Ściganie zbrodni międzynarodowych – uwagi dotyczące konieczności wprowadzenia zmian w polskim prawie karnym

The article presents the results of research aimed at examining whether Polish criminal law is shaped in a way that allows for conducting effective, i.e. allowing for the indictment of specific persons and the issuance of sentences against them, criminal proceedings in the case of international crimes, which Poland is obliged to prosecute. The conclusions from the research indicate that this is not the case. The regulations concerning the definition of international crimes and the principles of exercising jurisdiction over them are insufficient. Not only is the prosecution of international crimes an international law obligation of the Republic of Poland, as explained in the first part of the article, but the lack of action to fulfil this obligation also carries international legal responsibility. Not only does the second part focus on signalling the lack of penalization of certain international crimes in the Polish Penal Code, but it also highlights discrepancies between the definitions of international crimes in international law and those adopted in the Polish Penal Code. Finally, the third part analyzes the issues of the admissibility of exercising jurisdiction by Polish courts over international crimes committed outside the territory of the Polish state. The article ends with conclusions that emphasize that Poland’s failure to implement its international obligations leads not only to „structural impunity” but also to the failure to achieve the goals of the criminal justice system.