Abstract

International criminal law is meant to repress the worst crimes known to mankind, yet those who have suffered—the victims and affected communities—are traditionally only peripherally considered by international justice processes. The major international criminal courts and tribunals that have been established since Nuremberg have, until recently, given only sparse consideration to victims’ views and concerns and limited space for their active engagement with such institutions beyond the role of prosecution witness. Similarly, these judicial bodies have been typically physically and conceptually removed from the communities most affected by the crimes, causing alienation and disillusionment and marginalising their relevance to societies in transition.