 |
|
|
|
 ICC Activities |
| |
|
| |
The ICC began its work on July 1, 2002, the date of entry
into force of the Rome Statute. By June 16, 2003, the first
18 judges, the prosecutor, and the registrar had all been
sworn into office.
Referrals
Communications
Current Work of the Prosecutor
Current Work of the Pre-Trial Chambers
Reports to the United Nations
Codes of Conduct
International Criminal Bar
On March 31, 2005, the Security Council, acting under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, adopted Resolution 1593 which referred the Darfur situation to the ICC. The resolution passed by a vote of 11 states and four abstentions, which included the United States, Algeria, China and Brazil. The referral purports to exempt from ICC jurisdiction non-Sudanese citizens from States not party to the ICC Statute, including Americans. The referral was based on findings from the UN International Commission of Inquiry on Darfur. The Commission's February 1st report "strongly recommend[ed]" that the Security Council invite the International Criminal Court to pursue prosecutions against those suspected of the worst abuse. Click here for a fact sheet and questions and answers on the Darfur referral. On June 6, 2005, the Prosecutor decided to officially open an investigation into the situation.
On December 21, 2004, the government of the Central African Republic referred the situation of crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court committed on its territory since July 1, 2002, the date of entry into force of the Rome Statute. In accordance with the Rome Statute and the Rules of Procedure and Evidence, the Prosecutor carried out an analysis and, on May 22, 2007, decided to open a formal investigation.
Click here to read a fact
sheet on the referral.
In April 2004, the President of the Democratic Republic
of the Congo (DRC) referred crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court allegedly committed anywhere in the territory of the DRC since the entry into force of the Rome Statute on July 1, 2002. Read the ICC
Press Release and a fact
sheet on the referral. On June 23, 2004, the Prosecutor announced his decision to open the first investigation of the ICC there. The decision to open an investigation was taken after thorough consideration of the jurisdiction and admissibility requirements of the Rome Statute. The Prosecutor also concluded that an investigation of grave crimes in the DRC will be in the interest of justice and of the victims.
In December 2003, the President of Uganda referred
the situation in Northern Uganda to the ICC Prosecutor. Read the ICC
Press Release and a fact
sheet on the referral. See also the statement
by the Prosecutor related to crimes committed in Barlonya
Camp. On July 29, 2004, the Prosecutor determined that there was a reasonable basis to open an investigation into the situation concerning Northern Uganda. The decision to open an investigation was taken after thorough analysis of available information in order to ensure that requirements of the Rome Statute are satisfied.
On February 10, 2006 Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo released several documents providing
information on the number of communications
his Office has received to date, including details on the process used to analyze situations.
This included the release of two annexes on Iraq
and Venezuela.
The Prosecutor's first report on communications received was issued on July 24, 2003.
The Prosecutor has four active investigations: the Democratic Republic of Congo, Northern Uganda, Central African Republic and Darfur, Sudan. In addition, the government of Cote d'Ivoire has consented to jurisdiction for crimes occurring on its territory. The Prosecutor has also been monitoring crimes committed in Colombia. In March 2005, the Prosecutor sent a letter to the Colombian Government requesting information on steps taken by the authorities to investigate and prosecute those most responsible for crimes against humanity committed in Colombia since 2002.
On March 17, 2006, Thomas Lubanga Dyilo, alleged leader of the Union des Patriotes Congolais (UPC) militia in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), became the first suspect to the arrested and transferred to the ICC. He was arraigned on March 20th. On January 29, 2007 Pre-Trial Chamber I issued its decision confirming the charges against Mr. Lubanga for the war crime of conscripting or enlisting child soldiers or using them to participate actively in the hostilities. On March 6, the Presidency constituted Trial Chamber I, which was expected to hear the trial against Mr. Lubanga as the ICC's first defendant in June 2008. However, the failure of the prosecution to disclose exculpatory documents led the Trial Chamber to issue a stay in the proceedings and to order the release of Mr. Lubanga pending appeals.
