Rethinking transparency through the public–private prism: the case of the ICC–NGOs partnership

Abstract This article considers how arguments about transparency have shaped the institutional set-up of the International Criminal Court (ICC) ever since its establishment, forging and reinforcing the very idea of what transparency means in an international justice context. In particular, this article examines how transparency, constructed as broader public access, has shaped the relationship between the ICC as a public institution and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as private actors. The public/private prism is rendered necessary for it enables one to appreciate more clearly the largely neglected double-edged character of transparency as a tool of global governance. While, on the one hand, transparency has ‘publicised’ institutions and areas of international law by marking a shift from the private/bilateral dimension to a public/global character, on the other hand, it has also ‘privatised’ those areas and institutions in international law by enabling the participation of private actors within their life and activities. As such, this contribution invites critical reflections on the implications of understanding transparency as wider public participation and the relations it engenders between international courts and tribunals as public institutions and NGOs as private actors within the international justice project.