Torture
Torture is not a mediaeval aberration.
It is alive and well. We pretty much expect it in criminal states
like Israel and primitive states but not in civilized countries. When
torture is advocated very publicly by the Jew
Dershowitz [
Why
Terrorism Works ] who was a lawyer making a lot of money out of the human
rights racket, it tells us much of what we need to know about the depth of
cynicism and corruption in America and among Zionists.
Vladimir Bukovksy
tells us that torture is bad news because it corrupts the torturers as well as
hurting people.
He speaks from experience as a victim.
Take the point that Professor McCoy tells us plenty about American torture but has nothing to say about what
Jews do to their victims in Israel or for that matter
torturers
in Romania. For the exceedingly nasty details of that see
Antihumans
by
Dumitru Bacu.
In fact people out there are complaining about
#Torture In Ireland, about Brits torturing IRA
prisoners. There is no mention of that well known Irish invention, kneecapping.
It is a torture technique designed to cause a life time of pain and disability.
American Torturers Water
Boarded A Prisoner 83 Times In A Month
[ 14 October 2021 ]
They forget nothing. They learn nothing.
Jews Enjoy Torture
That is when they are doing it. If the boot is on the other foot they squawk
long and loud. Using sharpened spoons to cut people's eyes out indicates a depth
of sincere evil. It was reported by The Spectator in
1920 when it was still possible for the Mainstream Media
to tell the truth about Jews & their hate.
Busting the Torture Myths
Did Bush know? Believe it? Did he care? Let's not be naive.
Torture Memos Link Lawyers
And Psychologists
You mean they were all at it? That is where the evidence takes us.
The Interrogator
Mark Steyn
interviews
James Mitchell, who interrogated
Khalid Sheikh
Mohammed, a high level Islamic terrorist [ or not as
the case maybe ].
Doctor Mitchell wrote about it in
Enhanced Interrogation - Inside the Minds and Motives of the Islamic Terrorists Trying to Destroy America.
He knew KSM, he listened to him, then made sense of it. Islam will be a religion
of peace, when we have all been murdered, enslaved or converted. That
Political Correctness is a weapon
forcing people to ignore the truth about threats. E.g. Macron said
Get Used To It
Suckers. KSM says and believes, rightly that our civil liberties are
weaknesses that they will exploit.
It is not just Arabs; see #Jews
Use Torture or #How Jews Torture
People.
Peine Forte Et Dure, was a method
of Torture used in England and other
Common Law jurisdictions to force people to
plead guilty or not. If they did not plead their property was not forfeit to
the Crown. The obstinate held out to the death. It was banned in 1772.
Now You Are Paralyzed
Jews kept their promise to a Palestinian; they made him into a cripple, a
life-long cripple. It took four days of beating etc. but they succeeded. It is
the kind of healthy exercise psychopaths like.
Working The Dark Side
Is about American crime perpetrated by their
wonderful government. The first little bit about is about a black killed by police,
which is irrelevant except as an indicator of bias.
How Jews Torture People
Simple, cheap, effective, leaves no evidence. What more could a
psychopath want?
Jews And Torture
Torture is fun for
the vicious, for the psychopath, for the
Zionist crazy. A Jew explains.
Twerp Gets
Tortured To Prove That He Is All Man
Alternative Methods, Better Methods
QUOTE
During the war in
Rhodesia
the
Selous Scouts took prisoners and turned them. They got their full
cooperation without torture.
Selous Scouts: top secret war by Ron Reid Daly & Peter Stiff explains how it
was done. Giving prisoners decent treatment was a surprise to a lot of them.
Medical treatment was part of it. Then there was the offer; join us or get tried
by civilian courts for waging war. Very few refused. The technique might well
have been used in Malaya. Many men in Rhodesia served with
C Squadron during the
Confrontation [ in Borneo ], so they knew. The American approach has done enormous
damage to its moral authority as well being of dubious value.
UNQUOTE
Read for yourself. Think for yourself. Decide for yourself.
Abu Ghraib
It happened on Bush's watch.
American
Government Documents on
Torture
The American Civil Liberties
Union [ ACLU ] invited the American government to give them
paper regarding their torture policy and practice. The results do not
make pretty reading.
American
Government Torture Manual or
The Manipulation of Human
Behaviour
The sub-title sums it all up nicely.
Condoleezza Rice Authorized Torture II
QUOTE
Role in authorizing use of torture techniques
A
Senate Intelligence Committee reported that on July 17, 2002, Rice met with
CIA director
George
Tenet to personally convey the Bush administration's approval of the
proposed
waterboarding of alleged Al Qaeda leader
Abu
Zubaydah. "Days after Dr Rice gave Mr. Tenet her approval, the Justice
Department approved the use of waterboarding in a top secret August 1 memo."
Waterboarding is considered to be torture by a wide range of authorities,
including legal experts,
war veterans,
intelligence officials,
military judges,
human rights organizations,
the U.S. Attorney General
Eric
Holder,
and many senior politicians, including U.S. President
Barack
Obama [ until he got the job - Editor ].In 2003 Rice, Vice President
Dick
Cheney and Attorney General
John
Ashcroft met with the CIA again and were briefed on the use of waterboarding
and other methods including week-long
sleep deprivation, forced nudity and the use of stress positions. The Senate
report says that the Bush administration officials "reaffirmed that the CIA
program was lawful and reflected administration policy".
The Senate report also "suggests Miss Rice played a more significant role
than she acknowledged in written testimony to the Senate Armed Services
Committee submitted in the autumn."
At that time, she had acknowledged attending meetings to discuss the CIA
interrogations, but she claimed that she could not recall the details, and she
"omitted her direct role in approving the programme in her written statement to
the committee."
In a conversation with a student at
Stanford University in April 2009, Rice stated that she did not authorize
the CIA to use the
enhanced interrogation techniques. Rice said, "I didn't authorize
anything. I conveyed the authorization of the administration to the agency that
they had policy authorization, subject to the Justice Department's clearance.
That's what I did."
She added, �We were told, nothing that violates our obligations under the
Convention Against Torture. And so, by definition, if it was authorized by
the president, it did not violate our obligations under the Conventions Against
Torture."
UNQUOTE
Rice was the messenger boy. She was more too.
Or are we just envious of our betters?
Democratizing
the World - One Torture Victim at a Time
The American track record of torture is much longer and nastier
than I thought. It doesn't much surprise me though. It wasn't little people
doing it. They were just the fall guys when thing became public.
Alfred McCoy
has the nasty details and wrote some very good factual books. One is
A Question of Torture: CIA Interrogation, from the Cold War to the War on
Terror. the
Politics of
Heroin In Southeast Asia, CIA Complicity In The Global Drug Trade. They
might give you the feeling that the CIA is just as bad as the KGB.
Gitmo Torture Manual
QUOTE
Guantanamo SERE Standard Operating Procedures
This document clearly specifies that the abusive interrogation techniques to
be used at Guantanamo Bay prison (JTF GTMO) are based upon the US military's
Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape (SERE) program. The document is
notable for its documentation of the extent to which abuse was
bureaucratically standardized for routine use. The document is dated 10 Dec
2002 and written at the
For Official Use Only level. The document was released a few days ago by
George Washington University's National Security Archive to promote the film
Torturing Democracy
http://www.torturingdemocracy.org/
UNQUOTE
To be fair these techniques are not gross torture.
The
Home Page of J. Orlin Grabbe
A lass can have fun in Abu Ghraib.
