International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia
Sharing the Mission of a Court: A Personal Experience at ICTY
View of the ICTY building
by María Mercedes Martínez
With the typical nervous sensation of a person to which its dreams are becoming a reality, I was ready to use my UN badge for the first time. I was about to gain access to the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and not precisely as a visitor, but as an intern.
After completing my master’s degree in International Human Rights Law at Northwestern University, I was selected by ICTY to do a six month internship in Trial Chamber II. While entering the lobby I was soon captivated by its austerity, order and security. At that point it was still impossible for me to believe that I was actually going to be part of a huge community that shared the ideal of working in the advancement of the international humanitarian law.
Within seconds I was trying to absorb every single element surrounding me and the anxiety combined with wonder after the capture of Mladić a few days before was still breathable.
I was assigned to the Mićo Stanišić and the Stojan Župljanin case. This case is still on trial and both accused have been indicted for Crimes against Humanity and Violations of the Laws and Customs of War. When I started my internship, the defense case was already in progress and by my last day in ICTY it was over. It took me a few weeks to prepared myself with all the essentials of the case and learn the system that is utilized in the Court. In my second week, I started working on a provisional release decision and I was pleased to know that interns were given tasks with a high level of responsibility.
Within my duties, I assisted the staff members in the drafting of decisions and orders to be issued by the Chamber. I also conducted research on diverse legal topics and prepared witness summaries to be used in the sentence. I had the opportunity to draft a section of the final judgement concerning the law segment on individual criminal responsibility. I greatly appreciated and enjoyed the weekly meetings with the judges and the team members in which we all had the opportunity to exchange ideas and give our opinion on the appropriate course of action to be taken in determining and addressing a matter arising in the case.
A great and memorable experience at the Tribunal was when I was assigned my first witness for whom I had to be present in court and was in charge of identifying the relevant pieces of evidence in his testimony. This witness was a military expert whose testimony was based on how the militia operated and explained thoughtfully some concepts such as cooperation, coordinated action and re-subordination. They were indeed two hectic weeks but truly rewarding in terms of knowledge and experience.
The richness of my experience at ICTY is not only attributed to the practice, knowledge and exposure to humanitarian law, but also to the inspiration and camaraderie of the amazing human resource that works at ICTY as officers, interns, judges, OTP and defence. Regardless of the duties we were assigned, our religious views, mother tongue and provenance; we were all moved by the same force and passion, making justice to the Balkans, and that was something truly admirable.
Working at the Tribunal has significantly enhanced my knowledge in the application of international criminal law, allowing me to learn the rules of procedure and evidence and giving me the opportunity to collaborate directly with the development of the case.
It was without a doubt a great period to be in ICTY. I entered with a fugitive on the run and I left a Tribunal with a strong legacy in terms of jurisprudence and proud to be close to a successful mandate completion.
With the typical nervous sensation of a person to which its dreams are becoming a reality, I was ready to use my UN badge for the first time. I was about to gain access to the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and not precisely as a visitor, but as an intern.
After completing my master’s degree in International Human Rights Law at Northwestern University, I was selected by ICTY to do a six month internship in Trial Chamber II. While entering the lobby I was soon captivated by its austerity, order and security. At that point it was still impossible for me to believe that I was actually going to be part of a huge community that shared the ideal of working in the advancement of the international humanitarian law.
Within seconds I was trying to absorb every single element surrounding me and the anxiety combined with wonder after the capture of Mladić a few days before was still breathable.
I was assigned to the Mićo Stanišić and the Stojan Župljanin case. This case is still on trial and both accused have been indicted for Crimes against Humanity and Violations of the Laws and Customs of War. When I started my internship, the defense case was already in progress and by my last day in ICTY it was over. It took me a few weeks to prepared myself with all the essentials of the case and learn the system that is utilized in the Court. In my second week, I started working on a provisional release decision and I was pleased to know that interns were given tasks with a high level of responsibility.
Within my duties, I assisted the staff members in the drafting of decisions and orders to be issued by the Chamber. I also conducted research on diverse legal topics and prepared witness summaries to be used in the sentence. I had the opportunity to draft a section of the final judgement concerning the law segment on individual criminal responsibility. I greatly appreciated and enjoyed the weekly meetings with the judges and the team members in which we all had the opportunity to exchange ideas and give our opinion on the appropriate course of action to be taken in determining and addressing a matter arising in the case.
A great and memorable experience at the Tribunal was when I was assigned my first witness for whom I had to be present in court and was in charge of identifying the relevant pieces of evidence in his testimony. This witness was a military expert whose testimony was based on how the militia operated and explained thoughtfully some concepts such as cooperation, coordinated action and re-subordination. They were indeed two hectic weeks but truly rewarding in terms of knowledge and experience.
The richness of my experience at ICTY is not only attributed to the practice, knowledge and exposure to humanitarian law, but also to the inspiration and camaraderie of the amazing human resource that works at ICTY as officers, interns, judges, OTP and defence. Regardless of the duties we were assigned, our religious views, mother tongue and provenance; we were all moved by the same force and passion, making justice to the Balkans, and that was something truly admirable.
Working at the Tribunal has significantly enhanced my knowledge in the application of international criminal law, allowing me to learn the rules of procedure and evidence and giving me the opportunity to collaborate directly with the development of the case.
It was without a doubt a great period to be in ICTY. I entered with a fugitive on the run and I left a Tribunal with a strong legacy in terms of jurisprudence and proud to be close to a successful mandate completion.