ICC advised to engage in dialogue with member states

Special Correspondent in New York

TANZANIA has called on the International Criminal Court (ICC) to engage its member states in dialogue, most especially African countries, in addressing the continent’s concerns over it.

Addressing the General Assembly on Agenda Item 71 on the Report of the International Criminal Court, Tanzania’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Tuvako Manongi, underscored the importance in building trust and confidence among members and the court through dialogue.

“We must also undertake deliberate effort to talk to each other...we must invest in building trust and confidence among members and the court: as its work become complex and affects member states, it must listen while remaining true to its mission,” he noted.

The ICC has been accused of biases by some African leaders, accusing the Court for indicting only suspects from Africa. This has prompted South Africa, Burundi and Gambia to rescind their membership. Since the Rome treaty came into force in 2002, only four people have been convicted of war crimes and crimes against humanity; three from Congo and one from Mali.

Ambassador Manongi said the court’s turbulent relationship with Africa has triggered fear of mass departure from the court, stressing that “misunderstandings when left unattended or dismissed as inconsequential grow into regrettable outcomes.”

“Lectures and claims of high moral ground from outside of the continent are unhelpful. Recognising and overcoming avoidable pitfalls associated with a new and evolving institution such as the court is essential if it is to continue to grow and strengthen,” he stressed.

The Tanzanian representative expressed concern that some permanent members can use their position in the Security Council to refer a matter to the court while are themselves not parties to the court’s statute. “While the report claims the capacity of the Security Council to refer a situation to the Court is crucial to promote accountability, it remains a matter of great concern to us that some permanent members can use their position in the Security Council to refer a matter to the Court while are themselves not parties to the Court’s Statute.

The political nature of the Security Council can also undercut the legitimacy of the process,” he stressed. He also pointed out that greater investments by ICC should be directed in encouraging and enabling member states to perform their own programmes of justices and accountability in dealing with human rights violations.

He said States must be effective not only because of the need to prevent ICC’s intervention in domestic affairs but because it is the duty of each state to protect its citizenry, citing tragedies in Central Africa, Cote d’Ivoire, Rwanda and Sierra- Leone as illustrative of the risks and dangers that must be guarded against.

Ambassador Manongi welcomed the report of the ICC presented by the President of the Court, Justice Silvia Fernandez de Gumendi, noting that it (report) presents a picture of an institution that is growing but also facing different challenges and opportunities.