The international day of criminal justice this year witnesses the eleventh anniversary of the adoption of the Statute of the International Criminal Court. In this day the Statute of the International Criminal Court was approved on July 17th 1998 as an international and independent judicial mechanism jurisdiction to prosecute and hold those involved to commit the most hideous crimes against humanity, like crimes of genocide and crimes against humanity in addition to war crimes and the crime of aggression.
In spite that 11 years was passed after the adoption of the Statute of the Court – the number of ratifications raised to 108 ratifications – the number of Arab countries’ ratifications did not exceed three ratifications, which are: Jordan, on April 11th 2002 ,Djibouti on November 5th 2002 and the Comoros on August 18th 2006. The number of Arab countries’ signatories on the Convention is 13 countries, which are: Egypt, on December 26th 2000, Algeria on December 28th 2000, Morocco on September 8th 2000, Sudan on September 8th 2000, Syria on November 29th 2000, Kuwait on September 8th 2000, United Arab Emirates on November 27th 2000, Bahrain on December 11th 2000, the Sultanate of Oman on December 20th 2000, Yemen on December 28th 2000, until now 8 Arab countries still didn’t sign the convention which are: Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Iraq, Lebanon, Somalia, Mauritania, Tunisia and Libya.
On this occasion, the Center calls upon the Governments of the Arab countries to ratify and to accede to the International Criminal Court, also appealed to Arab civil society organizations to intensify and coordinate their efforts to raise the legal awareness of the court, as an international mechanism to establish the international criminal justice, and to protect human rights, as well as the intensification of the appeals of these organizations of the Arab governments to ratify the Statute of the Court.
The Center calls upon the signatories Arab governments, not to obstruct the Court’s role in the prosecution and accountability of those involved in the commission of crimes within the jurisdiction of the court, and not to host persons wanted by the court, as happened on the hosting of some Arab governments signatory to the Court of President Omar al-Bashir.
In this context, the Center doesn’t welcome the hosting by the Egyptian government of President Omar al-Bashir, which contrasts with the role of Premier role of Egypt, and its efforts on the adoption of the Statute of the International Criminal Court.
Furthermore, the Center indicates that, although it is true, that the signatories of the Rome Statute establishing the International Criminal Court – which has not yet ratified or acceded – do not take their legal obligations effectively, however, that the signature indicates the intention of these countries to take steps for the expression of consent to be bound by the treaty at a later date as the signing of the Convention creates an obligation for the signatory States in the period between signature and ratification, acceptance or approval, and in good faith to refrain from acts of behavior that would disrupt the subject and purpose of the treaty, in accordance with article 18 of the Vienna convention, which stipulates that “a state or an international organization is obliged to refrain from acts which would defeat the object and purpose of a treaty when: (a) that state or that organization has signed the treaty or has exchanged instruments constituting the treaty subject to ratification, act of formal confirmation, acceptance or approval, until that State or that organization shall have made its intention clear not to become a party to the treaty; (a) or that state or that organization has expressed its consent to be bound by the treaty, pending the entry into force of the treaty and provided that such entry into force is not unduly delayed.”
It should be noted that the rule of this article applies to the Arab States signed the Rome Statute establishing the court.