Jew Moans About
Torture And Ignores Mossad Evil
QUOTE
Torture takes many forms. We take it and we hand it
out, we live with it and we live with ourselves knowing that we may be
subjecting our loved ones to it, that our loved ones may be engaging in
it, that innocent people on every side may be torture's direct victims.
Few innocent people have been tortured like the loved ones of the people
murdered by Samir Kuntar, the Palestine
Liberation Front monster convicted of a crime so brutal that even the
designation terrorist is too good for him.........
UNQUOTE
Pot calls kettle black. This rant is for Zionist crazies. To be fair it tells us
why we should not be importing Islamics.
Khiam Prison - Israel's Torture Den
Israel
invaded South Lebanon and used Khiam as a prison specializing in
torture. They had mine fields round it to keep people out and in but
they didn't stop the screams being heard by the UN's men. They had
the experts to send to Abu Ghraib and show the Americans how to do
it.
London
Cage
QUOTE
The London Cage was run by MI19 [ interrogation ] rather
than MI9 [ escape & evasion ], MI5 [
counter-espionage ] or MI6 [ espionage ]. It is being
written about, now that the perpetrators are dead, beyond prosecution & unable
to talk. Some publishers write about the subject to destroy our well earned
pride in being English. One such is
The Guardian in
The secrets of the London Cage. The Daily
Mail write up at
How Britain Tortured Nazi PoWs
is just a book advertisement.
UNQUOTE
It is not something to be proud of.
Alfred W. McCoy ex Wiki
Alfred William McCoy (born June 8, 1945) is the J.R.W. Smail Professor
of History at the
University of Wisconsin-Madison.[1]
McCoy has been recognized as "one of the world's leading
historians of
Southeast Asia and an expert on Philippine political history, opium
trafficking in the Golden Triangle, underworld crime syndicates, and
international political surveillance."[1]
Academic career
McCoy served on the faculty of the
University of New South Wales for eleven years.[1]
In 1989, he joined University of Wisconsin-Madison.[1]
Congressional
testimony
As a Ph.D. candidate in
Southeast Asian history at Yale, McCoy testified before the
United States Senate Committee on Appropriations foreign operations
subcommittee on June 2, 1972 and "accused American officials of condoning
and even cooperating with corrupt elements in Southeast Asia's illegal drug
trade out of political and military considerations."[3]
One of his major charges was that
South Vietnam's President
Nguyễn Văn Thiệu,
Vice President
Nguyễn Cao Kỳ,
and Prime Minister
Trần Thiện Khi�m
led a narcotics ring with ties to the
Corsican mafia, the
Trafficante crime family in Florida, and other high level military
officials in South Vietnam,
Cambodia,
Laos, and
Thailand.[3]
Those implicated by McCoy included Laotian Generals
Ouane Rattikone
and
Vang Pao
and South Vietnamese Generals
Đăng Văn Quang
and
Ng� Dzu.[3]
He told the subcommittee that these military officials facilitated the
distribution of
heroin to
American troops in Vietnam and addicts in the
United States.[3]
According to McCoy, the
Central Intelligence Agency chartered
Air America aircraft and helicopters in northern Laos to transport
opium
harvested by their "tribal mercenaries".[3]
He also accused
United States Ambassador to Laos
G. McMurtrie Godley
of blocking the assignment of
Bureau of Narcotics officials to Laos in order to maintain the Laotian
government's cooperation in military and political matters.[3]
A spokesman for the
United States Department of State responded to the allegations: "We are
aware of these charges but we have been unable to find any evidence to
substantiate them, much less proof."[3]
The principal thesis of McCoy's work is that organized crime in both
America and Europe collaborated in a wide-ranging conspiracy to establish
new centers of opium production, heroin
refining and distribution in Southeast Asia. This collaboration occurred
following the effective suppression of the heroin trade in America during
World War II and the subsequent decision to stamp out
opium
growing by
Turkey which had been one of the main sources of raw opium. McCoy said
that the collaboration was facilitated by the
Central Intelligence Agency and by the unstable political situation
created by the ongoing
Vietnam War.[5]
McCoy said that the French
SDECE military intelligence agency during the
First Indochina War (1947�1954) was in need of money for its
covert operations, and that its officers contacted opium producers in
the Golden Triangle, and set up an international system of smuggling aided
by intelligence and other aid from SDECE. This system persisted past the
war, and became the
French Connection.[6]
McCoy asserts that the "French Connection" conspiracy arose from an
alliance between the
Corsican
Mafia, who
had an historical presence in
South Vietnam dating back to the
French occupation, and between the leading members of the American and
Sicilian Mafia under the leadership of
Lucky Luciano who had been imprisoned in the U.S. during World War II
for
racketeering but who was asked also to provide assistance to American
military intelligence about Axis infiltration of Mafia-controlled,
waterfront in American ports as well as assisting Allied forces in their
invasion of Sicily and
Italy. As McCoy shows, Luciano used his contacts in the Sicilian Mafia
to assist U.S. forces by gathering intelligence and identifying both fascist
collaborators and Socialist/Communists in the
Italian resistance movement who were then systematically eliminated.
In return for his assistance, Luciano was covertly permitted to run his
crime operations from prison, and at the end of the war he was deported back
to Sicily, where he immediately began a major expansion of his drug
operations, forging alliances with Corsican Mafia members in South Vietnam
and organized crime figures in other countries, including
Australia.
McCoy wrote in the book, "American involvement had gone far beyond
coincidental complicity; embassies had covered up involvement by client
governments, CIA contract airlines had carried opium, and individual CIA
agents had winked at the opium traffic. As an indirect consequence of
American involvement in the Golden Triangle until 1972, opium production
steadily increased ... Southeast Asia's Golden Triangle grew 70 percent of
the world's illicit opium, supplied an estimated 30 percent of America's
heroin, and was capable of supplying the United States with unlimited
quantities of heroin for generations to come."[7]
The CIA's actions were more specifically described by him thus: "In most
cases, the CIA's role involved various forms of complicity, tolerance or
studied ignorance about the trade, not any direct culpability in the actual
trafficking ... [t]he CIA did not handle heroin, but it did provide its
drug-lord allies with transport, arms, and political protection. In sum,
the CIA's role in the Southeast Asian heroin trade involved indirect
complicity rather than direct culpability."[5]
McCoy said the CIA recruited drug lords in the frame of the
Cold War,
underlying a "conflict between the
drug war and the cold war."[6]
For instance, McCoy alleges that the CIA assisted drug lords in
Burma in 1950 in operations against
China,[8]
McCoy also said similar
drug trafficking activities occurred from 1965 to 1975 in
Laos and
through the
1980s in Afghanistan, supporting for example the drug and warlord
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, leader of the
Hezbi-i Islami guerilla group.[6]
McCoy said he uncovered
money laundering activities by banks controlled by the CIA, first the
Castle Bank which was then replaced by the
Nugan Hand Bank, which had as legal counsel
William Colby, retired head of the CIA.[6]
McCoy also alludes to the
BCCI, which seems to have played the same role as the Nugan Hand Bank
after its collapse in the early 1980s, stating that "the boom in the
Pakistan drug trade was financed by BCCI."[6]
Between a repressive policy (the "Drug war"), which he considers a
failure ("The repression creates a shortfall in supply which raises price
and then stimulates production everywhere around the world."[6])
and a full
legalization of drugs, which he considers "politically impracticable",
McCoy argues in favor of an "alternative strategy," "regularization": "I
favor regulation because if cocaine and heroin are commodities let's deal
with them as such. You don't repress commodities, you regulate them."[6]
Furthermore, against bilateral agreements between the US and other nations
(Colombia, Bolivia, etc. - see
coca eradication campaign by the US), McCoy argues in favor of
multilateral policies under the direction of the
United Nations.[[6]
Recent work
In his book "A Question of Torture: CIA
Interrogation, from the Cold War to the War on Terror",[9]
McCoy shows how from the start of the Cold War to the early
nineteen-sixties, the C.I.A. spent billions of dollars developing
psychological tools for interrogation. Early on, the emphasis was on
electroshock, hypnosis, psychosurgery, and drugs, including the infamous use
of LSD on unsuspecting soldiers and civilians, but these methods appeared a
complete waste of time, although they were of dubious legality. Drawing on
the
sensory deprivation work of Canadian neurological scientist
Donald O. Hebb, it was found that sensory deprivation was far more
effective in brainwashing subjects than beatings or physical pain.
