The JANA Annual Report, titled ‘Accountability for Serious and Core International Crimes in Australia’ was launched on Monday 19th August 2024, in Brisbane, at the University of Queensland. Ambassador Van Schaack spoke about the four key pathways to accountability, namely empowering domestic justice systems; use of international institutions such as the ICJ and the ICC; the use of extraterritorial jurisdiction, as seen with the successful work of EuroJust and its Joint Investigation Teams (JITs), cooperation with the ICC and its international crime database; and the use of civil redress as an alternative to criminal justice.

Ambassador Van Schaack indicated her support for JANA’s PacificJust initiative, where JANA, with a broader community of practice, seeks to create a regional justice cooperation forum, modelled from the EuroJust’s Genocide Network and adapted for our regional needs.

Ambassador Van Schaack was followed by an explanation of the strategic aims of JANA by its three directors, Mr Bob Reid, AM, Dr Lauren Sanders, CSC, and Dr Melinda Rankin, as well as an outline of the key recommendations of the report. It seeks to support the organisations key objectives of:

1. Aiding Australia and the region in adopting accountability global best practice

2. Creating an Australian Atrocity Accountability Community of Practice; and

3. Creating a PacificJust Criminal Justice Cooperation forum, adapted from the EuroJust model. 

The event also featured an excellent presentation from Professor Kevin Jon Heller, talking about the recently released ICC OTP policy, focused on vigilance and partnerships – in exercising a ‘positive complementarity’ and highlighting the need for active collaboration and cooperation between states and the ICC.

Thanks to Professor Rain Liivoja for moderating the event. We also thank the UQ Law School and UQ Centre for the Responsibility to Protect for co-hosting this event.