Omar Bennett
The Responsibility to Protect (RtoP) is a doctrine unanimously endorsed by the member-states of the United Nations at its World Summit in 2005. It sets out to protect people worldwide from four crimes: genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and ethnic cleansing. In 2018, Peru, Paraguay, Chile, Argentina, and Canada requested that the International Criminal Court (ICC) investigate the alleged crimes of the Maduro regime in Venezuela to establish whether they constitute crimes against humanity as defined in Article VII of the Rome Statute. This has led to years of investigations into cases of arbitrary detention, torture, and extrajudicial killings perpetrated by the regime. In 2020, the UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela published a detailed report outlining reasonable grounds to believe that the Maduro regime has perpetrated a pattern of human rights violations amounting to crimes against humanity. This article will explore whether the situation in Venezuela constitutes the Responsibility to Protect.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date of endorsement | 2005 |
| Endorsed by | United Nations member states |
| Crimes protected against | Genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and ethnic cleansing |
| Date of request to investigate Venezuela | September 2018 |
| Countries requesting investigation | Peru, Paraguay, Chile, Argentina, and Canada |
| Outcome of investigation | Grounds to believe the Maduro regime has perpetrated human rights violations amounting to crimes against humanity |
| Date of outcome | September 2020 |
| Organisation publishing outcome | UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela |
| Alternative body to advance discussions on RtoP for Venezuela | Organisation of American States (OAS) |
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What You'll Learn
The International Criminal Court (ICC) and the Rome Statute
In 2018, Peru, Paraguay, Chile, Argentina, and Canada requested that the International Criminal Court (ICC) investigate the alleged crimes of the Maduro regime in Venezuela to establish whether they constitute crimes against humanity as defined in Article VII of the Rome Statute. This request was made under the Responsibility to Protect (RtoP) doctrine, which was unanimously endorsed by the member states of the United Nations at its World Summit in 2005. The RtoP agreement sets out to protect people worldwide from four crimes: genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and ethnic cleansing. Each individual state has the responsibility to protect its population from these crimes and to prevent their incitement through appropriate and necessary means.
The ICC is a permanent international court established by the Rome Statute to prosecute individuals for the international crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression. The Court has jurisdiction over these crimes when committed by nationals of states parties or on the territory of states parties. The Rome Statute is a treaty that serves as the ICC's foundational and governing document. It sets out the Court's structure, jurisdiction, and functions, as well as the definitions of the crimes within its jurisdiction.
In the case of Venezuela, the ICC would have jurisdiction over the alleged crimes of the Maduro regime if Venezuela is a state party to the Rome Statute. As of September 2018, 123 countries were states parties to the Statute, with Venezuela being one of them. This means that the ICC has the authority to investigate and prosecute the alleged crimes committed by the Maduro regime, including crimes against humanity.
The investigation into the Maduro regime was prompted by a referral from the five countries mentioned earlier, who requested that the ICC establish whether the alleged crimes constitute crimes against humanity as defined in the Rome Statute. This referral was made under the RtoP doctrine, which seeks to prevent and respond to mass atrocity crimes, such as those allegedly committed by the Maduro regime. The findings of the UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in 2020 provided further evidence of human rights violations amounting to crimes against humanity, including arbitrary detention, torture, and extrajudicial killings.
The ICC's investigation into the Maduro regime is ongoing, and it is yet to be determined whether the alleged crimes will be prosecuted by the Court. However, the referral and subsequent investigation send a strong message that the international community is committed to upholding the RtoP doctrine and holding accountable those who perpetrate mass atrocity crimes.
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The Maduro regime and its alleged crimes
In September 2018, Peru, Paraguay, Chile, Argentina, and Canada requested that the International Criminal Court (ICC) investigate the alleged crimes of the Maduro regime in Venezuela. The investigation sought to establish whether these crimes constituted crimes against humanity as defined in Article VII of the Rome Statute.
The Maduro regime has been accused of committing arbitrary detention, torture, and extrajudicial killings. These allegations have been confirmed and expanded upon by years of investigations. In response to these findings, the Venezuelan interim government, human rights defenders, and other stakeholders have called on the international community to implement the Responsibility to Protect (RtoP) doctrine.
The RtoP, endorsed unanimously by the United Nations in 2005, is a crucial component of a global, collective security system. It aims to protect people worldwide from four crimes: genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and ethnic cleansing. However, it is important to note that the RtoP does not permit military aggression as defined by the ICC. Instead, it acts as a barrier to it, allowing states to consider all coercive and non-coercive measures under the UN Charter when a government is "manifestly failing" to protect its population from the four crimes.
