The International Centre for Criminal Law Reform and Criminal Justice Policy International Criminal

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The International Centre for Criminal Law Reform
and Criminal Justice Policy???????????????
International Criminal Court Manual for the
Ratification and Implementation of the Rome
Statute Third Edition Some Key
Issues??????????????????????????
Tianjin and Beijing Lectures March
2008 ??????? 2008?3?

• Eileen Skinnider
• Associate, ICCLR
• ???????????????
• ?????

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The Third Edition of the Manual?????

• Chapter 1 Introduction
• ?????
• Chapter 2 General Issues of Implementation
• ??????????
• Chapter 3 Cooperation
• ?????
• Chapter 4 Implementation and the Complementary
  Jurisdiction of the ICC
• ??????????????????
• Chapter 5 Further Information on the
  relationship Between the ICC and States
• ???????????????????????

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Importance of domestic implementation??????????

• Cooperation ??
• ICC relies on States to provide
  cooperation???????????????
• ICC has no police force???????????????
• Principle of complementarity ????
• the impunity gap ????

4
Timing of the Third Edition????????????

• 10th anniversary of the Rome Statute ???????
• ICC operational now for over 5 years??????????????
  ??5??

• Rome Statute????
• Signatures 139 ???139?
• Ratifications 106 ???106?
• Most Recent Madagascar ??????????
• Date 14 March 2008 ??2008?3?14?

5
Rome Statute - balance between the following
priorities??????????????????

• need for an independent, apolitical,
  representative international court
• ??????????????????????????
• right of States to take primary responsibility
  for prosecuting such crimes
• ???????????????????????
• need to give victims adequate redress and
  compensation
• ????????????????
• need to protect the rights of accused persons
• ???????????
• the role of the SC in maintaining international
  peace and security
• ?????? ???????????????

6
Current ICC Prosecutors investigations??????????
??????

• Under investigation from State referrals
  ?????????????
• Uganda ???
• Democratic Republic of the Congo ???????
• Central African Republic ?????
• Under investigation from Security Council
  referrals?????????????
• Darfur, Sudan ??????

Credit MSF Photos of Darfur by Ton Koene
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General implementation considerations???????

• 2 major dimensions
• ??????
• 1. cooperation obligations ????
• 2. principle of complementarity ????

8
Approaches to constitutional concerns
????????????

• amendments to the constitution????
• interpretation opinions of constitutional
  tribunals??????????
• ignoring the issue ??????

9
Absence of immunity for heads of states and other
officials?????????????

• Rome Statute article 27 ?????27?
• This Statute shall apply equally to all persons
  without any distinction based on official
  capacity. In particular, official capacity as a
  Head of State, etc shall in no case exempt a
  person from criminal responsibility under this
  Statute???????????,??????????,???????????????????
  ??????????
• Immunities or special procedural rules which may
  attach to the official capacity of a person,
  shall not bar the Court from exercising its
  jurisdiction over such a person.??????????????????
  ?,??????????????????

10
No statute of limitations?????????

• Rome Statute article 29 ?????29?
• The crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court
  shall not be subject to any statute of
  limitations.???????????????????????????

11
The surrender by a state of its own
nationals????????

• Rome Statute articles 102 and 91?????102?91?
• 102 (a) surrender means the delivering up of a
  person by a State to the Court, pursuant to this
  Statute ?102?a?,?????,?????????????????
• 102 (b) extradition means the delivering up of
  a person by one State to another as provided by
  treaty, convention or national legislation.?102?b?
  ,?????????????????????????? ?
• 91(2)(c) these requirements (re supported
  documentation) should not be more burdensome than
  those applicable to requests for extradition.and
  taking into account the distinct nature of the
  Court.?102?c?,????(?????)?????????????,???????????
  ???????

12
The possibility of sentences of life
imprisonment???????????

• Rome Statute article 77 ?????77?
• (1)(a) imprisonment for a specified number of
  years, which may not exceed a maximum of 30
  years or
• ?1?a?,???????????30??????
• (1)(b) a term of life imprisonment when justified
  by the extreme gravity of the crime and the
  individual circumstances of the convicted person.
• ?1?b?,??????????,??????????????,?????????????????

13
Prosecutors power of investigation on the
territory of States Parties???????????????????

• Rome Statute article 54(2) ?????54??2?
• The Prosecutor may conduct investigations on the
  territory of a State???????????????
• (a) in accordance with the provisions of Part 9
  (international cooperation and judicial
  assistance) or???9?????(?????????)?
• (b) as authorized by the Pre-trial Chamber
  under article 57(3)(d) (referring to specific
  investigative steps).???57??3?d?(???????)????????
  ??

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The ICCs complementarity jurisdiction???????????
??

• Preamble and article 1 of the Rome
  Statute????????1?
• Emphasizing that the ICC established under this
  Statute shall be complementary to national
  criminal jurisdictions.
• ???????????????????????????????????

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Ne bis in idem?????

• Rome Statute article 20(3)?????20??3?
• (3) No person who has been tried by another court
  for conduct also proscribed under article 6, 7 or
  8 shall be tried by the Court with respect to the
  same conduct unless the proceedings in the other
  court???????????6?7?8????????????????????????????
  ????,????????????????
• (a) were for the purpose of shielding the person
  concerned from criminal responsibility for crimes
  within the jurisdiction of the Court or
  ??????????????????????????????????
• (b) otherwise were not conducted independently
  or impartially in accordance with the norms of
  due process recognised by international law and
  were conducted in a manner which, in the
  circumstances, was inconsistent with an intent to
  bring the person concerned to justice.????????????
  ??????????????????????,???????????????,???????????
  ???

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Conclusion??

• ICC is no ordinary international body
• ?????????????????
• Full cooperation means an effective ICC which
  contributes to international peace and security
• ??????????????????,?????????????

Credit MSF Photo by Ton Koene
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Thank you for your attention!????!

• Xie xie ne!
• ??!