Crimes of State and the 1996 Report of the International Law Commission on State Responsibility

Abstract

This article argues that Article 19 of the Draft Convention on State Responsibility, first adopted in 1976, presents a number of substantial problems relating to the definition of crimes of state, the appropriate organ for making decisions on when a crime of state has been committed, and the consequences of such a crime. The International Law Commission, in seeking to adopt a series of articles spelling out the consequences of Article 19 during its 1995 and 1996 sessions, recognized those inherent difficulties. A controversial debate ensued. The purpose of this paper is to set out and clarify the issues involved in this debate so that the question of if and how the concept of 'crimes of state' should be accommodated in the new Draft Articles on State Responsibility may be effectively and conclusively answered.