The United Principles to Combat Impunity: a Commentary ― A Commentary

The fight against impunity has become a growing concern of the international community. Updated in 2005, the UN Set of Principles for the Protection and Promotion of Human Rights Through Action to Combat Impunity is the fruit of several years of study, developed under the aegis of the UN Commission on Human Rights and then affirmed by the Human Rights Council. These Principles are today widely accepted as constituting an authoritative reference point for efforts in the fight against impunity for gross human rights abuses and serious violations of international humanitarian law. As a comprehensive attempt to codify universal accountability norms, the UN Set of Principles marks a significant step forward in the debate on the obligation of states to combat impunity in its various forms.

Bringing together leading experts in the field, this volume provides comprehensive academic commentary of the 38 principles. The book is a perfect companion to the document, setting out the text of the Principles alongside detailed analysis, as well as a full introduction and a guide to the relevant literature and case law. The commentary advances debates and clarifies complex legal issues, making it an essential resource for legal academics, students, and practitioners working in fields such as human rights, international criminal law, and transitional justice.

Frank Haldemann, Assistant Professor of Law, University of Geneva, Thomas Unger, Researcher, Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Frank Haldemann is the Co-Director of the Master of Advanced Studies in Transitional Justice, Human Rights and the Rule of Law at the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights. Since 2010 he has been teaching Transitional Justice within the Geneva Academy's various programmes. From June 2011 to July 2017, he was Assistant Professor at the Law Faculty, University of Geneva. In 2011 he was awarded a Swiss National Science Foundation Professorship, enabling him to direct a five-year research project on "Historical Injustices, Reparations and International Law". In 2014 and 2015 he directed the Antonio Cassese Summer School in Transitional Justice, Human Rights and Conflict hosted by the Geneva Academy. Prior to joining the Geneva Academy, Frank Haldemann was a post-doctoral fellow at the New York University School of Law, the University of Leiden and the University of Pretoria. He also worked as a legal researcher with the Independent Commission of Experts Switzerland - Second World War (the 'Bergier Commission') and was a visiting professor at the University of Leiden, Universita degli Studi di Sassari, Libera Universita Maria Ss. Assunta di Roma and Universite Catholique de Louvain. Frank Haldemann holds a degree in Law from the University of Fribourg, an LLM from the London School of Economics and Political Science and a doctorate in Law from the University of Zurich.

Thomas Unger is a researcher on transitional justice at the Geneva Academy and Co-Director of the Master of Advanced Studies in Transitional Justice, Human Rights and the Rule of Law. He is the former Senior Adviser to the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence.

With more than 15 years of expertise in the field of transitional justice, he was previously a legal adviser on human rights and international humanitarian law to the Austrian Foreign Ministry, and a senior associate of the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ). He also worked as a legal system monitor with the OSCE Mission in Kosovo, and as a legal clerk with the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY).

Thomas Unger holds a degree in Law from the University of Vienna, an LLM in International Legal Studies from New York University School of Law and a Master's in Human Rights and Democratization from the European Inter-University Centre for Human Rights and Democratization (Venice).