Abstract
The defence of superior orders has long been a subject of strong debate and controversy. Understanding the tumultuous history of the defence serves many purposes and has numerous benefits. It gives a much more comprehensive and nuanced appreciation of both the defence of superior orders generally and the defence of superior orders as set out in the Rome Statute. The history of the defence also highlights that at various stages the international community and individual nations have adopted different standards or approaches with respect to the defence. The legal standard adopted can be the product of its environment. Environmental factors such as politics, international relations, historical events and the dominance of particular academic or philosophical thought have influenced what legal standard is accepted. The law evolves and changes. However, a very important prerequisite to understanding whether the current standard is the most appropriate and just and whether and how the law should develop or evolve is to understand why the law adopts a particular standard and the rationale for other standards. The history of the defence of superior orders sets this foundational knowledge.
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Notes
- 1.
The ‘acts of state’ doctrine provides that states do not have jurisdiction over the actions of other states. Accordingly, foreign or international courts cannot litigate the actions of another state—or an individual acting as an organ of the state—without the consent of that state; see, for example, Dinstein (2012, 58) and Kelsen (1943). This doctrine has declined in use, see Solis (1999–2000, 504).
- 2.
Mens rea is the person’s knowledge that the action is criminal or wrong. It is generally a requisite mental element before criminal liability can be imposed. It is important to note though that relatively rare cases of strict liability, that is liability without the establishment of mens rea, are also accepted in common law and legislation; see, for example, Johnson (1980, 304).
- 3.
Although military manual cannot be the basis of court-martial charges, they nevertheless are official documents and representative of government policy and are an important source; see Solis (1999–2000, 495).
- 4.
ICTR Statute (1994, art. 6(4)) provides that
[t]he fact that an accused person acted pursuant to an order of a government or of a superior shall not relieve him or her of criminal responsibility, but may be considered in mitigation of punishment if the International Tribunal for Rwanda determines that justice so requires.
- 5.
Shaw notes that the Tribunals have focused on the prosecution of the most senior leaders and have referred intermediate- and lower-rank individuals to domestic courts; see Shaw (2008, 407, 409). It is the intermediate- and lower-rank individuals who are more likely to plead superior orders and, as such, this sheds light on the Tribunals’ limited dealing with the defence.
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O’Sullivan, C. (2016). The Development of the Defence of Superior Orders. In: Killing on Command. Critical Criminological Perspectives. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-49581-5_2
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