CYIL 2015

MANIFEST VIOLATION OF THE UN CHARTER

MANIFEST VIOLATION OF THE UN CHARTER

Jan Lhotský

Abstract:

Within the international conference in Kampala in 2010 where the extension

of jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court for the crime of aggression was

negotiated, reaching a consensus constituted a substantial challenge. The accepted

definition expresses that a precondition for a crime of aggression is the existence of

an act of aggression that – by its character, gravity and scale – constitutes a

manifest

violation

of the UNCharter.This paper deals with the possibilities of interpretation of

the general term ‘manifest violation’, as its reading is crucial in order to identify the

extent to which the jurisdiction of the Court with regard to the crime of aggression

will be able to be used in the real future.

Resumé:

Na mezinárodní konferenci v Kampale, kde se v roce 2010 vyjednáváno

rozšíření jurisdikce Mezinárodního trestního soudu o zločin agrese, představovalo

dosažení konsensu podstatnou výzvu. Přijatá definice vyjadřuje, že podmínkou pro

zločin agrese je existence útočného činu, který svou povahou, závažností a rozsahem

zakládá zjevné porušení (

manifest violation

) Charty OSN. Tento příspěvek se zabývá

možnostmi výkladu obecného pojmu „zjevné porušení“, jelikož právě jeho interpre-

tace je klíčová pro zjištění, jak široce nebo naopak úzce bude moci být jurisdikce

Mezinárodního trestního soudu vůči zločinu agrese v budoucnu reálně využívána.

Key words:

Manifest violation; crime of aggression; International Criminal Court;

UN Charter.

On the Author:

JUDr. Ing. Jan Lhotský holds a Ph.D. in international law from

the Faculty of Law of Masaryk University. During his studies he participated in

a number of educational programmes, e.g. at the European University Institute

in Florence, the United Nations in Geneva (Human Rights Council) and later in

New York (Human Rights Committee), the University of Salzburg and the National

University of Ireland. Later he worked in the Legal Affairs Division of the European

External Action Service in Brussels. He focuses primarily on the role of the individual

in international law, in particular within the fields of international human rights

protection and international criminal law.

1. Introduction

Among the cornerstones of international law, the principle of prohibition of the

threat or use of force plays a primary role. This norm has been incorporated into the

Charter of the United Nations by means of Art. 2 para 4 that states the following:

All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force