Mr. President, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I have the honour to address your Assembly on behalf of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and its 155 member organisations in more than 100 countries.
FIDH welcomes the progress made by the Court, in particular at the judicial level, since your last Assembly.
In this regard, FIDH welcomes the opening of the investigation in the Central African Republic, and its immediately announced focus on crimes of sexual violence, as well as the first mission by the Prosecutor and his team to a country whose situation is under analysis, Colombia.
Furthermore, FIDH wishes to draw your attention to certain aspects that remain matters of concern for our organisation, as they limit the efficiency of the Court.
Firstly, FIDH is concerned by the lack of cooperation of numerous States with the Court, as the Court’s representatives explained to your Assembly. In particular, FIDH urges you to adopt a clear position condemning the absence of cooperation by Sudan and to support the Prosecutor’s actions in order to obtain such cooperation. FIDH also calls upon the Security Council to act in the same sense following the Prosecutor’s report tomorrow.
Your Assembly should also reaffirm that no peace process should put aside the need to fight against impunity, nor the independence and efficiency of the Court’s prosecutions.
Secondly, the Court’s outreach activities should continue to intensify in 2008. Although the Court has increased its activities since your last session, a large part of affected populations remain unaware of the Court’s mandate and activities. In particular, it is essential that the Court starts organising outreach activities in the Central African Republic. FIDH calls on this Assembly to continue to politically and financially support the Court’s outreach activities.
In addition, the Court should carry on with the elaboration of the strategy on the role of victims. FIDH calls upon all organs of the Court, including the Assembly in its dialogue with the Court through the Bureau, to put in place a strategy which will permit an effective implementation of the historical rights recognised to victims by the Rome Statute.
In order for the victims to exercise their rights in an effective manner, it is also essential that they benefit from legal assistance paid by the Court. FIDH urges the Assembly to support the implementation of the amendments to the Court’s legal aid system, by granting the resources requested by the Registry.
FIDH welcomes the progress made by the Trust Fund for Victims in 2007: its Secretariat has become operational and the first assistance projects have commenced in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. FIDH calls on all the States Parties to make regular voluntary contributions so as to allow the Fund to continue to assist victims of the devastating conflicts investigated by the Court.
Finally, FIDH takes notes of the efforts made by States to agree on a definition of the crime of aggression. FIDH calls on States Parties to orientate the debate on the conditions for exercise of the Court’s jurisdiction to options that fully respect the integrity of the Rome Statute and the independence of the Court, and to refuse, in particular, any interference by the United Nations Security Council.
I thank you for your attention.
– Karine Bonneau
– Director of the International Justice Desk
For further details on the recommendations of FIDH to the sixth Assembly of States parties, see the FIDH position paper N.12.