On October 17, 2007, Germain Katanga, alleged commander of the Force de résistance patriotique en Ituri (FPRI), was arrested and transferred by DRC authorities to the ICC. Pre-Trial Chamber I issued a sealed warrant of arrest for Mr. Katanga, also known as Simba, on July 2, 2007 based on allegations of six war crimes and three crimes against humanity including murder, sexual slavery and intentionally directing attacks at civilians.
On February 7, 2008 Congolese authorities transferred to the ICC Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui, alleged former leader of the National Integrationist Front (FNI), based on nine counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including murder, sexual slavery, inhuman treatment, the use child soldiers in hostilities, and unlawful attacks against civilians during and after an attack on the village of Bogoro in the Ituri region in 2003. From October 2006 until his arrest on February 6, Mr. Ngudjolo served as a Colonel in the National Army of the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Click here to read the warrant of arrest for Mr. Ngudjolo.
On March 10, 2008 Pre-Trial Chamber I issued a decision joining the cases of The Prosecutor v. Germain Katanga and The Prosecutor v. Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui. On June 27, 2008, it started the confirmation of charges hearing. Click here to read an OTP fact sheet on Mathieu Ngudjolo and Germain Katanga.
On May 6, 2005, the Prosecutor filed an application to Pre-Trial Chamber II for warrants of arrest for five of the most senior commanders in the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in Northern Uganda, including its leader, Joseph Kony. He requested the application and the warrants be sealed, primarily because of security considerations. Gravity was the primary criterion for selection of the individuals. Operating in small groups of two or three, his office made more than fifty missions to Uganda. The main part of the investigation was over in nine months. On July 8th, the ICC issued the arrest warrants. The warrants, unsealed on October 13, have been served on the governments of Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan.
On May 24, 2008 the ICC announced that Belgian authorities arrested former warlord and Congolese Vice President Jean-Pierre Bemba for crimes against humanity and war crimes, including rape and torture, allegedly committed in the Central African Republic (CAR). Mr. Bemba was transferred to the ICC on July 3, 2008 where he made his initial appearance on July 4.
On February 27, 2007, the Prosecutor announced that his office had filed an application naming two individuals and requesting summonses to appear in the Darfur situation. The prosecutor's filing names Ahmad Muhammad Harun, former Minister of State for the Interior of the Government of the Sudan (and current Minister of State for Humanitarian Affairs), and Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman (also known as Ali Kushayb), a Militia/Janjaweed leader, and alleges 51 counts war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in the Darfur region of Sudan, including murder, rape, torture and persecution. On May 2, 2007 Pre-Trial Chamber I issued warrants of arrest for both individuals.
On July 14, 2008 ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo filed an application for a warrant of arrest for Sudanese President Omar Al Bashir on charges of 10 counts of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. This is the first time the Prosecutor has publicly charged an individual with the crime of genocide. The Prosecutor alleges in his application that President Al Bashir targeted and sought to destroy the Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa ethnic groups in Darfur by deliberately inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about the groups’ destruction. The judges of Pre-Trial Chamber I will evaluate the evidence presented and decide whether to issue a warrant of arrest for President Al Bashir.
Within a reasonable time after the person’s surrender or voluntary appearance before the Court, the Pre-Trial Chamber holds a hearing in the presence of the Prosecutor, the person charged and his/her counsel to confirm or reject the charges. At the hearing the Prosecutor has to support the charges with sufficient documentary and/or summary evidence to establish substantial grounds to believe that the person committed the crime charged. The person has the right to object to the charges, challenge the evidence presented by the Prosecutor and present evidence.
The Pre-Trial Chamber (PTC) is composed either of a single judge or of a bench of three judges. The Prosecutor submits a request to the PTC for authorization to commence an investigation. The PTC can confirm or reject the authorization and makes a preliminary determination that the case falls within the jurisdiction of the Court. If the PTC determines that the criterion of the reasonable basis is not met, the Prosecutor can either decide not to proceed with an investigation or to present a further request based on new facts or evidence regarding the same situation. The Pre-Trial Chamber can also review a decision of the Prosecutor not to proceed with an investigation either on its own initiative, or at the request of the State making a referral or the UN Security Council.
