> List of ICTY Completion Strategy Reports

The ICTY was established in 1993 as a temporary institution, set up for the specific purpose of investigating crimes committed during the wars in the former Yugoslavia and prosecuting those responsible. This was done at a time when the domestic judicial systems in the former Yugoslavia were not able or willing to do so themselves.

By 2003, ten years after its establishment, the Tribunal was operating at full capacity while the various national judicial systems in the region demonstrated varying degrees of intent to improve their ability to handle war crimes cases. Consequently, the Tribunal's judges took the initiative of devising a plan which became known as the 'completion strategy'. Its purpose is to make sure that the Tribunal concludes its mission successfully, in a timely way and in coordination with domestic legal systems in the former Yugoslavia.

The plan was endorsed by the UN Security Council in resolutions 1503 and 1534, and it consists of three phases and target dates for the completion of the Tribunal’s mandate.

The first date that was successfully met was the completion of all investigations by 31 December 2004.

The second target date was the completion of all trials by the end of 2008. The Tribunal’s President informed the Security Council that the majority of trials will be completed during 2009 and that,  due to the late arrests of accused and the sheer complexity of certain cases, a small number will continue into the first part of 2010.

Estimates as of end 2009 suggest that all trials are expected to be completed by mid-2011, with the exception of that of Radovan Karadžić, which is expected to finish in late 2012. All appellate work is scheduled to be completed by mid-2013, and the appeal in the Karadžić case would be completed by February 2014.

To accomplish these results, the ICTY focuses on the most senior leaders suspected of being responsible for crimes within the Tribunal’s jurisdiction and transfers cases against intermediate and lower-level accused to competent national jurisdictions. Domestic prosecutors and courts can also initiate cases without any involvement by the ICTY.

To date, the completion strategy has been a very important catalyst for the strengthening of competent national judicial systems in the former Yugoslavia. With the encouragement of the UN Security Council and the support of the international community, specialised mechanisms for war crimes prosecutions and trials have been set up in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Croatia. The ICTY provides professional advice in the reform of relevant legislation, especially in areas such as command responsibility and witness protection.

The ICTY shares expertise with lawyers and other professionals in the former Yugoslavia through participation in various training programmes and study visits. By transferring evidentiary materials as well as making electronic databases and archives available to national institutions, the Tribunal will ensure an effective transition from an international court to domestic judiciaries.

> List of ICTY Completion Strategy Reports