Furthermore, "self-inflicted pain" (for example forcing an uncooperative
subject to stand for many hours with arms outstretched) were more effective
means of breaking prisoners. Augmented by fears of physical abuse, sexual
humiliation, and other psychological attacks on personal and cultural
identity, McCoy has explained how the US government produced exactly the
system on display in the
Abu
Ghraib abuse photographs[10]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dy_jjwid3YM
-
Talk - Alfred McCoy - A Question of Torture
https://uwpress.wisc.edu/books/4999.htm
Torture and Impunity
book by
Alfred McCoy
�A masterful account of an appalling national drift toward accepting torture
as part of our culture and polity.�
�Alex Gibney, director, Oscar-winning documentary Taxi to the
Dark Side
Many Americans have condemned the �enhanced interrogation� techniques used
in the War on Terror as a transgression of human rights. But the United
States has done almost nothing to prosecute past abuses or prevent future
violations. Tracing this knotty contradiction from the 1950s to the present,
historian Alfred W. McCoy probes the political and cultural dynamics that
have made impunity for torture a bipartisan policy of the U.S. government.
During the Cold War, McCoy argues, the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency
covertly funded psychological experiments designed to weaken a subject's
resistance to interrogation. After the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the CIA
revived these harsh methods, while U.S. media was flooded with seductive
images that normalized torture for many Americans. Ten years later, the U.S.
had failed to punish the perpetrators or the powerful who commanded them,
and continued to exploit intelligence extracted under torture by surrogates
from Somalia to Afghanistan. Although Washington has publicly distanced
itself from torture, disturbing images from the prisons at Abu Ghraib and
Guantanamo are seared into human memory, doing lasting damage to America's
moral authority as a world leader.
Alfred
W. McCoy is the J.R.W. Smail Professor of History at the University
of Wisconsin� Madison. His many books include
Policing America's Empire
and A Question of Torture.
Praise:
�With this book, the leading historian of U.S. torture
practices has done a great service for academics and the general public by
deepening his genealogical account of psychological torture from the Cold
War to the present. This is familiar ground for McCoy's readers, but Torture
and Impunity adds significantly to our understanding.�
�Journal of American History
Media & bookseller inquiries regarding review copies, events, and interviews
can be directed to the publicity department at
publicity@uwpress.wisc.edu
or (608) 263-0734. (If you want to examine a book for possible course use,
please see our Course
Books page. If you want to examine a book for possible rights licensing,
please see Rights &
Permissions.)
Related Resources
December 16, 2014 interview about CIA torture allegations with Alfred McCoy
on Democracy Now!
Part 1
Part 2
September 21, 2012 interview with Alfred W. McCoy on Democracy Now!
https://www.democracynow.org/2014/12/16/after_duo_created_cia_torture_methods
= part 1
After Duo Created CIA Torture Methods, Did World's Largest Group of
Psychologists Enable Abuses? YES
https://www.democracynow.org/2014/12/16/psychological_torture_is_enshrined_in_us
= part 2
'Psychological Torture is Enshrined in U.S. Law' Complicity in Abuses Began Long Before Bush
'Psychological
Torture is Enshrined in U.S. Law' Complicity in Abuses Began Long Before Bush _
Democracy Now!
Professor Metin Basoglu
-
Mass Trauma, Mental Health & Human Rights
Monstering
- Inside America's Policy of Secret Interrogations and Torture in the
Terror War
QUOTE
McKelvey gets it
about right....
Lt. Col. Barry Johnson
I think I can say this
with some authority, as I sit here in Iraq on my third year-long
tour, having worked at Guantánamo and having spent a year with
detainee operations in Iraq as part of the team that went in to
improve conditions at Abu Ghraib in spring of '04...........
Unfortunately, most people will probably read into her words
reinforcement of their own pre-conceived notions, whatever those may
be..... Bad thing have happened with detainees. Those responsible
have and must be held accountable.
UNQUOTE
Colonel Johnson is
right; men should be held accountable. Alan
Dershowitz, a Jewish advocate of torture would make a good start.
Sadly the system is too corrupt for justice to be done.
Craig
Murray
Mr. Murray was Her
Majesty's ambassador to the government of Uzbekistan, one of those
God forsaken little Hellholes which are remnants of the Soviet
empire. He talked to the Foreign Office about the evil being
done there and was told to shut up. He went public and got sacked for
his pains.
The Myth of the Ticking Time Bomb
Number five: These dismal conclusions lead to a last, uncomfortable
question: If torture produces limited gains at such high political cost, why
does any rational American leader condone interrogation practices
�tantamount to torture�?
One answer to this question seems to lie with a prescient CIA Cold War
observation about Soviet leaders in times of stress. �When feelings of
insecurity develop within those holding power,� reads an agency analysis of
Kremlin leadership applicable to the post-9/11 White House, �they become
increasingly suspicious and put great pressures upon the secret police to
obtain arrests and confessions. At such times, police officials are inclined
to condone anything which produces a speedy �confession,� and brutality may
become widespread.� In sum, the powerful often turn to torture in times of
crisis, not because it works but because it salves their fears and
insecurities with the psychic balm of empowerment.
22:22
2 administration of mind altering substances
2 threat of imminent death
3 threat of death against another
New
images of Abu Ghraib abuse aired
Some are
new. Others are not but they are convincingly nasty.
Prisoner
Abuse - Patterns from the Past
QUOTE
CIA
interrogation manuals written in the 1960s and 1980s described
"coercive techniques" such as those used to mistreat
detainees at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq,.....The Archive also
posted a secret
1992 report written for then Secretary of Defence Richard Cheney
warning that U.S. Army intelligence manuals..... "offensive
and objectionable material" that "undermines U.S.
credibility, and could result in significant
embarrassment."
UNQUOTE
Some things don't change except
for the worse.
The
Public Committee Against Torture in Israel or
http://www.stoptorture.org.il/en?menu=2&submenu=1
QUOTE
In
September 1999, in response to PCATI's petition, nine justices of the
High Court ruled to absolutely prohibit the use of torture during
interrogation. The Public Committee Against Torture in Israel, an
independent human rights organization founded in 1990, monitors the
implementation of this ruling in detention centres and continues the
struggle against the use of torture in interrogation in Israel and
the Palestinian Authority through legal means, support of relevant
legislation and through an information campaign aimed at raising
public awareness of the subject.
UNQUOTE
There are decent Jews.
Sometimes they seem to be rather thin on the ground.
Torture's
Long Shadow [ 18 December 2005 ]
Torture
is bad news, far worse news than seems obvious from a distance. The
information it gets is likely to be useless, out of date and just
plain wrong. A man may say whatever it takes to stop the pain. It
corrupts the torturers and the system that they are part of too. That
is why every Tsar of Russia banned it.
Vladimir Bukovsky writes from
personal knowledge.
