stigma3.2.4 Virginity3.2.5 ‘The Sexual’ is Private4 Narratives During Roceedings4.1 The Suffering Body4.2 ‘I Felt Dignified and Proud’4.3 Sexual Subjectivity5 Conclusion5 Reproductive Violence1 Historical-Normative Roots in International Law2 Definitions of Reproductive Violence in the Rome Statute2.1 Forced Pregnancy2.2 Enforced Sterilization3 Normative Themes in the Case Law3.1 No Rights, No Crime3.2 Intent: Beyond Ethnic Groups3.3 Reproductive Autonomy and Rights4 Narratives During Proceedings4.1 Did you have a Choice?4.2 Harms5 Conclusion6 Conclusion1 Making Crimes Mean1.1 Meaning Making as Continuum1.2 Diversity of Interests1.3 Foundation Building2 International Criminal Wrong as Flexible and Dynamic2.1 Legal and Normative Pluralism2.2 Criminal Wrong as Socially and Politically Situated2.3 LegitimationAppendix 1 DecisionsAppendix 2 Key WordsAppendix 3 TranscriptsBibliographyIndex