El futuro del Derecho penal internacional

Abstract

After decades of standstill, international criminal law has experienced a vertiginous development in the last 20 years. Today, international criminal law constitutes a central element of the international legal system with the International Criminal Court in The Hague as well as other international and national criminal courts working to secure its implementation. At the same time, harsh political opposition by powerful key players of the international order raises doubts whether the breakthrough of international criminal law will last. Where will international criminal law stand in the year 2050? Will the system of international criminal justice be able to take full effect? Or will the prosecution of crimes under international law transpire as a short episode in history, a transitional phenomenon that may easily vanish? In order to answer these questions, this article will analyse the lines and levels of development and the structures that have hitherto shaped the evolution of international criminal law and are likely to do so in the future.