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Tlahui-Politic. No. 14, II/2002
Int: 07/02/02 Nizkor Int. Human Rights Team - Derechos Human Rights - Serpaj Europe Information - iv) messages - 02Jul02 i) WOMEN'S GROUPS WELCOME THE ENTRY INTO FORCE OF THE ROME STATUTE OF THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT. United Nations, New York, 1 July - On Monday, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court entered into force marking the moment at which the future Court's jurisdiction over genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity took effect. Women's groups have applauded this historic development as the Rome Statute has dramatically raised the standard for recognizing crimes of sexual and gender violence as among the gravest when historically they had not been treated as such in humanitarian law. "Women will not be forgotten as war victims anymore," said Asma Khader, a lawyer and activist from Jordan which was among 10 countries that ratified the Rome Statute in April. "The coming of age of the ICC is a fundamental change for women," remarked Ariane Brunet, coordinator of the Women's Rights Division of Rights and Democracy, a Canada-based human rights organization. "It is a commitment to ensure an end to impunity and for the victims to gain back their sense of dignity, their hope for a future, a way back to citizenry." As the ICC comes into existence, there have already been threats to its independence, impartiality and effectiveness. On May 6, the Bush administration 'unsigned' the Rome treaty - something that has never been done before. Currently, there are two laws in effect in the U.S. which prohibit any support or assistance to the future Court as well as the ongoing process toward its establishment. Another piece of legislation hostile to the Court may soon become law in the U.S. and has received sharp criticism from European allies because it authorizes the use of force to free nationals or allies held by or on behalf of the ICC. Because the ICC will be officially seated in The Hague, the Netherlands, critics of the bill have dubbed it "the Hague Invasion Act." Women groups monitoring the events have denounced the U.S. efforts to garner special treatment in the new era of international justice. "It can be said that the international values of human rights and the sovereignty of law at the international level are now possible," Ms. Khader said. "We look forward to an effective and independent international criminal court and hope that it will apply to all countries, all individuals without any exception." "The U.S. efforts to sabotage the ICC so that its nationals will be treated differently from everyone else in the world go against basic notions of fairness not to mention core democratic values," said Pam Spees, Program Director of the Women's Caucus for Gender Justice. "History will reveal how absurd the U.S. actions have been and what a shame it is that the government has turned its back on this unprecedented effort to deter, and ensure accountability for, such horrific crimes," she stated. "It is also a betrayal of the American people, who by all rights, should feel part of the rising tide toward a system of international justice and accountability." The day of the Statute's entry into force is also the first day of the final session of the ICC Preparatory Commission where governments will settle remaining issues necessary for the Court's establishment. Among the issues to be dealt with are the procedures for nomination and election of judges, prosecutor and deputy prosecutors. Women's groups watching the negotiations have emphasized the importance of these issues as critical to the Court's credibility and legitimacy in the eyes of the world. "Election of judges and staff for the Court will be the first visible public act of the Assembly of States Parties and must help build faith and confidence in the Court as a new institution," said Lorena Fries, a lawyer and activist with La Morada, a women's rights organization based in Chile. "As such, the process of selection must be transparent and the configuration of judges on the Court should reflect the Statute's mandates of fair gender and geographical representation." The first meeting of the Assembly of States Parties of the Rome Statute will convene in the first week of September at UN Headquarters in New York and a second in January 2003 at which time the first election of judges will take place. Experts and observers predict that the Court will be set up and functioning sometime in late 2003. Women's groups have organized since 1997 through the Women's Caucus for Gender Justice to advocate for gender mainstreaming in the negotiations toward the establishment of the International Criminal Court. As a result, rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, enforced sterilization and sexual violence were included in the Rome Statute as war crimes and crimes against humanity. Prior codifications of humanitarian law, e.g. the Geneva and Hague Conventions, had failed to fully address this range of crimes and recognize them as among grave violations. In addition, trafficking and gender-based persecution were included as crimes against humanity. The statute also contains progressive provisions relating to the participation and protection of victims and witnesses in the process and women on the Court as judges, prosecutors and staff. [Source: Women's Caucus for Gender Justice - 01Jul02] ------------------------------------------------------------- ii) PREPCOM UPDATE: PRIORITY ISSUES The issues identified as priority concerns for the Women’s Caucus at the Ninth Session of the ICC Preparatory Commission included the rules relating to the nomination and election of judges, prosecutor and deputy prosecutor and the Trust Fund for Victims. Both of these issues were discussed at the Ninth Session and are still pending for further discussion at the Tenth Session. In addition to these issues, the negotiations on the crime of aggression will continue as will negotiations toward the Court’s first-year budget. *Rules Relating to the Nomination and Election of Judges, Prosecutor and Deputy Prosecutor* Delegates began discussing the rules which would govern the Assembly of States Parties in the nomination and election process for judges, prosecutor and