The Pre-Trial Chamber can also issue warrants of arrests and summons to appear before the Court at the request of the Prosecutor, issue orders to grant the rights of the parties in the proceeding, and provide for the protection and privacy of victims and witnesses, the preservation of evidence, the protection of persons who have been arrested or appeared in response to a summons, and the protection of national security information.
On January 17th, 2006, Pre-Trial Chamber I recognized the right of six victims from the Democratic Republic of Congo to participate in proceedings before the Court, including at the investigation stage. Click here for a more information, Q&As, and a recent article. Click here to read about victims' participation and defendants' due process rights.
Pre-Trial Chamber I is overseeing both the Democratic Republic of Congo and Darfur situations, Pre-Trial Chamber II is overseeing the Uganda situation, and Pre-Trial Chamber III is overseeing the Central African Republic situation.
President
On November 1, 2007 ICC President Judge Philippe Kirsch addressed
the 62nd session of the General Assembly and presented the Court's Third Report to the United Nations.
On October 9, 2006 President Kirsch addressed
the General Assembly and presented the Court's second annual
report to the UN, first issued on August 3, 2006. The Court's first-ever
report was presented by
President Kirsch on November 8, 2005.
Prosecutor
The UN Security Council invites the Prosecutor to report to it biannually following its
referral of the situation in Darfur
to the Court on March 31, 2005:
June 5, 2008 report and
statement
December 5, 2007 report and
statement
June 7, 2007 report and
statement
December 14, 2006 report
and statement
June 14, 2006 report and
statement
December 13, 2005 report
and statement
June 29, 2005 report and
statement
Defense, Victims and Witnesses Counsel
The conduct of counsel before the Court will be governed by the Code of Professional Conduct for Counsel, which was prepared by the ICC Registrar and adopted during the November 2005 Assembly of States Parties.
The International Criminal Bar adopted a Code
of Conduct and Disciplinary procedure for counsel appearing
before the ICC. For more information go to www.bpi-icb.org.
The International Bar Association (IBA) has also drafted
a code
of professional conduct for counsel, which it presented
to the Court on February 20, 2003. For more information, go
to www.ibanet.org.
Prosecutors
The Secretariats of the International
Association of Prosecutors and the Coalition
for the International Criminal Court have prepared a Draft
Code of Professional Conduct for Prosecutors of the International
Criminal Court. It is hoped that such a draft code could
be presented to the Office of the Prosecutor next spring,
for consideration and for use as a potential tool in shaping
the Office of the Prosecutor's approach to professional ethics.
Comments on the draft are welcome through January 2003.
Judges
On 9 March 2005, the judges of the ICC adopted the Code of
Judicial Ethics pursuant to Regulation 126 of the Regulations of the Court.
Defense, victims, and witnesses counsel, working with legal associations from around the world, founded a new international criminal bar at a conference in Montreal on June 15th, 2002. Around 350 lawyers from 48 countries participated in the meeting, which unanimously endorsed a resolution forming the bar. The existence of the bar will help ensure that defendants receive a fair trial at the ICC and that all counsel appearing before it have access to the resources they need to protect the rights of their clients. The attendees of the Montreal meeting also adopted a draft framework constitution for the consideration of all participating bodies and individuals and for proposed adoption at the first meeting of the general assembly.
The steering committee then met in Paris from November 23-24, 2002 to incorporate suggestions into the draft constitution. They adopted a resolution summarizing their work.
The first general assembly of the new bar took place from March 21-22, 2003 in Berlin. The Assembly adopted the ICB-BPI's Constitution, elected its first Council, and approved a Code of Conduct for Counsel for submission to the Registrar of the Court (see below). Click here to read the Berlin resolution and to download the ICB constitution.
For more information contact:
E-mail: admin@bpi-icb.org
Web: www.bpi-icb.org
|
|
|
|
