Abstract

The principles governing criminalization in international criminal law serve as the cornerstone of a legal framework designed to address the gravest violations of human rights and humanitarian norms worldwide. This research project undertakes a comprehensive examination of these foundational principles, spanning their historical evolution, practical applications, critiques, and future directions. Beginning with an exploration of the historical development of international criminal law, including seminal events such as the Nuremberg and Tokyo Tribunals, the study traces the evolution of these principles through treaties and customary international law. The research scrutinizes key principles such as legality, individual criminal responsibility, complementarity, proportionality, superior responsibility, and non-retroactivity, elucidating their conceptual intricacies and jurisprudential significance. This paper sets out to explore the core of this intricacy by examining the criminalization principles in the context of intersectional crimes within the framework of international criminal law. This paper aims to highlight the complex interactions between legal concepts and the realities of tackling intersectional crimes on a global scale by diligent scrutiny and critical analysis. Theoretical analyses delve into diverse philosophical perspectives, including legal positivism, natural law, utilitarianism, and retributivism, offering insights into the moral and ethical justifications underpinning international criminalization. Through a synthesis of theoretical frameworks and empirical case studies from international tribunals and courts, the project examines the practical challenges and successes in applying these principles to hold perpetrators of international crimes accountable. This research project seeks to contribute to a nuanced understanding of the principles of criminalization in international criminal law, illuminating their role in fostering accountability, upholding human dignity, and preventing mass atrocities on a global scale.

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