NAVIGATING GLOBAL FRAGILITY: THE ICC AS A PILLAR OF INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL JUSTICE

Abstract

Global peace and stability are increasingly becoming fragile amid internal state fissures, contested sovereignty, and weakened multilateralism. At the same time, the legitimacy and deterrent capacity of the International Criminal Court (ICC) are sharply contested, particularly in Africa. The African Union has criticized the ICC for selective justice, neocolonial bias, and structural power asymmetry. This paper examines these critiques alongside the Malabo Protocol, which seeks to Africanize international criminal justice but is constrained by immunity for sitting leaders and weak enforcement. Despite these tensions, the paper argues that the ICC retains essential normative value by stigmatizing atrocity crimes, affirming victims’ dignity, and sustaining global accountability norms.