From Organ Trafficking to the Kosovo Specialist Chambers: The Strategic Narrative behind the Kosovo Specialist Chambers and the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office
Session
Political Science
Description
International justice, the establishment of international criminal tribunals and war crimes trials are influenced by strategic narratives. These narratives are deliberatively designed to advance politically motivated interests and intend to use international justice mechanisms as a useful instrument to legitimize these interests. Part of these interests is to re-write the history of a conflict by framing political actors as criminals and delegitimizing liberation movements as criminal organizations. Against this background, the present article analyzes the Council of Europe Report on “Inhuman treatment of people and illicit trafficking in human organs in Kosovo” from the perspective of a strategic narrative, its intention to brand the Kosovo Liberation Army as a criminal organization and its liberation war as a criminal activity, and the impact this narrative had on international public opinion which led to the establishment of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers and the Kosovo Specialist Prosecutor’s Office.
Keywords:
Kosovo Specialist Chambers, strategic narratives, war crimes, crimes against humanity
Session Chair
Ridvan Peshkopia
Proceedings Editor
Edmond Hajrizi
ISBN
978-9951-550-19-2
Location
Pristina, Kosovo
Start Date
26-10-2019 9:00 AM
End Date
26-10-2019 9:30 AM
DOI
10.33107/ubt-ic.2019.99
Recommended Citation
Muharremi, Robert, "From Organ Trafficking to the Kosovo Specialist Chambers: The Strategic Narrative behind the Kosovo Specialist Chambers and the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office" (2019). UBT International Conference. 99.
https://knowledgecenter.ubt-uni.net/conference/2019/events/99
From Organ Trafficking to the Kosovo Specialist Chambers: The Strategic Narrative behind the Kosovo Specialist Chambers and the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office
Pristina, Kosovo
International justice, the establishment of international criminal tribunals and war crimes trials are influenced by strategic narratives. These narratives are deliberatively designed to advance politically motivated interests and intend to use international justice mechanisms as a useful instrument to legitimize these interests. Part of these interests is to re-write the history of a conflict by framing political actors as criminals and delegitimizing liberation movements as criminal organizations. Against this background, the present article analyzes the Council of Europe Report on “Inhuman treatment of people and illicit trafficking in human organs in Kosovo” from the perspective of a strategic narrative, its intention to brand the Kosovo Liberation Army as a criminal organization and its liberation war as a criminal activity, and the impact this narrative had on international public opinion which led to the establishment of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers and the Kosovo Specialist Prosecutor’s Office.