State Responsibility for the Conduct of UN Forces – Consequences for Future UN Missions? Lessons from the Dutch Rulings on Liability of The Netherlands for Acts of Dutchbat during the UNPROFOR Mission in Srebrenica.
State Responsibility for the Conduct of UN Forces – Consequences for Future UN Missions? Lessons from the Dutch Rulings on Liability of The Netherlands for Acts of Dutchbat during the UNPROFOR Mission in Srebrenica.

Summary/Abstract: This article describes how Dutch courts in three civil cases came to render the Dutch State responsible for the conduct of Dutchbat leading to the deaths of 320 men during the Srebrenica genocide. The cases address two questions: 1) Is the conduct of the Dutch troops acting under UN mandate attributable to the State? 2) Was the conduct of Dutchbat wrongful? This article describes the courts use of the ‘effective control’ test and the possibility of ‘dual attribution’ to both UN and Member State as legal mechanisms for attribution. In the conclusion the question is raised: if Member States could be held accountable for actions which their forces carried out under UN mandate, would this affect their willingness to contribute forces to future UN missions?

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