Визначення найманства за законодавством України про кримінальну відповідальність

Abstract

У статті розглянуто історичну трансформацію поняття «найманство» у міжнародному праві і кримінальному праві України. Проаналізовано особливості дефініції поняття «найманство», закріпленої у законодавстві України про кримінальну відповідальність, а також визначено недоліки формулювання цього поняття у ст. 447 КК України. Запропоновано внесення змін до примітки вказаної статті.

Recently changes in social and political situation in Ukraine have provided a new impetus to studying problems of counteracting mercenarism as a typical concomitant of contemporary armed conflicts. An objective of the article is to determine the notion of mercenarism within criminal law of Ukraine. Legal nature of mercenarism encompasses relationship in political, international and legal, criminal and legal spheres. That is why specialists in different spheres conduct research of this phenomenon, and their studies often bear interdisciplinary character. Contemporary comprehension of mercenarism within international law is changing, so there is evaluation of mercenarism in domestic law. For many centuries mercenarism was considered as a legitimate part of human warfare. The situation started to change in the beginning of the XX century in connection with the emerging concept of neutrality and changing attitude towards war as a permissible means of international dispute resolution. At the present moment International Convention against the recruitment, use, financing and training of mercenaries adopted in 1989 is the basic international document, which criminalizes mercenarism. Although its ratification list is not very big, any countries provide severe punishments for mercenarism and related practices. Criminal liability for mercenarism is provided in the Art. 447 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. Critical analysis of this norm reveals, that it criminalizes two basic forms of mercenary activity provided in the related Convention: military mercenarism connected with the use of mercenaries in armed conflicts on the territory of a foreign state, and mercenarism in its broad concept encompassing the usage of mercenaries for overthrowing a government or otherwise undermining the constitutional order of a foreign state or for undermining the territorial integrity of such a state. The author of the article also proves that mercenarism as it is envisaged in the Art. 447 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine encompasses participation in warfare or other hostilities of a foreigner or a person who is not a resident of the state on Ukrainian territory as well as Ukrainian citizen on the territory of a foreign state. The author of the article emphasizes on the need of amending explanatory note to the Art. 447 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine containing the notion of mercenary and bringing it to conformity with international norms. The author provides concrete propositions for enhancing criminal legislation of Ukraine in regard to this issue. Certain issues of international and domestic criminal and legal definition of mercenarism are considered in the article. It practically sets the base for further scientific research in studying mercenarism and peculiarities of criminal liability for committing this and related crimes.

В статье рассмотрена историческая трансформация понятия «наёмничество» в международном праве и уголовном праве Украины. Проанализированы особенности дефиниции понятия «наёмничество», закрепленного в законодательстве Украины об уголовной ответственности, а также определены недостатки в формулировке данного понятия, приведенного в ст. 447 УК Украины. Предложено внесение изменений в примечание к указанной статье.