Criminal jurisdiction in International law

Abstract

The introductory chapter of the thesis concentrates on the concept of jurisdiction, its origins, nature and importance in international law. Particular attention is devoted to jurisdiction as an element of sovereignty and as part of customary international law, leading to the conclusion of whether jurisdiction is relevant to international law or not. The second part of the thesis consists of an individual analysis of those principles in international law, by virtue of which states exercise criminal jurisdiction. These are the: I) territorial principle whereby jurisdiction is based on the place of commission of the offence; ii) nationality principle based on the nationality of the offender; iii) passive personality principle based on the nationality of the victim of the offence; iv) protective principle which has as its basis the injury to the nationals of a State and finally the universality principle by virtue of which each and e_very State is allowed to exercise jurisdiction over certain menacing acts that threaten the whole international community, irrespective of where they occur. The final part of the thesis is dedicated to Malta. A detailed study of the section 5 of the Criminal Code (including a number of international conventions) upon which Maltese criminal jurisdiction is founded, is entered into. This thesis serves to highlight the importance of such jurisdictional principles in the light of the continuous struggle to maintain global peace and security.