Cases before the International Criminal Court (ICC) often arise from mass violence affecting large communities. Recognising victim participation is not simply a matter of allowing more people into a courtroom. It requires answers to practical legal questions: Who qualifies as a victim? How does a person apply to participate? When and how may views be presented? How does the Court protect safety and privacy? How should legal representation and information operate when the number of victims is very large?
The Rome Statute and the Rules of Procedure and Evidence do not give victims an unrestricted status as parties. They establish a framework controlled by legal criteria, judicial discretion and the requirements of a fair trial. Those limits are central to assessing whether participation is genuinely meaningful.
Victim status is a legal determination
Rule 85 of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence provides the starting point. A natural person may qualify as a victim where that person has suffered harm as a result of a crime within the Court’s jurisdiction. An organisation or institution may also qualify where it has sustained direct harm to specified property dedicated to religion, education, art, science, charitable or humanitarian purposes, or to historic monuments, hospitals and similar protected places or objects.
The definition requires attention to three distinct elements: the alleged harm, a crime within the Court’s jurisdiction and the connection between them. Living in an affected area, identifying with an affected community or providing information to the Court does not automatically confer participating-victim status in a particular case. The Chamber must assess the application against the scope of the case and the relevant allegations.
Victims and witnesses also perform different functions. A witness primarily gives evidence about matters within their knowledge. A victim has suffered harm and may have an independent interest in the proceedings and their outcome. One person may be both a victim and a witness, but the two roles involve different procedural responsibilities, information access and protection needs.
How victims apply to participate
Under rule 89, victims generally submit a written application to the Registrar. The application must provide enough information for the Court to assess identity, harm and the link to the relevant crimes. The Registry receives and processes the material and addresses protection-related handling; the relevant Chamber decides whether participation is allowed and in what form.
Subject to necessary redactions and protective arrangements, the Prosecution and Defence will normally have an opportunity to comment on applications. Identifying information may be withheld where disclosure would create risks. Administrative receipt or registration therefore does not amount to a judicial determination of victim status.
Admission is not a fixed passport to every procedural activity. A Chamber may define the proceedings and modalities in which participation is appropriate. A refusal under rule 89 also does not, by itself, prevent a person from later seeking reparations under the separate reparations framework.
What limits apply to participation?
Article 68(3) of the Rome Statute is the central legal basis. Where victims’ personal interests are affected, the Court must permit their views and concerns to be presented and considered at stages it determines to be appropriate.
This right is governed by three controls:
- the issue must affect the victims’ personal interests;
- the Court determines the appropriate stage and manner of participation; and
- participation must not prejudice the rights of the accused and must remain consistent with a fair and impartial trial.
Victims are therefore not prosecutors. They do not control investigations, frame charges or assume responsibility for proving the case. The Office of the Prosecutor retains responsibility for investigation and prosecution, while the Defence retains the presumption of innocence and the rights necessary for an effective defence. Victims participate from a distinct position to present their own views and concerns.
Participation does not necessarily include attending every hearing, receiving all confidential filings or personally questioning witnesses. The practical scope depends on the Chamber’s decisions under article 68(3), rules 89 to 91 and the circumstances of the case.
Protection and special measures
If contact with the Court creates risks of retaliation, stigma, re-traumatisation or disclosure of personal information, a formal right to participate may increase rather than reduce harm. Article 68(1) requires the Court to take appropriate measures to protect the safety, physical and psychological well-being, dignity and privacy of victims and witnesses, taking account of factors including age, gender, health and the nature of the crime.
Rule 86 requires all organs of the Court to consider the needs of victims and witnesses in performing their functions. Rule 87 addresses measures such as protection of identity and location, restricted disclosure and closed proceedings. Rule 88 permits special measures for persons who may require additional support, including children, older persons, traumatised persons and victims of sexual violence.
Protection is not an absolute entitlement to anonymity, and it cannot displace defence rights. Chambers must balance safety and privacy against disclosure obligations, the ability to challenge evidence and the requirements of a fair trial. Measures may also change as risks and procedural needs evolve.
Legal and common legal representation
ICC proceedings take place far from many affected communities, use several languages and involve complex procedural rules. Legal representatives help victims understand the case, develop individual or collective positions, file submissions and participate in hearings within the limits authorised by the Chamber.
Rule 90 begins with freedom to choose a legal representative. Where there are many victims, the Chamber may ask victims or particular groups to select one or more common legal representatives to ensure effective proceedings. If they cannot do so within the specified time, the Chamber may request the Registrar to make the selection. The Court and Registry must take reasonable steps to represent distinct interests and avoid conflicts. Victims lacking sufficient means may also receive legal assistance, including financial assistance where appropriate.
