Reparations to victims in the Bemba case through the assistance mandate of the ICC Trust Fund for Victims

Abstract

This paper is part of the research work carried out from September 2018 to April 2019 by the International Law Clinic, organized by the Universidad del Rosario, Bogotá, Colombia and the Ibero-American Institute of The Hague for Peace, Human Rights and International Justice (IIH), at the request of the Office of Public Counsel for the Victims (OPCV) of the International Criminal Court (ICC). It answers the following questions: In the context of the Bemba case, may participating victims get redress in the case of an acquittal and, if so, how? What is the scope of the assistance mandate of the Trust Fund for Victims (TFV) in this regard? How could a legal representative of victims trigger and/or interact with the TFV for this purpose? To answer these questions, this paper is divided into four major parts: first, the two-fold mandate of the Trust Fund for Victims ("TFV" or "the Fund") is explained; second, within the general assistance mandate, the different projects that have being implemented by the TFV since 2008 through their Assistance Programs are explained; third, the question concerning the possibility of using the assistance mandate of the TFV to adopt this type of project in favour of victims in the Bemba case will be answered; and, finally, the scope and extent of interaction between the Legal Representatives of the Victims and the TFV will be analysed.