As part of the Tribunal’s Youth Outreach Programme, Mr Amir Čengić, Legal Officer in the ICTY Appeals Chamber, delivered a lecture to a group of 40 students and staff of the Law Faculty of Saint Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) on 26 October 2017. The lecture concerned the ICTY practice in adjudicating war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide.
After a brief introduction on the creation of the ICTY and its jurisdiction, Mr Čengić explained how the Tribunal’s judges determine whether an armed conflict existed in a relevant area at a relevant time. In this context, he specifically referred to the case of Boškoski and Tarčulovski where this was an important issue. Having also elaborated on the distinction between international and internal armed conflicts, Mr Čengić explained the difference between grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions and other war crimes.
In the second part of the presentation, students had the opportunity to learn about the Tribunal's case law in relation to other crimes within the ICTY's jurisdiction, namely genocide and crimes against humanity, with a particular focus during the session on persecution and extermination.
The students were also interested to learn more about the transfer of four case files from the Tribunal back to the FYROM in 2008. In addition, the question of convicted war criminals serving in public office following completion of their sentences was raised during the discussion.