The international community has established a number of bodies at global and regional level for the maintenance of international law and the protection of human rights. Switzerland supports these efforts and is a committed proponent of a stable, more just world order. The contribution of the international courts is decisive.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is one of the principal bodies of the United Nations. It plays a central role in the administration of justice. Based on the supremacy of the rule of law, it makes an important contribution to the peaceful resolution of disputes between states. Its judgments and its advisory opinions make it a cornerstone of the international legal system. The rising number of legal cases and legal questions that are submitted to it are an indication of the trust placed in the ICJ by the international community.

Switzerland regards the ICJ as irreplaceable. It has always acknowledged its competence, and calls on all other states to do the same – bringing their disputes before the court and resolving them peacefully.

The European Court of Human Rights is an institution of the Council of Europe. It monitors compliance with undertakings given by the contracting parties to the European Convention on the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR). The Court has become a global reference body, and it is a model for other regional courts.

Switzerland ratified the ECHR in 1974. This means that natural and juridical persons can file a complaint against Switzerland with the Court for breaching the Human Rights Convention or its protocols.

The United Nations has established seven committees to monitor compliance with the most important human-rights conventions. Even though these are not actually courts, they still play a central role. Switzerland supports efforts to make them more effective.

The creation of international tribunals has led to far-reaching changes in international criminal justice. The criminal courts are charged with pursuing individuals who have committed grave crimes against humanity.

The creation of the International Criminal Court (ICC) was of historic significance. It was established on the basis of the Rome Statute of 1998, which came into force on 1 July 2002. The international community thus has a permanent, universal court authority. It is responsible for judging the gravest crimes that affect the international community as a whole and most deeply touch the conscience of humanity:

• genocide
• crimes against humanity
• war crimes

The International Criminal Court comes into play when the responsible national authorities either cannot or will not prosecute these crimes themselves. A person cannot escape criminal prosecution on the grounds of his office or of immunities. This even applies to heads of state and government representatives. Switzerland supports the International Criminal Court, regarding its establishment as significant progress in the struggle against impunity, and in furtherance of and respect for international humanitarian law and human rights.

Since the 1990s the international community of states has established the following war-crime tribunals:

• the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (1993)
• the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (1994)
• the Special Court for Sierra Leone
• extraordinary chambers in the Cambodian courts for the prosecution of the crimes of the Khmer Rouge (2004)