Torture
Policy Came From The Top [ 1 March 2006 ]
The
little people got thrown to the wolves. That is standard operating
procedure [ SOP ]. The White House went clear. Also SOP. Then there
are the courts that do not want to know. Congress? It is just as bad.
Zion controls it and Zion wants war.
Abu
Ghraib was only one of them [ 20 March 2006 ]
A
special operations mob was at it too. Their idea was No Blood - No
Evidence. Special forces should be the pick of the bunch but these
are an armed rabble. No wonder the SAS don't want to be part of it.
See SAS
man quits over US tactics
U.S.
Seeks Silence on CIA Prisons [ 4 November 2006 ]
QUOTE
The
Bush administration has told a federal judge that terrorism suspects
held in secret CIA prisons should not be allowed to reveal details of
the "alternative interrogation methods" that their captors
used to get them to talk. ... but has pressed to retain the use of
unspecified "alternative" interrogation methods ...
UNQUOTE
What is the difference between these hooligans and the
Spanish Inquisition, Gestapo, KGB etcetera? Not a lot apart from the
excuses. And lawyers will stand up in court and defend them.
CIA
Torture Victim Confessed To Attacking Bank Founded AFTER His Arrest!
[ 18 March 2007 ]
QUOTE
Khalid Shaikh
Mohammed's alleged confession testimony has been thoroughly
discredited after it emerged that one of the targets he identified,
the Plaza Bank, was not founded until 2006, four years after the
alleged Al-Qaeda mastermind's arrest. KSM was arrested in March 2003.
According to the Plaza
Bank's website, the organization was founded in early 2006,
making it impossible for KSM to have even known of the bank's
existence before 2003, never mind plotted against it.
UNQUOTE
Have
the twerps who run the CIA got what it takes to organize an orgy in a
brothel? I doubt it. Pravda didn't swallow this tosh either - see
Torture
Victim Confesses to Everything He is Ordered To - The Independent
played it for laughs.
Cheney
Caused the Torture at Gitmo [ 2 July 2007 ]
QUOTE
Vice-President
Dick Cheney was personally responsible for American policies that
subjected terrorist suspects to cruelty and denied them the right to
a fair trial, according to revelations from senior US government
officials. The details have laid bare more than ever before the
remarkable influence of Mr. Cheney in shaping the prosecution of the
war on terror which led to the scandals
at Guantánamo Bay and Abu Ghraib.
UNQUOTE
Vice
President or President of Vice? The power to do evil means that evil
will be done. The Washington Post is a Zionist propaganda operation
so I wonder why they are grassing Cheney now. Past his sell by date?
Zionists have infiltrated the Democrats even more thoroughly than the
Republicans so Cheney is expendable. So is the Republican Party.
On
the take and loving it - torture researchers make a living [ 1
October 2007 ]
QUOTE
Opinion: On the take and loving it: academic recipients
of the U.S. intelligence budget.
Over the
last decade, U.S. intelligence funding of academic research has taken
on caviller [ sic ], even brazen qualities...... The article details
how during the 1960s the CIA used the Human Ecology Fund to push a
covert research agenda into torture and interrogation
techniques........
Far from the
"deep dismay" expressed by some academics on being informed
about covert CIA grants in the 1960s, I suggest that modern academic
recipients of the intelligence budget are clearly "on the take
and loving it".
UNQUOTE
Not all research goes into
torture. Lots goes into making better killing machines. The world's
only super power is running wild.
PS Researchers have life styles
to support too.
How
the FBI gets you to confess - they threaten to have your family
tortured [ 25 October 2007 ]
QUOTE
According
to Higazi, the investigators coerced him into confessing to a role in
9/11........ he says, the investigator said his family would go
through hell in Egypt, where they torture people like Saddam
Hussein............
UNQUOTE
The FBI did the coercion. The FBI
did the cover up. BTW the FBI carried out The
Waco Massacre. They did the cover up on that one too.
PS The
evidence is
still available from the How Appealing website.
Cheney
War And Torture [ 25 October 2007 ]
QUOTE
This
weekend the roll-out for the Next War continues. The most remarkable
item is a speech delivered by the man who, by all accounts, has
aggressively pushed for war against Iran for at least two years: Vice
President Dick Cheney.... Is Cheney threatening war against Iran?
Yes, that’s exactly what he is doing......
[his] entire
speech is worthy of careful study. It shows a man who has
disintegrated into a moral sewer. He regales his audience with the
need to use torture techniques,.... he then proceeds to cite a
positively
insane op-ed by Bernard Lewis,...in which the Soviet Union is
held up as a wonderful model for the United States.
UNQUOTE
Little
people get thrown to the wolves for torture. Real people don't. That
is the theory and the practice. We need Nuremberg II - fair trials
and brisk hangings.
Jews
enjoy torturing Palestinians [
29 October 2007 ]
QUOTE
Zionists
enjoy torturing Palestinians, both men and women, and many of them
use it to discharge energy, [ It is also
healthy exercise - Editor ] according to a
recent study by an Israeli psychologist. "At one point or
another of their service, the majority of the interviewees enjoyed
violence," Nufar Yishai-Karin, a clinical psychologist at the
Hebrew University, told The Observer...... Erlik Alhanan, the public
face of Israeli refuseniks, has said that the number of occupation
soldiers who defy army orders to serve in the occupied territories is
on the rise due to illegal army practices.
UNQUOTE
Is it true?
I have no doubt that it is. Was it all over the main stream media?
No.
CIA
Torture Down the Memory Hole [
4 November 2006 ]
QUOTE
According to the
government, these “alternative interrogation methods,”
actually brutal medieval torture techniques updated to include sexual
humiliation, are “now among the nation’s most sensitive
national security secrets” and any release of information about
the systematic sadism of the state against largely innocent victims,
especially released to the attorneys of the victims, “could
reasonably be expected to cause extremely grave damage” to the
torture and murder state, now a bestial leviathan with tentacles
stretching around the world.
UNQUOTE
Torture
-- a historical perspective [ 27 February 2008
]
QUOTE
Barbarism
Then and Now
Sometimes
a little stroll through history can have its uses. Take, as an
example, the continuing debate over torture in post-9/11 America.
Last week, Stephen Bradbury, the head of the Justice Department's
Office of Legal Counsel, testified before the House Judiciary
Committee about waterboarding......
To remind
readers, Bradbury is the government lawyer who, in 2005, drafted two
secret memos authorizing the use of freezing temperatures, and
waterboarding in CIA attempts to break terrorism detainees. Nor is
Bradbury the only one with the urge to distinguish any current
American proclivity towards torture from the barbaric procedures used
until the Enlightenment set in. As Senator Joseph Lieberman commented
last week, citing
another medieval torture technique, waterboarding "is not like
putting burning coals on people's bodies. The person is in no real
danger. The impact is psychological." Waterboarding isn't
torture, both men claimed, because it leaves no "permanent
damage."
UNQUOTE
Notice that the publicity concentrates
on American evil which is fair enough. Jewish complicity gets ignored
but then with Jews controlling the media the reason is obvious.
US
used water torture in the Philippines circa 1900 [
27 February 2008 ]
QUOTE
Many Americans were puzzled by the news, in 1902, that United
States soldiers were torturing Filipinos with water. The United
States, throughout its emergence as a world power, had spoken the
language of liberation, rescue, and freedom. This was the language
that, when coupled with expanding military and commercial ambitions,
had helped launch two very different wars........
Within
the first year of the war, news of atrocities by U.S. forces—the
torching of villages, the killing of prisoners—began to appear
in American newspapers. Although the U.S. military censored outgoing
cables, stories crossed the Pacific through the mail, which wasn’t
censored. Soldiers, in their letters home, wrote about extreme
violence against Filipinos, alongside complaints about the weather,
the food, and their officers; and some of these letters were
published in home-town newspapers.
