An Examination of the Law On the Jurisdiction of International Criminal Court and Its Applicability in Africa

ABSTRACT The study made an examination of the law on the jurisdiction of international criminal court from African cases. The research steamed from the fact that on 12 th October 2013 the African Union made a decision that no criminal charges can be brought against a sitting head of state or government. 1 Following this decision, the African Union adopted the Protocol on Amendments to the Protocol on the Statute of the African Court of Justice and Human Rights 2 Given this empirical record, it is important to investigate the means by which African states are countering the actions of the ICC and the rule of international criminal law. The objectives of the study were to examine the procedures at International Criminal Court and its applicability in African; to examine the principle of universal jurisdiction of International Criminal Court in Africa; and to find out the challenges and achievements of the ICC Court in enforcing international human rights law in order to achieve the objectives of the study .The researcher adopted doctrinal legal research methodology which is mainly based on primary and secondary sources and also reviewed different existing literature and legal instruments on the jurisdiction of international criminal court. In conclusion the researcher found out that the greatest source of Africa’s displeasure with the ICC is the fact that it has been Afro-focused. The principle of universal jurisdiction requires that certain crimes can be prosecuted by any state which has custody of the person responsible for such crimes every state has a right to prosecute these persons and also the size of the investigation teams should be revised to recruit professional investigators.