The Secretary-General of the Organization of American States, Luis Almagro, emphasised the need to act in accordance with public international law, including the UN's 2005 RtoP commitment to prevent genocide, international criminal law, and the international norms that protect democracy and fundamental rights and freedoms.
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The Responsibility to Protect (RtoP) doctrine
In September 2018, Peru, Paraguay, Chile, Argentina, and Canada requested that the International Criminal Court (ICC) investigate the alleged crimes of the Maduro regime in Venezuela. They wanted to establish whether these crimes constituted crimes against humanity as defined in Article VII of the Rome Statute. In response to these findings, the Venezuelan interim government, human rights defenders, and other stakeholders have reiterated their request that the international community implement the Responsibility to Protect doctrine.
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The UN's 2005 Responsibility to Protect commitment
The Responsibility to Protect (RtoP) was unanimously endorsed by the member-states of the United Nations at its World Summit in 2005. The agreement sets out to protect people the world over from four crimes: genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and ethnic cleansing.
In September 2018, Peru, Paraguay, Chile, Argentina, and Canada requested that the International Criminal Court (ICC)> investigate the alleged crimes of the Maduro regime in Venezuela in order to establish whether they constitute crimes against humanity as defined in Article VII of the Rome Statute. In September 2020, the UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela published a detailed report outlining reasonable grounds to believe that the Maduro regime has perpetrated a pattern of human rights violations amounting to crimes against humanity. The findings confirmed and expanded on years of investigations into cases of arbitrary detention, torture, and extrajudicial killings perpetrated by the regime.
In response to these findings, the Venezuelan interim government, human rights defenders, and other stakeholders have reiterated their request that the international community implement the Responsibility to Protect doctrine. The Organization of American States (OAS) has emerged as a serious alternative body to advance discussions on RtoP for Venezuela. OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro has stated that “if existing international mechanisms are not responding to the demands and needs of the victims of mass atrocities in the Americas, at the very least the OAS should try to design and build a regional mechanism that can prevent and respond more efficiently, and in a timely manner, to crimes of this nature in the Western Hemisphere.”
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The four crimes: genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and ethnic cleansing
The Responsibility to Protect (RtoP) is a principle endorsed unanimously by the United Nations in 2005. It is designed to protect people the world over from four crimes: genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and ethnic cleansing.
In September 2018, Peru, Paraguay, Chile, Argentina, and Canada requested that the International Criminal Court (ICC) investigate the alleged crimes of the Maduro regime in Venezuela. The investigation was to establish whether the crimes constituted crimes against humanity as defined in Article VII of the Rome Statute.
The findings of the investigation confirmed and expanded on years of investigations into cases of arbitrary detention, torture, and extrajudicial killings perpetrated by the regime. In response, the Venezuelan interim government, human rights defenders, and other stakeholders have reiterated their request that the international community implement the RtoP doctrine.
It is important to note that the RtoP does not permit military aggression as defined by the ICC. Instead, it acts as a barrier to it. The RtoP allows states to consider all coercive and non-coercive measures under Chapters VI, VII, and VIII of the UN Charter when a government is "manifestly failing" to protect its population from the four crimes.
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Frequently asked questions
The Responsibility to Protect (RtoP) is an agreement unanimously endorsed by the member-states of the United Nations at its World Summit in 2005. The agreement sets out to protect people the world over from four crimes: genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and ethnic cleansing.
In September 2018, Peru, Paraguay, Chile, Argentina and Canada requested that the International Criminal Court investigate the alleged crimes of Nicola Maduro’s regime in order to establish whether they constitute crimes against humanity as defined in Article VII of the Rome Statute.
In September 2020, the UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela published a detailed report outlining reasonable grounds to believe that the Maduro regime has perpetrated a pattern of human rights violations amounting to crimes against humanity.
The Organization of American States (OAS) has emerged as a serious alternative body to advance discussions on RtoP for Venezuela. OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro has stated that the OAS should try to design and build a regional mechanism that can prevent and respond more efficiently to crimes of this nature in the Western Hemisphere.
In response to the findings of the investigation, the Venezuelan interim government, human rights defenders, and other stakeholders have reiterated their request that the international community implement the Responsibility to Protect doctrine.
