Within the framework of of the project ”Refugees as potential witnesses to and perpetrators of international crimes,” the International Nuremberg Principles Academy will host a workshop on 21 March to encourage discussion over recent challenges in the transfer to law enforcement authorities of information relevant for the prosecution of crimes under international law.
Germany has committed to actively promoting the effective prosecution of core international crimes. To that end, not only has Germany ratified the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court but it has also implemented a national Code of Crimes Against International Law empowering German law enforcement authorities to conduct comparable criminal prosecution on their own. Consequently, existing legal obstacles to this goal need to be identified and remedied.
The International Nuremberg Principle Academy has dealt with the topic of refugees and international criminal law for many years. One key issue identified thereby concerns the transfer of information that could be of vital importance to criminal prosecution authorities: The focus is on Section 203 (1) No. 6 of the German Criminal Code, which prohibits the disclosure of information about potential crimes under international criminal law that have become known to state-recognised social workers in the course of their work.
Within the workshop, we would like to provide a forum for sharing experiences and challenges encountered in dealing with information that may be of criminal relevance and discuss possible solutions. Jointly with practitioners from law enforcement and social work, we would like to reflect on how the legal framework for the disclosure of information on the most serious crimes under international criminal law should be designed in the future in order to enable the effective investigation and prosecution of the most serious violence.
Please contact Astrid Walter (Astrid.Walter@~@Nurembergacademy.org) with any questions regarding the workshop or are interested in participating. (aw)