What is it about?

The principle of legal certainty and the process of sentencing should be applied consistently, with the foreseeable legal consequences. This is especially important in regard to punishing international crimes. Moreover, the mentioned process in the Republic of Serbia, has been influenced by political developments at the international level, as well as at the national level. This article particularly examines allegations of leniency, inconsistency and a lack of sufficient reasoning in the analyzed cases.

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Why is it important?

The article reveals characteristics of the war crimes sentencing before Serbian courts. The research consists of the analysis of 38 publicly available cases before the War Crimes Department of Higher Court in Belgrade, as well as of the analysis of 57 publicly available cases before the War Crimes Department of Appellate Court in Belgrade. It offers a detailed examination of sentencing practices in different categories of cases, compared by its outcomes, based on the underlying offences; mode of liability; type of protected interests violated by the underlying criminal conduct and the defendant's rank/position.

Perspectives

I hope that this article will be helpful to all actors interested in the field of International Criminal Law, including lawyers, academics, young researchers, stake holders etc. It was challenging to observe all publicly available war crimes cases in Serbia and to find out which tendencies have remained present even after two decades since the whole process has begun. The research has been conducted in a multidisciplinary manner with the aim to contribute in general understanding of complexity of punishing international crimes at the national level, particularly before Serbian courts. This job was demanding and eventually satisfying, I hope that readers will find it interesting and thought-provoking.

Full Professor Branislav Ristivojević
Faculty of Law, University of Novi Sad

It is my personal belief that the research of the judicial practice of Serbian courts in the field of war crimes has been necessary. Namely, this issue is very topical in the area of former Yugoslavia. It brings upon various historic, social, legal and political perspectives. Also, it is noteworthy that the special jurisdiction for war crimes has been established almost two decades ago. There are many judgments, containing traditional legal reasoning, as well as some controversies. I hope that this paper will contribute to a proper observation of this complex process in its entirety.

Ph.D. candidate Stefan Radojčić
Faculty of Law, University of Novi Sad

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This page is a summary of: Punishing International Crimes in Serbia, International Criminal Law Review, January 2019, Brill,
DOI: 10.1163/15718123-01901003.
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