UNQUOTE
Some things
don't change. An enthusiasm for covering up the truth is very much
alive and well. Alfred McCoy has written about the subject in A
Question of Torture: CIA Interrogation, from the Cold War to the War
on Terror. He also wrote about the CIA and its major drug
trafficking operations in The
Politics of Heroin
Water
Boarding In Vietnam [ 27 February 2008 ]
QUOTE
Key
senators say Congress has outlawed one of the most notorious detainee
interrogation techniques -- "waterboarding," in which a
prisoner feels near drowning. But the White House will not go that
far, saying it would be wrong to tell terrorists which practices they
might face....
Inside the CIA, waterboarding is cited as
the technique that got Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the prime plotter of
the Sept.
11, 2001, terrorist attacks, to begin to talk and provide
information -- though "not all of it reliable," a former
senior intelligence official said.
UNQUOTE
They look as though
they are having fun. Did the American write home and tell his mum? I
bet she was thrilled.
One advantage of water boarding is that it leaves no external signs. Plausible
denial is that much more plausible.
America
Soldier Boasts About Torture, Rape & Murder [ 18 May 2008 ]
He
enjoyed it. They didn't. War is Hell. Bush claims that this film is
fraudulent. He lies so naturally. Of course when he has men tortured
that is different. That is all right.
The Dark Side - A Book On American Torture
[ 28 July 2008 ]
Not to beat about the Bush - they were all at it.
QUOTE
Six Questions for Jane Mayer, Author of The Dark Side
In a series of gripping articles, Jane Mayer has chronicled the Bush
Administration�s grim and furtive dealings with torture and has exposed both
the individuals within the administration who �made it happen� (a group that
starts with Vice President Cheney and his chief of staff, David Addington),
the team of psychologists who put together the palette of techniques, and
the Fox television program �24,� which was developed to help sell it to the
American public. In a new book, The Dark Side,
Mayer puts together the major conclusions from her articles and fills in a
number of important gaps. Most significantly, we learn the details on the
torture techniques and the drama behind the fierce and lingering struggle
within the administration over torture, and we learn that many within the
administration recognized the potential criminal accountability they faced
over these torture tactics and moved frantically to protect themselves from
possible future prosecution. I put six questions to Jane Mayer on the
subject of her book, The Dark Side.
1. Reports have circulated for some time that
the Red Cross examination of the CIA�s highly coercive interrogation
regime...... concluded that it was
�tantamount to torture.� But you write that the Red Cross
categorically described the program as �torture.�....... Do you believe
that the threat of criminal prosecution drove the Bush Administration's
crafting of the
Military
Commissions Act?
[ Jane Mayer looks
quite nice but she is a Jew ].......
2. You have patiently traced the torture
techniques used by the CIA back to two psychologists,
James Mitchell and
John Bruce Jessen you describe them as �good looking, clean-cut, polite
Mormons��who reverse-engineered their techniques out of the SERE (survival,
evasion, resistance, escape) program used to train U.S. pilots in
self-defence.................
Sources suggested to me that, as you
imply, it is highly uncomfortable for top Bush Justice officials to
prosecute these cases because, inevitably, it means shining a light on what
those same officials sanctioned. Chertoff's role in particular seems ripe
for investigation. Alice Fisher's role also seems of interest. Much remains
to be uncovered.
UNQUOTE
It was easy to feel that America was morally superior to the Soviets. Now we
know better.
Torture
In Iraq Was High Level Policy [ 31 October 2008 ]
QUOTE
Tony
Lagouranis never expected to become a torturer. He didn't even really want
to be a soldier. But at 30, he was bored and broke. He had a facility with
languages, fancied learning Arabic, and figured the US army would teach him
for free and help him clear his student debts. When he started his training,
the Twin Towers were still intact and no one expected the US to go to war in
Iraq........ Vast numbers of suspects were being rounded up, and they
weren't talking. His superiors at the detention facility where he worked in
Mosul gave him a list of authorised interrogation tactics - some might say,
torture tactics. �It said explicitly that
the interrogator needed the freedom to be creative... So basically there
were no limits�........
But maybe it was worth it if it produced
valuable intelligence in the fight against the insurgency? No, he says. As a
method of getting intelligence it was useless. And besides, the aim of
interrogations shifted subtly. "A lot of what we ended up doing was trying
to gather confessions, not intelligence. I think that the commanders wanted
to show that they were doing a good job and were picking up guilty people.
But in fact we were just rounding up whoever was on the street. They just
wanted us to force people to confess so that they could brief their
commanders and say that they had captured all the terrorists."
UNQUOTE
Torture was policy. A few little people got thrown to the wolves. Bush and
Cheney got away with it.
Guantanamo Torture Carries On Under Obama [ 15 April 2009 ]
QUOTE
An inmate in the US prison facility at
Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, has told Al
Jazeera that he has been beaten while in custody and had tear gas used on him
after refusing to leave his cell. Mohammad al-Qurani, a Chadian national, said in a phone call to Al Jazeera
that the alleged ill-treatment "started about 20 days" before Barack Obama
became US president and "since then I've been subjected to it almost every day"."Since Obama took charge he has not shown us that anything will change," he
said.............. Several hundred detainees have since been released but more than
240 prisoners remain there, including Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who is
suspected of planning the September 11, 2001, attacks on the US.
UNQUOTE
Recall that
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed was the one who claimed that he set up the 9/11
Job.
KSM Confessed To Attacking Bank Founded After He Was Captured, which he
had never heard of. But he didn't admit to killing Kennedy. They clearly
didn't ask the right question.
Obama Saying Nothing About Gitmo Torture Claim
[
16 April 2009 ]
QUOTE
The US
state department has refused to comment on a claim that guards at Guantanamo Bay
prison camp abused a Chadian prisoner held there. Al
Jazeera reported on Tuesday that Mohammad al-Qurani had been beaten and
tear-gassed by guards after Barack Obama, the US president, pledged to end abuse
at the camp in January. Al-Qurani made the call to Sami al-Hajj, an Al Jazeera
cameraman who was himself held at Guantanamo Bay for more than six years. Al Jazeera's Monica Villamizar said authorities at
Guantanamo
Bay confirmed to her that al-Qurani would be punished for making the call but
did not say how.......... On his second day in office, Obama ordered the closure of the
prison, which has been heavily criticised by rights groups over reports of
ill-treatment of detainees.
UNQUOTE
Has Obama delivered? No. Is he
a legal president? No! Are the main stream media
doing a major cover up on the crooks who put him in office? Yes! Will Obama
deliver? Not a chance. He is a puppet being used by Jews and criminals.
Obama
Lets Torturers Get Away With It [
17 April 2009 ]
QUOTE
Obama Releases Torture Memos, Vows Not to
Prosecute
The Obama administration on Thursday released top secret
memos outlining the legal rationale used to justify the
CIA's torture of terror suspects, but vowed not to prosecute
the torturers. "It would be unfair to prosecute dedicated
men and women working to protect America for conduct that
was sanctioned in advance by the Justice Department,"
Attorney General Eric Holder said..... Obama's release of the memos is a commendable act of
transparency. At the same time, though, Justice Department lawyers are
defending the previous administration's top officials
accused in federal court of authorizing and carrying out
torture and other abuses.
UNQUOTE
You can see why Bush is laughing.
PS Some criminals are more equal than others.
Busting the Torture Myths [ 28 April 2009 ]
The man who rocked the boat tells all.