The need for common representation cannot be justified by numbers alone. Victims from different regions or with different experiences, ages, genders and forms of harm may have distinct concerns. Effective common representation requires consultation, communication and a method for addressing disagreement; it should not treat all victims as a single, uniform constituency.
Rule 91 governs the modalities of participation by legal representatives. Questioning a witness, expert or accused generally requires advance application and a ruling by the Chamber. Legal representation is thus a vital means of exercising victims’ rights, but it does not create a second, uncontrolled prosecution.
Information and notification
Without timely and understandable information, victims cannot decide whether to apply, instruct counsel or respond to developments. Rule 92 provides for notification in several contexts, including decisions under article 53 not to investigate or prosecute, confirmation-of-charges hearings, the commencement of trial and specified decisions, applications and filings.
Where appropriate, the Court may require broader notification through public notices, media accessible to affected communities or other suitable means. Effective communication must consider language, literacy, digital access, security and local relationships of trust. Posting an English-language document from The Hague is not necessarily sufficient to make information accessible.
Notification is not an unrestricted right to the entire record. Material concerning security, privacy, investigative strategy or other confidential interests may remain restricted. The practical question is whether the information provided allows victims to understand proceedings, make informed choices and exercise rights safely.
Who assists victims within the Court?
Several ICC units have different and sometimes easily confused functions:
- The Victims Participation and Reparations Section (VPRS) is situated within the Registry. It provides information and practical assistance, processes participation and reparations applications, carries out necessary redactions and transmissions, and reports to Chambers as directed. It does not replace the Chamber in determining eligibility.
- The body established in article 43(6) as the Victims and Witnesses Unit is currently organised within the Registry as the Victims and Witnesses Section (VWS). It provides protective measures, security arrangements, counselling and other appropriate assistance for witnesses, victims appearing before the Court and persons at risk on account of testimony.
- The Office of Public Counsel for Victims (OPCV) provides legal research, advice and assistance and may appear or represent victims when appointed. It is administratively linked to the Registry but performs its legal functions independently.
Together, these bodies support the exercise of victims’ rights, but practical assistance, protection services, legal representation and judicial decision-making must remain clearly distinguished.
What meaningful participation requires
Legal texts describe what victims may do in principle; institutional practice determines whether they can do it in reality. Meaningful participation requires timely and understandable information, safety and privacy, trusted legal representation, mechanisms that preserve differences within groups and procedures through which Chambers genuinely consider victims’ views.
The ICC model should not be transplanted directly into Taiwan’s criminal justice system, but it offers useful questions. Do victims receive information before decisions affecting their interests? Can they communicate views in a safe and affordable way? Is representation grounded in consultation and trust? Does the system clearly distinguish participation, protection, services and reparations?
A victim-centred justice system is not measured merely by whether victims are present. The question is whether their voices can enter judicial decision-making safely, knowledgeably and effectively without sacrificing the fairness of the trial. VST’s continuing ICC series will examine that commitment through the Duterte proceedings, reparations and the independence of the Court.
Core legal texts and official sources
- International Criminal Court, Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (2025 edition), arts. 43(6) and 68.
- International Criminal Court, Rules of Procedure and Evidence (2026 edition), rules 16 and 85–93.
- International Criminal Court, Regulations of the Court (2026 edition), regulations 41, 80, 81 and 86–87; amended on 30 January 2026 and in force from 20 February 2026.
- International Criminal Court, Victims.
- International Criminal Court, Victim Application Forms.
- Office of Public Counsel for Victims, Representing Victims before the International Criminal Court: A Manual for Legal Representatives, 5th ed., 2019; practice coverage through 31 December 2018.
Editorial note: This article is a public legal education resource based on official ICC materials. It is not an official ICC publication or translation and does not constitute legal advice in an individual case. Decisions on participation, protection and representation may differ by case and procedural stage.
How to cite and Revision Log
Suggested citation: I-Min Hsiao, “What Rights Do Victims Have at the ICC? Status, Participation, Protection, Legal Representation and Information,” Victim Support Taiwan, 3 August 2026, https://victim-support.tw/en/icc-victim-rights-framework-en/.
Revision Log
- 3 August 2026, v1.0: formally published; completed Chinese–English Polylang pairing and desktop and 390px pre-publication verification.
- 2 August 2026, v0.2: verified regulations 41, 80, 81 and 86–87 against the 2026 edition of the Regulations of the Court; distinguished the statutory term Victims and Witnesses Unit from the Registry's current organisational name, Victims and Witnesses Section (VWS); completed the bilingual legal-meaning review.
- 2 August 2026, v0.1: source-oriented bilingual draft based on the 2025 edition of the Rome Statute, 2026 edition of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence, official ICC victim materials and the OPCV Manual.