Records and Archives – Frequently Asked Questions

In the United Nations, a record is “any data or information, regardless of form or medium, maintained by the United Nations as evidence of a transaction”.

See ST/SGB/2007/5 Secretary-General’s bulletin Record-keeping and the management of United Nations archives.

In the United Nations, archives are “records to be permanently preserved for their administrative, fiscal, legal, historical or informational value”.

See ST/SGB/2007/5 Secretary-General’s bulletin Record-keeping and the management of United Nations archives.

The archives contain three broad categories of ICTR, ICTY and Mechanism records:

1. judicial records
2. records that are not part of the judicial records but relate to the judicial process
3. administrative records

Judicial records are the records of cases before the Tribunals, generated by the Chambers, the Prosecutor, the Defence, the Registry, the accused and third parties (e.g. States, amici curiae).  They include:

• filings (i.e. orders and decisions issued by the court and motions and submissions from parties and non-parties)
• exhibits admitted as evidence
• transcripts and audiovisual recordings of court hearings

Records relating to the judicial process include those documenting investigation, prosecution, detention of accused persons, protection of witnesses and enforcement of sentences. 

Administrative records document the support functions of the ad hoc Tribunals and the Mechanism such as human resources, finance and procurement.

Records that are still in active use, including the Prosecutor’s evidence collection, are not yet in the Archives.

All public judicial records of the ICTR, the ICTY and the Mechanism can be found in the Unified Court Records database.

It is not yet possible to search for other records online.  If you are looking for specific records, complete the Records and Archives Enquiry Form. 

If you want to request access to judicial records under Rule 86H, see Assistance to National Jurisdictions.

Public judicial records can be viewed online through the Unified Court Records (“UCR”) database. They can also be downloaded.

Some public audiovisual recordings of proceedings are not yet available through the UCR. There are also other judicial records which are not viewable online (e.g. physical exhibits where there is no digital equivalent). To see these records, submit a request using the Records and Archives Enquiry Form.

For guidance on reproducing records held by the Mechanism, see the Access Policy.

The Mechanism is committed to providing the widest possible access to the Archives, with the obligation to protect confidential information.  For this reason, records containing confidential information are not available to the public.  The Mechanism is reviewing its confidential records and will either declassify them or make redacted versions of them available as soon as possible.     

Access to Tribunal records is governed by Mechanism and other United Nations policies:

• ST/SGB 2007/6 the Secretary-General’s bulletin Information sensitivity, classification and handling

• ST/SGB/2012/3 the Secretary-General’s bulletin International Criminal Tribunals: Information sensitivity, classification, handling and access

• MICT/17/Rev.1 Access Policy for the Records held by the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals

The ICTR, the ICTY and the Mechanism have helped shape the modern landscape of international law. Lawyers and law students may therefore benefit from reviewing some of the resources in the Case Law Database.

Public judicial records relating to specific ICTR, ICTY or Mechanism cases can be found in the Unified Court Records database.

One of the Mechanism’s main functions is providing assistance to national jurisdictions.  See the Requests for Assistance page for details and practical information (e.g. on requesting certified copies of judicial records).

Yes. The Mechanism Research Room is open to the public, by appointment only, during Mechanism working hours.

The Research Room in Arusha is located in the Mechanism’s new premises:  

Haki Road, Plot No. 486 Block A, Lakilaki Area
Arumeru District
P.O. Box 6016, Arusha, Tanzania

See Planning Your Visit in Arusha for access and other practical information.

The Research Room in The Hague is located at:

Churchillplein 1, 2517 JW The Hague, The Netherlands.

See Planning Your Visit in The Hague for access and other practical information.

You need photographic identification to enter Mechanism premises.  You do not need a letter of introduction. 

Yes.  There are power sockets available in the Research Rooms. Remember to bring an adaptor if you are visiting from overseas.

You may use a digital camera without flash.

Hand-held scanners and other light-emitting devices are not permitted because they damage documents.

Mechanism staff can provide general advice and assist with simple searches for records.

The Mechanism cannot assist with detailed research.

Yes. If records are not available online, or if they are available online but you are unable to view them, use the Records and Archives Enquiry form to request copies.

You may reproduce a photograph of a record in a publication provided that you acknowledge the source and do not distort or alter the record in any way. You must cite the record formally in any publication or reference.

If the record that you want to reproduce contains material for which copyright is owned by a third party, you must not reproduce or transmit that material without the permission of the copyright holder. You are responsible for obtaining this permission.

See the Access Policy for further information.

When citing records, include the following data:

The style of citation you need to use will depend on the preferences of your discipline, instructor, and/or publisher.

The following information must be included in any citation of records from the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, or the Mechanism.

Repository

United Nations International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (can be abbreviated to “IRMCT” after the first mention)

Reference Number

Judicial records: case name then case number (e.g., The Prosecutor v. Jean-Paul Akayesu, ICTR-96-04) plus any other relevant number (e.g., exhibit number)

Non-judicial records: contact us for assistance

Title

Judicial records: the title of the item in the judicial database

Non-judicial records: the title of the document, folder, audiovisual recording or the caption of the photograph

Date

Judicial records: the date the record was filed or admitted, or the date of the transcript or recording, plus the court session, if relevant (e.g., AM or PM)

Non-judicial records: the date on the record

If you need to include other information, please contact us for assistance.

You can find information about witnesses in public judicial records, most commonly in transcripts and exhibits in the Unified Court Records database. Search using the name of the witness as a keyword.

In certain circumstances, a Chamber ordered that the identity of a witness should be protected. Information which could reveal the identity of protected witnesses is confidential and not available to the public.

See Witnesses for more information about witness support and protection.

You may find information about places in public judicial records, most commonly in transcripts and exhibits, in the Unified Court Records database.

You can find general information about accused persons on the Cases pages of the ad hoc Tribunals and the Mechanism’s websites.

ICTR

ICTY

Mechanism

You can also find public judicial records relating to accused persons in the Unified Court Records database.

For information about fugitives, see Searching for the Fugitives.

You can find arrest warrants and other public judicial records relating to fugitives in the Unified Court Records database. Search by Accused Name or Case Number.

You can find general information about the Mechanism's Principals here.