Miliband Hiding CIA Torture Evidence
[ 18 October 2009 ]
QUOTE
The High Court last week dealt a humiliating blow to Foreign Secretary David Miliband's attempts to keep secret an official account of the torture of Binyam
Mohamed, stating that his arguments had 'no rational basis' in a democracy
governed by the rule of law............. Before the judgment was issued on Friday, Government lawyers claimed that
parts of the ruling could damage national security and, for the time being, the
court has allowed this.
UNQUOTE
Gross lies, shameless lies and blatant
lies are par for the course under the New Corruption that is New Labour. Not
that the Tories are much better.
He looks like a slob too.
American Government Blocks Release Of Torture Photos [ 15 November 2009 ]
QUOTE
US Secretary of
Defence Robert Gates has blocked the release of new
photographs showing prisoners in Afghanistan and Iraq being abused by their
Americans captors.
Gates said that public disclosure of the photos would endanger US citizens,
US armed forces, and employees of the US government deployed outside the US.........
The Obama administration filed a brief with the Supreme Court late Friday
saying that Gates has invoked new powers blocking the release of the photos.
When President Barack Obama took office, he clarified he would not fight the
release of these types of photographs. He reversed course in May and
authorized an appeal to the high court.....
In one [ photo ], "a soldier holds a broom as if 'sticking its end into the rectum of
a restrained detainee,'" Kagan said, quoting from an investigation report
prepared by the Pentagon.
UNQUOTE
Obama lied about hiding torture.
Obama is a criminal born in Kenya and an illegal president.
British Government Under Blair Outsourced Torture
[ 15 November 2009 ]
QUOTE
Today, however, there is mounting evidence that torture is still regarded by
some agents of the British state as a useful and legitimate investigative tool.
There is evidence too that in the post-9/11 world, government officials have
been prepared to look the other way while British citizens, and others, have
been tortured in secret prisons around the world. It is also clear that an
official policy, devised to govern British intelligence officers while
interrogating people held overseas, resulted in people being tortured.
The Guardian has established that
Tony Blair, when
prime minister, was aware of the existence of this policy. What he knew of
its terrible consequences is less clear: he has repeatedly been asked, in a
series of letters from the Guardian, what he believed to have happened to
those who were subjected to the policy, but he has repeatedly failed to
answer the question. There is a growing suspicion that Blair could not have
been alone, and that other very senior figures in government may have been
aware of the existence of Britain's secret interrogation policy. What did
David Blunkett and Jack Straw, the ministers responsible for MI5 and MI6 at
the time, know about the policy and its consequences for people detained in
the so-called war on terror? They too have declined to say, stating that it
is the British government's policy not to condone torture, but that they
cannot comment further because of a number of forthcoming court cases.
UNQUOTE
Torture is an evil that Blair
would probably claim he didn't encourage but then Blair is a liar.
Would you believe Straw or Blunkett? The Guardian tells us that 'British citizens'
were tortured under MI6 arrangements but does not
mention that they were foreign enemies imported by the traitors of
Her Majesty's Government with
their approval.
Miliband Fails To Hide CIA Torture Evidence
[20 November 2009 ]
QUOTE
The high court today flatly rejected claims by
David Miliband,
the foreign secretary, that releasing evidence of the
CIA's inhuman and unlawful
treatment of UK resident
Binyam Mohamed
would harm Britain's relations with the US by giving away intelligence
secrets.
Evidence that the foreign secretary also wants to
suppress is believed to reveal what British intelligence officers knew about
Mohamed's treatment. Mohamed, 31, an Ethiopian, says he was tortured in
Pakistan, Morocco, Afghanistan, and Guantanamo Bay.
In the sixth in a string of damning rulings, the high
court accused Miliband of wanting to suppress information about CIA
activities even though details had already been disclosed by the Obama
administration. Dismissing Miliband's claims, Lord Justice Thomas and Mr.
Justice Lloyd Jones insisted they were not trying to give away "American
secrets". They said: "Of itself, the treatment to which Mr. Mohamed was
subjected could never properly be described in a democracy as 'a secret' or
an 'intelligence secret' or 'a summary of classified intelligence'."
UNQUOTE
Miliband is a Jew without a conscience, son of communist subversive and
grandson of a traitor. Sadly it seems that we are saddled with Mohammed even
though he is in all probability an Islamic trouble maker about to become a
dole bludger.
Israeli Secret Agency Defends Use Of Torture
[ 1 December 2009 ]
QUOTE
The Israeli secret service agency, Shin Bet, responded to a
petition in Israel's High Court on Monday, defending their use of torture
against detainees. The petition was filed by the
Public Committee Against Torture in Israel,
a prisoner advocacy group which challenged the Israeli practice of forcing
Palestinian detainees to sit on small chairs with their hands cuffed behind
the chair during interrogations. But Shin Bet agents insisted that their
methods of interrogating Palestinian detainees are 'humane'. They said that
since they increased the length of the chain between the handcuffs to 48
inches, their methods of handcuffing are now humane. The Israeli secret
agency said that the handcuffing of Palestinians during interrogation is
necessary in order to 'prevent escape attempts', but gave no examples of
such escape attempts actually taking place.
In 1999, the Israeli High Court determined that a number of torture
techniques used by Shin Bet, including the 'banana' technique pictured
above, were illegal. But Palestinian detainees who have served time in
Israeli prison camps in the ten years since that ruling say that many of the
banned techniques continue to be used by Shin Bet and other Israeli military
agencies.
UNQUOTE
Do you need any more proof that Jews are evil?
PS Haaretz, which is about as near to a conscience that Israel has does not bother
to tell us about this one although they have just written up
B'Tselem in
Israel's Mark of Cain. It is a group that tells Jews things they do not want
to know.
PPS They use Facility 1391,
their answer to Gitmo.
Lieberman
Says No Facility More Humane Than Gitmo [ 14 January 2010
]
QUOTE
There's Nothing Better Than a Good Jewish Comedian!
UNQUOTE
The original story is at
Lieberman: No facility more
humane than Gitmo
PS Obama lies in his teeth.
Head Torturer Boasts About His Success [ 12 March 2010 ]
QUOTE
George W Bush's top political
adviser has said he was 'proud' of controversial techniques such as
waterboarding, which he claimed broke the will of terrorist. Karl Rove - known
as the former president's 'brain' - said he did not believe that the
interrogation method amounted to torture. In an interview with the BBC, he
claimed that waterboarding - which simulates drowning - had helped prevent
terrorist attacks.
UNQUOTE
If Rove were to be tried at a rerun of the
Nuremberg War Trials he would be convicted and hanged.
Waterboarding for
Dummies - The CIA Explains How To Torture The Obstinate [ 23 March 2010 ]
QUOTE
At Salon,
Mark Benjamin reviews a cache of internal CIA documents giving directions on
how to water board prisoners:
Interrogators pumped detainees full of so much
water that the CIA turned to a special saline solution to minimize the risk of
death, the documents show. The agency used a gurney �specially designed� to tilt
backwards at a perfect angle to maximize the water entering the prisoner's nose
and mouth, intensifying the sense of choking and to be lifted upright quickly in
the event that a prisoner stopped breathing.......
Finally, to keep detainees alive even if they
inhaled their own vomit during a session a not-uncommon side effect of
waterboarding the prisoners were kept on a liquid diet. The agency recommended
Ensure Plus.
Once more we see that Ensure Plus, a staple of
the force-feeding regime used at Guantanamo, also regularly featured as a part
of the torture regime for CIA prisoners......... While the identities of the
lawyers involved in introducing the torture program has become public, the
doctors involved have largely retained their anonymity. Why?
