Patryk I. Labuda
About/Bio
Patryk is an Assistant Professor of (International) Criminal Law at the University of Amsterdam. He earned his PhD in international law from the Graduate Institute in Geneva.
Recently Published
‘Open for Business’: The Special Criminal Court Launches Investigations in the Central African Republic
February 8, 2019
Patryk I. Labuda
On 22 October 2018, the Special Criminal Court (SCC) held its inaugural session in Bangui, the capital of the Central African Republic (CAR). Several weeks later, the Special Prosecutor, Col. Toussaint Muntazini, announced his long-awaited prosecutorial strategy. Coming three years after Parliament initially requested a specialist ‘war crimes’ tribunal for CAR, these two acts mark a…
The African Union’s Collective Withdrawal from the ICC: Does Bad Law make for Good Politics?
February 15, 2017
Patryk I. Labuda
A number of news outlets reported last week that the African Union (AU) had adopted a strategy for collective withdrawal from the International Criminal Court (ICC) (see here, here and here). This follows withdrawals by three African states late last year, which in turn generated much debate at last November’s Assembly of States Parties and…
Africa and the ICC: Shattered Taboos, and the Status Quo
November 23, 2016
Patryk I. Labuda
The withdrawals of South Africa, Burundi and the Gambia from the International Criminal Court have generated much discussion in the past few weeks. After shock and despondency, commentary has shifted to new and creative ways of dealing with the ICC’s ‘Africa problem’. Some of these proposals are truly original, for instance Ambassador Scheffer’s suggestion that…
Popular articles by Patryk I. Labuda
On Eastern Europe, ‘Whataboutism’ and ‘West(s)plaining’: Some Thoughts on International Lawyers’ Responses to Ukraine
April 12, 2022
Patryk I. Labuda
The invasion of Ukraine has spawned a flurry of commentary from international lawyers. Much of it has focused on traditional doctrinal disputes, such as the International Criminal Court’s jurisdiction in Ukraine or interpretation of international humanitarian law. But there have also been voices that situate the Ukraine war and international legal responses thereto in a wider context, including…
The Killing of Soleimani, the Use of Force against Iraq and Overlooked Ius Ad Bellum Questions
January 13, 2020
Patryk I. Labuda
As most people know by now, the US killed Qassem Soleimani, head of the Iranian Quds force, in a drone strike on 3 January. Most commentators seem to agree that Soleimani’s killing was unlawful, but one issue has received less attention: the legality of using force against Iraq. The strike occurred in Baghdad, killing not only Suleimani…
A Neo-Colonial Court for Weak States? Not Quite. Making Sense of the International Criminal Court’s Afghanistan Decision
April 13, 2019
Patryk I. Labuda
The International Criminal Court (ICC)’s involvement in Afghanistan has received a great deal of attention ever since the Prosecutor announced she would seek to initiate an investigation in November 2017. Rightly or wrongly, what made this inquiry so contentious was not the suffering of millions of Afghan people, but rather the alleged war crimes of a few…