deputy prosecutor. Some governments, such as the UK and Canada, expressed their desire to avoid any voting requirements that would help ensure the Statute’s mandates concerning fair gender and geographical representation are met. Other governments such as Belgium, Hungary and Liechtenstein, began looking for ways to build procedures into the rules that would help ensure that the statute’s mandates are taken into account in the voting process. Some issues relating to the nomination and elections were resolved at the ninth session. The working group agreed that the nomination period will open during or immediately following the first meeting of the Assembly of States Parties in September with the closing date set for sometime in mid-November. In addition, the group agreed that States which have not completed their ratification process but who are in the later stages may submit nominations. However, in order for their candidate to stand for election, the ratification process must have been completed prior to the election. The exact time frame has yet to be decided. Hungary and Liechtenstein informally introduced a proposal which would require each representative to vote for at least two candidates from each region and a set number male and female candidates. Those ballots not conforming to the voting requirements would be invalidated. It is expected that Hungary and Liechtenstein will formally submit a revised proposal setting out a similar method of voting. Other delegates sought ways to ensure fairness and transparency. Switzerland submitted a proposal which would require that information on candidates be posted on the internet as soon as the nominations were received. Belgium also submitted a proposal which would require that the statements of governments accompanying the nominations follow a standard format. The Women's Caucus advocated that "fair representation" in article 36(8) of the Rome Statute be understood as parity of women and men, meaning a margin of 45-55 percent either way. The Caucus also advocated that there is an obligation to develop mechanisms in the election process that ensure parity in the outcome of the elections. While a parity of women and men on the Court is an overarching principle and a critical part of a full-fledged commitment to non-discrimination on the basis of gender, the Statute also mandates the presence of judges, male or female, with legal expertise on specific issues including violence against women and children. The Women’s Caucus has circulated an Action Request to our network asking that organizations and individuals contact their relevant ministries (Foreign, Justice and Women) and urge that their governments take positions in the negotiations in favor of voting requirements for gender and geographical representation. In addition, we urge organizations and individuals to contact their governments who are States Parties to the Rome Statute and urge that they make good-faith efforts to seek out and nominate qualified women candidates for the future Court.
For a copy of this Action Request and Sample letter, send an email to the
Women’s Caucus at caucus@iccwomen.org. Among the concerns identified by the NGO Victims Rights Working Group were to ensure that the fund be set apart from the Registry so as to avoid conflicts of interest and under-resourcing of the fund, that the fund be overseen by a board of trustees or which would be comprised of experts and that the fund be managed by an Executive Director. The French delegation presented a proposal during the Ninth Session outlined a structure for the fund which would be comprised of a 12-member Board of Directors made up of persons with experience in working with survivors of serious human rights abuses. The proposal also suggested that the Board would be responsible to the ASP but with the Registry of the Court serving as secretariat of the Board. The proposal was largely accepted by other delegations as a workable basis upon which to proceed with further discussions at the 10th Session. In the context of the First-Year Budget, France introduced a prop osal that would create a new unit to deal specifically with the needs of victims as regards reparations and the work of the Trust Fund for victims. It also sought to expand the Defense Counsel unit to encompass legal representatives for victims. At the end of the session, there was agreement concerning the need to create a unit that would possibly be called the “Victims Participation and Reparations Unit” which would provide services for victims alone whereas the Victims Witnesses Unit would also have to deal with witnesses as well, both prosecution and defense. [Source: Women’s Caucus for Gender Justice - Extracted from IccWomen Newsletter, Volume III / Issue 2 - June 2002] Documents for the tenth session of the Preparatory Commission may be found at: http://www.un.org/law/icc/prepcomm/tenth.htm ------------------------------------------------------------ iii) UN SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON THE INDEPENDENCE OF JUDGES AND LAWYERS, CALLS FOR AN IMPARTIAL AND TRANSPARENT SELECTION PROCESS OF ICC JUDGES. "On the eve of the entering into force of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), and the commencement of the tenth session of the Preparatory Commission, I would like to reflect upon an issue of particular importance, the nomination and selection procedure for its judges. "The great hope for international justice that the ICC represents, rests with its integrity and its ability to provide fair, independent and impartial justice to people all over the world, irrespective of power, influence or authority. Its ability to achieve these lofty aims rests, to a substantial degree, with it remaining free of politics and its perception as such. The Rome Statute of the ICC provides a solid basis for the development of a strong, independent and apolitical court. However, a risk exists that the court could become politicised if the procedures that regulate the nomination and selection of its judges do not contain adequate safeguards. In this respect it is necessary to elaborate the principles that underlie a legitimate selection process. "The entire procedure must be based upon the principles of ability, impartiality and transparency - principles that form the basis of any selection