Realizing the Promise of Universal Jurisdiction: A Survivor-Centered Approach to Justice for the Yazidi Genocide

Abstract

More than a decade after the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) launched its genocidal campaign against the Yazidi community, the pursuit of justice for the atrocities committed against the ethnoreligious group remains an uphill battle. Amidst Iraq’s failures to prosecute international crimes domestically and while other paths to international justice remain unsuccessful, the principle of universal jurisdiction (UJ) has, for the first time in Yazidi history, led to the conviction of perpetrators for atrocity crimes committed against them. Amidst the growing body of UJ case law concerning crimes against the Yazidis, an examination of past proceedings has revealed gaps in access for the Yazidi diaspora, barring them from meaningfully engaging with trials that are historic for their community.

While UJ holds the promise of serving as an extraterritorial solution for combating impunity for international crimes, this Article argues that, for court proceedings to achieve genuine universality, they must be accessible and visible to affected communities, even if members are not directly participating in the proceedings within the host country. Building on existing scholarship on the accessibility of UJ, this Article highlights gaps in how such proceedings engage victim communities, focusing specifically on the Yazidi community’s ongoing pursuit of justice, for whom UJ represents the currently sole available legal mechanism. Through this case study, the Article seeks to broaden the discourse on accessibility and calls for a more survivor-centered approach in national prosecutions of international crimes by proposing three practical measures—translations, court recordings, and outreach initiatives—as essential tools to strengthen the legitimacy and reach of UJ proceedings.