Africa and International Justice: Between Support and Resistance A proposal to study international justice norms in Africa

Abstract

Por un lado en los últimos años, varios estados Africanos, por ejemplo Burundi y Sudáfrica, han anunciado su voluntad de retirarse de la Corte Penal Internacional (ICC). Sin embargo, por otro lado, the Extraordinary African Chamber de Senegal ha tomado la decisión de enjuiciar al ex dictador de Chad Hissene Habre, primer ejemplo d aplicación de la jurisdicción universal en el Continente. Estas decisiones reflejan un actitud ambivalente hacia la justicia internacional. Esta postura critica representa un desafío para la idea de sociedad internacional y, en particular, para algunas de sus instituciones primarias, por ejemplo el derecho internacional y el derecho penal internacional. Utilizando el paradigma de la Escuela Inglesa y de su perspectiva histórica sobre la sociedad internacional, estudiamos el papel del derecho internacional en la creación de jerarquías persistentes y la respuesta de una serie de casos de estudios de estados africanos hacia la justicia internacional. Esta perspectiva esta integrada con la contribución del constructivismo social, a través de la inclusión en el analisis del impacto de los actores localizados al nivel domestico.

On the one hand, during the last year, several African states, such as Burundi and South Africa, have announced their withdrawal from the International Criminal Court (ICC). Nevertheless, on the other hand, the Extraordinary African Chamber of Senegal took the unprecedented decision to indict former dictator of Chad Hissène Habré, first example of the application of universal jurisdiction in the continent. These decisions reflect an ambivalent attitude toward international justice, which African states still consider necessary but also fundamentally biased and reproducing existing global hierarchies. This critical posture can represent a challenge to the idea of international society and, in particular, to some of its primary institutions, such as international law and the possibility of prosecuting individuals for international crimes. Drawing from the English School s historical perspective on international society, we focus on the role of international law in the creation of persisting hierarchies and on the response of a selected number of African states toward international justice. This perspective is integrated through the contributions of recent social constructivist scholarship, particularly by including the impact of actors located at the domestic level in the analysis of the decisions of African states to continue or stop collaborating with international justice