Leadership responsibility in non-state criminal organisations The rediscovery of indirect perpetration through an organisation by Latin American courts and the ICC

This article addresses the interaction between Latin American courts and the International Criminal Court in adapting and expanding the concept of indirect perpetration through an organisation (Organisationsherrschaft), in order to accommodate the criminal responsibility of leaders of non-state armed groups. This project has turned out to be a challenge, because Organisationsherrschaft was initially designed by it’s inventor, Claus Roxin, as a legal device to sustain the criminal responsibility of the kingpins, operating within tightly structured, hierarchical structures, Eichmann being the paradigmatical case. Nonetheless, the author concludes that national and international courts have succeeded in demonstrating that the doctrine of Organisationsherrschaft can be tailored to less rigidly structured organisations. They have accomplished this by keeping a close eye on the essence of the doctrine, to wit the leader’s capacity to assure (quasi) automatic compliance with orders through his dominance over an organisation. The development of the concept of indirect perpetration through an organisation proves that interaction between and mutual inspiration of national and international courts can chart new waters in (international) criminal law.