Implementation and Accountability

How to ensure that international rules protecting the most vulnerable in times of war and peace are implemented and respected? Are the existing mechanisms to ensure monitoring and implementation working? Do they provide redress and accountability for the victims? What is lacking in today’s legal and policy framework and what are the challenges? 

Although different in substance and varying in terms of compliance mechanisms, all international law frameworks – international humanitarian law (IHL), international human rights law, international criminal law, transitional justice – raise challenges in terms of implementation and accountability.

The proliferation of international, regional and domestic human rights standards has led to a multitude of actors and procedures dedicated to their implementation. In turn, this has crowded existing regulatory regimes. For IHL on the other hand, dedicated monitoring mechanisms are rare and many are either not used or otherwise ineffective. International criminal law courts and tribunals provide partial solutions as they focus on individual criminal responsibility. Our research in this domain aims to accompany existing mechanisms and their stakeholders, ongoing policy discussions, negotiations, reforms and new developments in order to ensure the ongoing relevance of the international legal framework for the most vulnerable, along with accountability and redress for victims.

OUR PROJECTS

Past projects

RESEARCH

The Universality of Human Rights: Developing Narratives to Help Overcome Polarization

Completed in 2022

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RESEARCH

A Practitioners' Guide on Human Rights and Countering Corruption

Completed in 2021

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RESEARCH

Implementing International Humanitarian Law Through Human Rights Mechanisms

Completed in 2021

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RESEARCH

International Humanitarian Law and the United Nations Security Council

Completed in 2021

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RESEARCH

The Role of National Human Rights Systems in the Implementation of International Human Rights Standards and Recommendations

Completed in 2021

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RESEARCH

Disability and Armed Conflict

Completed in 2021

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RESEARCH

INVESTIGATING IN SITUATIONS OF ARMED CONFLICT: Law, Policy and Good Practice

Completed in 2019

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RESEARCH

Modes of Liability for International Crimes

Completed in 2019

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RESEARCH

The United Nations Principles to Combat Impunity: A Commentary

Completed in 2018

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