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39 Geo. J. Int'l L. 445 (2007-2008)
Seeing Justice Done: The Importance of Prioritizing Outreach Efforts at International Criminal Tribunals

handle is hein.journals/geojintl39 and id is 451 raw text is: NOTES

SEEING JUSTICE DONE: THE IMPORTANCE OF
PRIORITIZING OUTREACH EFFORTS AT
INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL TRIBUNALS
NORMAN HENRY PENTELOVITCH*
The perpetration of terrible crimes against innocent populations has
gone on throughout history, yet it is only in the twentieth century that
responses to those crimes have been organized and prosecuted before
international criminal tribunals. This organization has resulted in the
formation of a number of such tribunals whose initials, ICTY,1 ICTR,2
SCSL,3 have become a part of the world's legal vocabulary. Though
these tribunals help to bring criminals to a form of justice, the
victimized populations are often left behind as the judicial process
rumbles forward. How, and to what extent, do international legal
processes inform  such a population of their work? What is the most
effective way to reach out to victims of genocide, crimes against
humanity, and war crimes? Why is it even important to think about the
victims, when so much time, money and energy needs to be devoted to
the process of putting a mass murderer on trial and ensuring that such
a trial is fair?
Part I of this article will define outreach and discuss why it should be
considered an essential part of an international criminal tribunal. It
goes on to argue that it is essential to the mission of a tribunal to
prioritize outreach at the beginning of operations.
Part II will discuss the Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL or
Special Court) and how it organized its initial outreach efforts, fol-
lowed by an overview of the outreach activities that the Special Court
and various civil society organizations undertook. Finally, this section
will outline some of the effects in Sierra Leone of the Special Court's
outreach, as well as limitations and criticisms of its work to date.
* Georgetown University Law Center,J.D., May 2009. the author served as a legal associate at
the Documentation Center of Cambodia (DC-Cam) in Summer 2007. This article is based on
publicly available sources and interviews conducted by the author, and the inferences that may be
drawn therefrom. The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those
of DC-Cam or any of its individual employees. The author would like to express his gratitude to
Youk Chhang, Anne Heindel, Professor Jane Stromseth, and John Ciorciari for opportunities,
time, and wisdom. © 2008, Norman Henry Pentelovitch.
1. International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia.
2. International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.
3. The Special Court for Sierra Leone.

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