procedure based on merit. The Rome Statute provides a means of achieving this, through the establishment of an advisory committee on nominations. As occurs in many national judiciaries, such a committee receives applications and undertakes a preliminary evaluation of the candidates through questionnaires and interviews, determining whether they meet the requirements of the statute, and then makes recommendations as to the most appropriately qualified individuals. It also provides a forum for the public evaluation of nominated individuals, essential for transparency and maintaining public trust in the integrity of the process. "In accordance with the principles on judicial independence and impartiality, and in order to ensure that it carries out its work effectively, the committee should contain individuals with recognised expertise in the exercise of the judicial function, especially at the international level, such as former members of international courts. If established appropriately the committee can ensure that the nomination and selection process is carried out efficiently and effectively in accordance with the requirements of the Statute and act as a strong safeguard for the integrity of the process. "The importance that the international community has attributed to the establishment of the ICC, and the faith it has shown in its ability to contribute to the rule of law and international justice underline the importance of the courts legitimacy and the integrity of its composition. It follows that, the selection and appointment of the judges to the court must live up to the high expectations of this same community". [Source: United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights NewsRoom - 28 June 2002] ---------------------------------------------------- iv) CICC PRESS RELEASE: INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT TREATY ENTERS INTO FORCE. (New York, 1 July 2002) – The Rome Statute, the treaty creating the International Criminal Court (ICC), entered into force today, beginning the jurisdiction of the world’s first permanent tribunal capable of trying individuals accused of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. Events at UN headquarters and worldwide are being held to celebrate this momentous occasion. "The new system of international criminal justice that begins on July 1 will be one of the greatest instruments of peace ever created to confront the dark and violent forces of human nature,” said William Pace, Convenor of the NGO Coalition for the International Criminal Court, a global network of over 1,000 member organizations supporting the creation of the Court. “All who remain determined to ‘save future generations from the scourge of war’ can celebrate this historic day. Millions of lives will be saved by the establishment of the ICC.” Today’s event comes in the context of a multi-prong offensive by the US government, which has threatened to veto UN peacekeeping operations worldwide unless its nationals in those operations are granted immunity from the ICC. Entry into force of the Rome Statute also coincides with the opening day of the tenth and final session of the Preparatory Commission of the International Criminal Court – the planning body open to all UN members that has been meeting since the adoption of the ICC treaty on July 17, 1998. The opening plenary session of the Preparatory Commission on July 1st will include formal statements from UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and by the numerous countries that have deposited their ratifications since the April 11 UN treaty event that triggered today’s birth of the Court. All countries to have deposited their ratifications by today will be able to participate with full voting rights in the first meeting of the Assembly of States Parties – the body that will oversee the work of the Court – which is scheduled to take place at UN headquarters from September 3 - 10. A number of crucial decisions will be taken at this meeting, including adopting a first year budget and finalizing the procedures for the nomination and election of judges and the Prosecutor. The formal call for nominations of judges will be made in September and elections are expected to take place in January of 2003. The International Criminal Court is an independent body governed by the countries to have ratified its treaty. More than seventy of the 139 countries to sign the Court’s treaty have now ratified it and ratifying countries come from all regions of the world. A provisional location for the new International Criminal Court has been chosen in the Hague, the Netherlands. The Court is expected to be ready to begin investigating and hearing cases once its officials are fully instated, likely by summer of 2003. [Source: Coalition for an International Criminal Court Press release - 01Jul02] ------------------------------------------------------ v) ‘THERE MUST BE NO RELENTING’ IN FIGHT AGAINST IMPUNITY, SAYS SECRETARY-GENERAL AS INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT ROME STATUTE COMES INTO FORCE. Following is the statement by Secretary-General Kofi Annan on the entry into force of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, 1 July: The entry into force of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court is an historic occasion. It reaffirms the centrality of the rule of law in international relations. It holds the promise of a world in which the perpetrators of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes are prosecuted when individual States are unable or unwilling to bring them to justice. And it gives the world a potential deterrent to future atrocities. I congratulate all the States parties -- currently 75 -- on taking the lead in ratifying the Statute, and I appeal to all States that have not yet done so to ratify or accede to it as soon as possible. There must be no relenting in the fight against impunity or in our efforts to prevent genocide and the other horrendous crimes that fall under the Court's jurisdiction. [Source: SG/SM/8293 - 1 July 2002]  Búsqueda - Search - Recherche: Tlahui-SiteEducación - Education - Éducation: Tlahui-EducaCursos - Cours - Courses: Educa-MedRegresar a - Go back to - Retourner à: Tlahui-Politic 14Libros - Books - Livres
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