UNQUOTE
The
KGB were the nasty people who tortured people. Our lot were the goodies, not the
baddies. So we were told. So lots of us believed. The truth is uglier.
PS One important advantage of waterboarding is that it leaves no visible marks
unlike flogging, branding. It is done to make perverting the course of justice
easier.
American Army Tortures Its Own Men To Cheat Them Out Of Injury Payments [20 April 2010 ]
QUOTE
Sergeant Chuck Luther, now back from Iraq, was describing his
journey to hell and back. The worst part, he said, wasn't battling
insurgents or even the mortar blast that tossed him to the ground and
slammed his head against the concrete � it was the way he was treated by
the U.S. Army when he went to the aid station and sought medical help.........
He thought he would receive medical care.
Instead he was confined to an isolation chamber and held there for over
a month, under enforced sleep deprivation, until he agreed to sign
papers saying that he was ill before coming to Iraq and thus not
eligible for disability and medical benefits. "They wanted me to say I
had a 'personality disorder,'" Luther told me.
Luther's
call did not come out of the blue. For two years I had been
investigating this personality disorder scandal: how military doctors
were purposely misdiagnosing soldiers, wounded in combat, as having this
pre-existing mental illness. As in the civilian world, where people can
be locked out of the insurance system if they have a pre-existing
condition, soldiers whose wounds can be attributed to a pre-existing
illness can be denied disability benefits and long-term medical care.
UNQUOTE
This is a real nasty. America went over to an all volunteer army and
nice people do not join up. It is just the lower orders. Then this
happens. It is reason for rebellion.
Jews Torture Palestinian Prisoner [
30 May 2013 ]
QUOTE
Israel's Military Police have launched an investigation into the case of
a Palestinian who was beaten while under arrest, after a security camera at a
nearby settlement caught the beating on tape.
Soldiers arrested the Palestinian, Dar Sa�ad, for allegedly throwing stones
at them during a violent demonstration in the village of Silwad on April 26.
A security camera at the settlement of Ofra shows that the soldiers then
punched and kicked Sa'ad several times while he was lying on the ground. But
it's not clear how long the beating went on because after a few seconds the
camera was turned to face in another direction.
An officer familiar with the incident said that several Palestinians threw
stones at soldiers from the Kfir Brigade and the Border Police during that
incident. But that doesn't justify how Sa'ad was treated after being arrested,
the officer continued: The beating �never should have happened.�
UNQUOTE
Jews perpetrated the attack. Jews ignored the complaint of crime. Jews pretend
they will investigate. Jews will pervert the course of justice. Jews will walk
free. That is how it works in the Stolen Land that
thieves call Israel.
Jews Like Torturing
People
[18 February 2014 ]
This is not really news, just a reminder.
The
banana position is cheap, simple, effective. What more could a
psychopath want?
Torture In Ireland [ 12 June 2014 ]
QUOTE
It was January 31st, 1972, the day after
Bloody Sunday. The head of the army department in the British Ministry of
Defence, John M Parkin wrote to the Chief of Staff, Northern Ireland, Brigadier
Marston Tickell, seeking the facts on more than 100 allegations of torture and
inhuman and degrading treatment of internees included in Ireland v United
Kingdom, the first full-blown inter-state case under the European
Convention on Human Rights, lodged a month earlier by the Irish Government
before the European Commission on Human Rights.
�Perhaps I should mention that material
needs to be presented with complete frankness and that nothing should be
withheld. You may of course take it that this is to permit our lawyers to
determine the best line of defence and not for reporting to the Commission�, he
wrote. His letter was stamped �Confidential�..........
Lord
Parker was about to submit a Privy Counsellors� report into interrogation
techniques that had led to the torture allegations in Strasbourg, the �five
techniques� of sensory deprivation: hooding; �white noise�; wall-standing in
stress positions; and sleep, food and water deprivation...............
Last month, however, the
International Criminal Court at the Hague formally launched a preliminary investigation into a
complaint brought by Public Interest Lawyers UK and the Berlin-based European
Centre for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) into alleged torture by UK
armed forces of 412 people in Iraq, including use of the techniques. It is the
first time the ICC has opened an investigation into a Western state. In Ireland,
Attorney General Maire Whelan had, prior to the revelations of last week's RT�
programme, rejected earlier approaches to get Ireland to apply to the European
Court of Human Rights to revisit its judgment in light of newly discovered
facts........
Rita O'Reilly is a reporter with RT�
Investigations Unit. The Torture Files is available for worldwide
viewing on http://www.rte.ie/news/player/prime-time/2014/0604/
UNQUOTE
Mr O'Reilly does not mention that Public Interest
Lawyers is a bunch of chancers run by a bent lawyer, one
Phil Shiner until he
came unstuck. He defrauded the taxpayer out of millions.
http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2014/12/weve-known-1700-years-torture-produces-false-confessions.html
We've Known for Thousands of Years that
Torture Doesn't Work
Mark Costanzo (Claremont McKenna professor of psychology) and Ellen
Gerrity (Duke University professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral
Sciences)
note in a study published in the journal Social Issues and
Policy Review:
As early as the third century A.D., the great Roman Jurist Ulpian
noted that information obtained through torture was not to be
trusted because some people are �so susceptible to pain that they
will tell any lie rather than suffer it� (Peters, 1996). This
warning about the unreliability of information extracted through the
use of torture has echoed across the centuries.
Kubart interrogation manual [
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Army_and_CIA_interrogation_manuals ]
U.S. Army and CIA interrogation manuals ex Wiki
The U.S. Army and CIA interrogation manuals are seven
controversial military training manuals which were declassified by the
Pentagon in 1996. In 1997, two additional CIA manuals were declassified
in response to a
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request filed by
The Baltimore Sun. The manuals in question have been referred to by
various media sources as the "torture manuals".[2][3][4][5]
Army manuals
These manuals were prepared by the U.S. military and used between
1987 and 1991 for intelligence training courses at the U.S. Army
School of the Americas (SOA). Some of the material was similar to the
older CIA manuals described below. The manuals were also distributed by
Special Forces Mobile Training Teams to military personnel and intelligence
schools in
Colombia,
Ecuador,
El
Salvador,
Guatemala,
Peru and
Venezuela.[5][6][7]
The Pentagon press release accompanying the release stated that a 1991-92
investigation into the manuals concluded that "two dozen short passages in
six of the manuals, which total 1169 pages, contained material that either
was not or could be interpreted not to be consistent with U.S. policy."
The Latin America Working Group criticized this: "The unstated aim of the
manuals is to train Latin American militaries to identify and suppress
anti-government movements. Throughout the eleven hundred pages of the
manuals, there are few mentions of democracy, human rights, or the rule of
law. Instead, the manuals provide detailed techniques for infiltrating
social movements, interrogating suspects, surveillance, maintaining military
secrecy, recruiting and retaining spies, and controlling the population.
While the excerpts released by the Pentagon are a useful and not misleading
selection of the most egregious passages, the ones most clearly advocating
torture, execution and blackmail, they do not provide adequate insight into
the manuals' highly objectionable framework. In the name of defending
democracy, the manuals advocate profoundly undemocratic methods."
After this 1992 investigation, the
Department of Defense discontinued the use of the manuals, directed
their recovery to the extent practicable, and destroyed the copies in the
field. U.S. Southern Command advised governments in Latin America that the
manuals contained passages that did not represent U.S. government policy,
and pursued recovery of the manuals from the governments and some individual
students.[8]
Notably,
David Addington and
Dick
Cheney retained personal copies of the training manuals.[[9]
Soon after, the U.S. Army issued the
FM 34-52 Intelligence Interrogation manual, which was used until
September 2006, when it was superseded by
FM 2-22.3, Human Intelligence Collector Operations.
