A/HRC/27/56 prevalent crimes perpetrated during the 2012/13 crisis in the north of the country, including crimes of sexual and gender-based violence. 87. In States where national legislation has not been adjusted so as to comply with international obligations to prosecute mass violations, and where the definition of the crimes has not been incorporated into national law, prosecutors should try to pursue charges that are as close as possible to international human rights standards, in line with respective international obligations. Thus, where crimes against humanity and other international crimes are not defined in domestic criminal codes, this should not prevent prosecutors from addressing their systemic and massive nature. C. Capacities, institutions and resources 88. An effective prioritization strategy requires capacities that most countries in a transitional setting are unlikely to have. A novel strategy that concentrates on the massive and systemic nature of violations and the identification of patterns and that targets nodes in networks of systemic crimes requires a change in practice and investigative techniques. The required skills need not only to be developed, but also husbanded and promoted. Given the complexity of prosecutions for serious international crimes, a good number of countries have established specialized units or bodies.45 89. There is no single institutional form that can be replicated from one context to another independently of local circumstances, needs and resources. The range of alternatives is broad: from (relatively) stand-alone institutions (Germany, Poland) to specialized units of different types within prosecutorial institutions (Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Côte d’Ivoire) with mandates of different scope. The basic function of such bodies is to strengthen the specialized know-how required for successfully and efficiently prosecuting complex cases. Until now, the aim of capturing and redressing massive violations has only been adequately understood — or dealt with — in very rare instances. 90. In order for these specialized bodies or coordination mechanisms to be effective, they need to be provided with adequate human resources. In Germany, the Central Office for the Investigation of National Socialist Crimes at the time of its highest workload disposed of 120 staff members. In Colombia, the National Unit of Analysis and Context is composed of 50 prosecutors, 70 investigators and 60 criminal analysts, with backgrounds in the fields of political science, history, military strategy, anthropology, sociology, economics and systems engineering. 91. There is ample room for cooperation to support the development of the required skills. Given the significant stock of knowledge and expertise accumulated in postauthoritarian and post-conflict countries that have prosecutorial experience, this is an area in which international and regional cooperation should emphasize country-to-country and triangular support modalities. VIII. Victim participation in the design of a prosecutorial strategy 92. Recent years have seen an increasing emphasis on the participation of victims in transitional justice mechanisms, including in criminal justice processes. International human rights standards and principles provide for the right of victims to participate in 45 These include, among others, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Denmark, France, Germany, Kenya, Norway, Poland, Rwanda, the Netherlands, Serbia, South Africa, Sweden, Uganda, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America. 17