The International Criminal Court

The International Criminal Court

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The International Criminal Court
Translating Norms into Institutions

The simultaneous deposit of ten instruments of ratification at the United Nations on 11 April 2002 brought total ratifications to 66—more than the 60 needed to trigger the Rome Statute’s entry into force (current status). As a result, the jurisdiction of the ICC began to run from July 1, 2002, and the first 18 judges to sit on the ICC bench were elected by the Assembly of States Parties in early February 2003.

While much depends on the nature of the cases that will first occupy the Court, some of the issues facing the Court and governments are already apparent:

- Cooperation with national authorities. Cooperation will be vital in a number of areas, including evidence gathering, witness protection, the questioning of suspects and witnesses, the arrest and surrender of accused persons, and, potentially, asset-recovery.

- Regulation of the defense. This is the responsibility of the Registry, and will involve a number of tasks. The Registrar will be the key interlocutor with defense counsel and is responsible under the Rules of Procedure for drafting a Code of Conduct.

- Victims and Witnesses. The ICC Statute has extensive provisions relating to the rights of victims. Such provisions include the establishment of a Victims and Witnesses Unit under the care of the Registry (Art. 43(6)), protection for witnesses and for participation of victims in proceedings (Art. 68), the establishment of a Trust Fund (Art. 79) and the power to assess and award reparations (Art. 75); in addition, victims or their organizations are entitled to refer information to the Prosecutor in order to prompt an investigation (Art. 15). This comprehensive and innovative approach to the role of victims in the administration of justice necessitates a wide range of activity in converting the provisions of the Statute and other documents into the actual procedures of a working institution.

- ICC jurisprudence. As the ICC begins the process of its entry into operation, issues of practice and jurisprudence that remain unclear or contentious in the Rome Statute will emerge for consideration by the Court. Among the most important will be the principle of “complementarity” (in other words, drawing the line between national courts and the ICC), the obligation to cooperate, the role of immunities, the definition of specific crimes, and the determination of the Court’s jurisdiction in a number of areas.

- Treatment of detainees. The Court must ultimately be ready to deal with detention issues at its facility in The Hague, in its transportation of individuals to The Hague and in its cooperation with States.