ICC: The world court in the years

0
359

A dish that met regardless of national interests, the universal peoples to give the law – that was the founding idea of the International criminal court 20 years ago. And now?

It was an eventful session, in Rome in July 1998. For three years, had been negotiated at the behest of the United Nations in matters of International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. Now a three-day diplomatic conference of Plenipotentiaries took place on the decision of the UN General Assembly, the international law of the Treaty for the establishment of the court should be voted.

In particular, the German, the Minister Klaus Kinkel defended under the leadership of the then Federal foreign for a criminal court that should be independent. This was the precursor to the applicable institutions of the ICC, the UN war crimes Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and the UN genocide Tribunal for Rwanda. The UN security Council had created the tribunals in the early 1990s as a fully subordinate facilities, and no independence will be granted.

Influence also from the political side

The UN security Council selected a judge and Prosecutor, and has maintained influence, to the ability to close these tribunals, at any time. This should be in the newly established criminal court is different. To him, the UN should be able to assign security Council only by the Resolution investigation. Also on the sovereign decision of States, which are party to the court, never. In the Sudan, and Libya, was later the case.

Go-ahead for the ICC in July 1998: the UN Secretary-General Annan and Italian foreign Minister Dini

A universal Jurisdiction that would affect the national sovereignty, was, and is, for the USA and also other States, however, unacceptable. Could land the US soldiers, because of its global military presence before the criminal court. The United States also reject the “Aggression”, so the Result of a war of aggression, as the facts of the case. As a concession to the Americans of the Aggression in 1998 was therefore excluded. In 2010, she was accepted as the Core elements of the crime.

Massive Resistance

The United States therefore tried by all means to prevent an international criminal court. The United States is threatened, for example, Germany, its armed forces from the Federal Republic of deduct – without success. 17. July 1998 adopted the Rome Statute of the International criminal court by a majority. 120 States voted in favour, 21 abstained. Seven, namely China, Iraq, Israel, Yemen, Libya, Qatar, and the United States, voted against it.

Although U.S. President Bill Clinton made to the Statute shortly before the end of the statement period on the 31. December 2000 letter, because he feared that he would otherwise have no influence on the design of the court. His successor, George W. Bush revoked the consent, however, almost two years later.

Military invasion in the Netherlands?

There was even a proposal for a law, the US authorities should ban, with the International criminal court to cooperate. The President should be empowered to use in case of an emergency “all necessary and appropriate means” to liberate American citizens and citizens of its allies from the custody of the court. In the Netherlands they called it the “Hague invasion act”.

The behavior of the United States not only triggered outrage, but it spurred the supporters of the ICC. Five years had been estimated for the ratification of the Rome Statute. A from governments negotiated an international Treaty will only be effective if the national parliaments have given their consent and the government has confirmed the head of the contract with his signature. 60 instruments of ratification were necessary in order to be able to criminal court action. The was on 1. July 2002, one year earlier than expected.

Crimes against humanity

In March 2003 the first 18 judges were sworn in. Elected in a secret ballot of the parties to the Rome Statute. Among them, the German Jurist and Diplomat Hans-Peter Kaul. “The criminal court is like a lighthouse that sends out every day, the Signal, genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the crime of Aggression are prohibited,” said Kaul of 2014, shortly before his death. What is the political and military leader of the eighth, this also always miss, risk, theoretically, to land in front of the criminal court.

Fatou Bensouda is, since 2012, chief Prosecutor in The Hague

20 years after the signing of the Rome Statute, it is necessary to put the emphasis on “theoretically”. Although today, 123 States are party, but China, the USA, Russia, India, almost all the Arab States and Israel and Iran are not including. The Crux of the International criminal court is that he can only determine and judge if the country of the perpetrator or the scene of the crime is a member of the ICC, or if a Non-member state accepts the Jurisdiction of the criminal court, a crime wants to bring to The Hague before the court.

A outlet does not protect you from persecution

The membership in the Rome Statute is voluntary, a discharge by Declaration is possible. Of 2016 Burundi made use of. President Pierre Nkurunzuza saw itself in the crosshairs of the criminal court after he forced an unconstitutional third term in office and human rights activists, journalists and opposition members had followed. The criminal court wants to determine nevertheless. Nkurunzuza don’t want to allow that to happen, the court emphasized, however, his responsibility for the time in Burundi is a member of the ICC. Subsequently, the Gambia explained purely as a precautionary measure, to its outlet, as well as South Africa. Both countries were, however, later backed down.

In 2010, the Kenya has been accused of niche Finance Minister Uhuru Kenyatta for inciting to murder, expulsion, and robbery during the elections in 2007. In 2013, Kenyatta was elected President in Kenya. The Parliament subsequently decided to leave the international criminal court. It was apart, after the charges against Kenyatta have been withdrawn by the end of 2014 due to lack of Evidence.

Of Bullshit and white idiots

Russia had ratified the Rome Statute, while signed by but never withdrew his signature on the instructions of President Vladimir Putin in 2016 officially. This could have to do with the criminal court investigating cases of human rights crimes in Georgia and the Ukraine, in which Russia may be mired.

2018, the Philippines declared their withdrawal after chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda announced that he would because of the systematic killing of drug dealers to be determined. “All bullshit,” ranted the Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, qualified judges and investigators of the ICC as a “white idiots”, as a “white idiots” and any kind of interference prohibited in national Affairs.

Judgments of colonial masters?

Racism is accused of the criminal court of justice of the African Union. “We have found that the International criminal court of justice is going on, especially against Africa, against African heads of state, even against the reigning President, even though elsewhere, will be committed on the world, a lot of blatant war crimes and violated human rights. But these crimes are of interest to anyone,” said in 2016, Idriss Déby, President of Chad, and by this time also Chairman of the African Union.

The reflected chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda, is from Gambia and Minister of justice in your home country before you went in 2012, after The Hague talks. You and your employees, among which more Africans than Europeans focused their attention on Africa, because nowhere in the world currently is worse, people are right to complain about injuries. In addition, numerous requests came to investigations from Africa: Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mali, Gabon, and even two Times from the Central African Republic.