Darfur / DRC / CAR / Uganda / ICC Prosecutor to brief European Union Foreign Ministers on 16 June

LUXEMBOURG, Luxembourg, June 16, 2008/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Today in Luxembourg, ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo will brief the European Union during a meeting of the General Affairs and External Relations Council of the European Union.

The meeting takes place as part of Prosecutor Moreno-Ocampo’s co-operation activities with the United Nations and regional organisations, among them the African Union, the Arab League and the EU. It is the first time the ICC Prosecutor has been invited to address the Council to provide an update on ICC activities, in particular in Darfur.  

 
 

The European Union is a major supporter of the Court. In Luxembourg , the Prosecutor will address the need to enforce the judicial decisions of the Court, including the arrest warrants, in a consistent manner.  Six arrest warrants of the ICC are still outstanding. No support, no financial aid should reach any indicted criminals. There is no possible exit strategy for fugitives from the Court. There can be no double standards. Joseph Kony, leader of Northern Uganda’s Lord’s Resistance Army and his lieutenants, Sudanese Mininster of State for Humanitarian Affairs, Ahmad Harun, Janjaweed/Militia leader Ali Kushayb, and militia leader Bosco Ntaganda must end up in the ICC courtroom.

 
 

In July, the Prosecutor will present evidence to ICC judges on his new investigation into massive crimes in Darfur.

 
 

The International Criminal Court is an independent, permanent court that investigates and prosecutes persons accused of the most serious crimes of international concern, namely genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes if national authorities with jurisdiction are unwilling or unable to do so genuinely.   The Office of the Prosecutor is currently investigating in four situations:  The Democratic Republic of Congo, Northern Uganda, the Darfur region of Sudan, and the Central African Republic, all still engulfed in various degrees of conflict with victims in urgent need of protection. 

 

SOURCE : International Criminal Court (ICC)