Doctoral Degrees (Private Law)

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Browsing Doctoral Degrees (Private Law) by browse.metadata.advisor "Kemp, Gerhard, 1973-"

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    Victim participation at international courts and tribunals : a Ugandan perspective
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2022-04) Mwesigwa, Peter; Kemp, Gerhard, 1973-; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Law. Dept. of Private Law.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Victim participation in criminal court proceedings is a concept enshrined in the belief that only a victim can ensure that their interest in a court case is resolved. This thesis focuses on several related developments - including the rise of restorative justice. Victims in common-law jurisdictions such as Uganda now have more input into the criminal process. Mirroring the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, Uganda’s International Crimes Division (ICD) ensures victim participatory rights are recognised as an essential component of criminal justice proceedings. Victim participation processes are complicated and created challenges for both the ICC and ICD. Moreover, victim participation schemes have encountered resistance in their implementation from the benefactors, i.e., the victims themselves, the legal fraternity, and the broader community. Objections to victim participation in Uganda focuses on the assertion that restorative justice processes will result in an increase in Uganda’s justice budget that is already stretched. Opponents of victim participation are reluctant to expose the court to extra-judicial processes. Others argue that a victim’s input as a party in criminal court proceedings is irrelevant, lacks probative value in a public prosecution system, and is likely to be prejudicial. Many critics to victim participation suggest fundamental principles of the adversarial legal system do not recognise the victim as a party to the proceedings. This research argues that as legal cultures are evolving globally, victim participation can become an acceptable practice and a way to inject vital justice elements into adversarial justice systems.