International justice v. local peace? : case study of the impact of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia on the reconciliation process in the Balkans : the reality of the international criminal justice's achievements with regard to peace building

Abstract

In the last 60 years, international criminal justice has emerged with the declared objective of contributing to peace and reconciliation. While their social inputs were largely theorized, few empirical studies were conducted to ensure that international tribunals genuinely achieve these social objectives in the field. In the midst of the bloodshed that accompanied the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia’s dissolution, the United Nations Security Council decided to set up the International Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in order to contribute to the restoration and to the maintenance of peace in the region throughout accountability. Now that the “Hague Tribunal” is at the edge of its completion, it is the objective of this thesis to assess whether the Tribunal managed to positively influence dynamics of reconciliation in the territory of the former Yugoslavia.