Kubark Counterintelligence Interrogation
Is a .pdf
Torture Is Back In The News [ 11 January 2015 ]
NB
Obama did say he was going to shut
GITMO but it is still there, doing what it does
best, torturing people to get utterly worthless confessions.
Racist Jews Charged With Torturing Several Palestinian Prisoners [
1 November 2015 ]
QUOTE
Four soldiers from the IDF�s Nahal Haredi battalion were indicted yesterday for
numerous instances of torture and abuse of Palestinian prisoners, Haaretz
reported. In one incident, the haredi battalion soldiers allegedly used a
cellphone to video themselves intentionally electrocuting a Palestinian
prisoner.
Military Police found many other incidents of abuse and torture and are
expected to file for indictments against more soldiers from the haredi
battalion Sunday........
The four indicted soldiers were remanded until a court hearing Sunday.
The and one other soldier from the haredi battalion are being defended by an
attorney from the neo-Kahanist neo-fascist [ sic ] Honenu legal aid organization.
UNQUOTE
Can Jews possibly be neo-Fascists? Ignore the
propaganda, look at the evidence, then know the truth. Are they
God's Chosen People or even a
Light Unto
Nations? If they are then their god is a damned bad God.
PS They sound
much like the guards in Buchenwald, the well
known Nazi concentration, to wit like
sadists.
CIA Allegation That Russia Helped Donald Trump Win Is A Lie Says The Director
of National Intelligence [
15 December 2016 ]
The CIA story proves something; they think people
are stupid enough to believe them. NB The CIA is not just a bunch of lying
War Mongers. They like
Torturing people. You doubt it? See
A Question of Torture: CIA Interrogation, from the Cold War to the War on Terror by
Alfred W. McCoy,
an eminently respectable professor of history, or see the film,
Taxi to the Dark Side
PS We haven't all forgotten
Abu Ghraib,
have we?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dy_jjwid3YM
Talk by Prof. of History Alfred McCoy
author of "A Question of Torture: CIA Interrogation, From the Cold War
to the War on Terror" given April 24, 2010 at the 8th Annual Western
Regional International Health Conference "War & Global Health" held at
the University of Washington in Seattle.
13:00 sensory deprivation 13:46 self inflicted pain - 14:00 KGB standing for
days
Kubark 15:30 2,000 years western judicial torture, the strong defied,
the weak said anything 15:05 roman called
Ulpian [
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulpian
] for many people have such strength of body and soul that they heed the
pain very little so that there is no means of obtaining the truth from them
while others are so susceptible to pain that they will tell any lie rather
than suffer
16:20 attributes -
elusive [ easily hidden from justice ] Brits trained RUC for
IRA prisoners
Belfast 1971 lord parker warnington(?) "words of definition"
16:37
inventive - based on research - discovery in 1950s, dissemination in 1980s,
rediscovery since 2001
17:52 seductive fun? in 1956 2 psychologists said words for kremlin &
white house same quote when feelings of insecurity in those holding power -
become increasingly suspicious - put pressure on secret police to obtain
arrests and confessions at such times police officials inclined to condone
anything which produces confession and brutality may become widespread -
even after torture intended for accused soviet spies [
http://www.progressive.org/mag_mccoy1006
]
destructive 19:00 no touch long term psychological scars -
maybe worse that physical pain study of 432 survivors published 2009 study
of 432 survivors published 2009 doctor
https://metinbasoglu.wordpress.com/about/
[ Professor Metin Basoglu ] Turk of king's college London "
inhuman degrading treatment major determinant lasting psychological
damage detainees "
see
http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/482225
20:10 part 2 propagating the paradigm e.g. phoenix programme Viet Nam 40,000
murders - 1983 training manual taught Honduras interrogators to quote
manipulate environment create intolerable situation disrupt patterns time
space and sensory perception - frontal assault on pathway to human identity
- same as Abu Ghraib - after Viet Nam USA went for human rights in 1994
banning psychological and physical pain - Clinton fed in attack on one word
in 26 pages i.e. mental "prolonged mental harm" not torture when caused by 4
specific acts
22:22
2 administration of mind altering substances
2 threat of imminent death
3 threat of death against another
under this 'legal definition' anything is 'not' psychological torture -
reservations eviscerate un convention
2323:26 limiting the UN's broad codality(?) shifting
victim's suffering to perpetrator's subjective view enacted section 2340 us
federal code and war crimes act 1996 ditto 1997
Clinton evaded torture by subcontracting it = extraordinary rendition
24:50 part 3 perfection of psychological torture
bush said i don't care what the international lawyers say - we re going to
kick some ass
converted into three controversial neoconservative legal doctrines
1 precedence of law
2 torture is legally acceptable
3 Gitmo is not American
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxi_to_the_Dark_Side
Taxi to the Dark Side x Wiki
Taxi to the Dark Side is a 2007 documentary film directed by
American filmmaker
Alex
Gibney, and produced by him, Eva
Orner and Susannah Shipman. It won the 2007
Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. It focuses on the December
2002 killing of an
Afghan
taxi driver named
Dilawar,[1]
who was beaten to death by American soldiers while being held in
extrajudicial detention and interrogated at the
Parwan Detention Facility at
Bagram air base.
It was part of the
Why Democracy? series, which consisted of ten documentary films from
around the world questioning and examining contemporary democracy. As part
of this series, the documentary was broadcast in over 30 countries from
October 8�18, 2007. The BBC showed the film in its
Storyville s series.
Overview
Taxi to the Dark Side examines
the USA's policy on torture and interrogation in general, specifically
the
CIA's use of torture and their research into
sensory deprivation. The film includes discussions against the use of
torture by political and military opponents, as well as the defense of such
methods; attempts by Congress to uphold the standards of the
Geneva Convention forbidding torture; and popularization of the use of
torture techniques in TV series such as
24.
Jew Says Torture Is Totally Illegal Under International Law
[ 24 January 2017 ]
QUOTE
State-Sanctioned Torture in the Age of Trump
By Marjorie Cohn, Truthout
During the presidential campaign, Donald Trump declared he would
"immediately" resume waterboarding and would "bring back a hell of a
lot worse than waterboarding" because the United States is facing a
"barbaric" enemy. He labeled waterboarding a "minor form" of
interrogation...................
What does torture have in common with Genocide, slavery and wars
of aggression? They are all "jus cogens." That's Latin for "higher
law" or "compelling law." This means that under international law,
no country can ever pass a law that allows torture. There can be no
immunity from criminal liability for violation of a "jus cogens"
prohibition.
The United States has always prohibited torture -- in our
Constitution, laws, executive orders, judicial decisions and
treaties. When we ratify a treaty, it becomes part of US law under
the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution.
UNQUOTE
The Jew,
Cohn
[ a misspelling of Cohen ] is lawyer enough to understand law and to
ignore the truth when it doesn't fit her agenda. That is why she says nothing
about the murderous thugs who run Israel but see e.g.
How Jews Torture People,
Jews And Torture or even
Now You Are Paralyzed.
Secret Squirrel Tortured EOKA Prisoners In Cyprus - Allegedly
A
Grenadier Guards officer has decided to talk. EOKA wallahs are jumping on
the legal band wagon. Lotsa money rides on these things.
Peine Forte Et Dure ex Wiki
Peine
forte et dure (
Law
French for "hard and forceful punishment") was a method of
torture
formerly used in the
common
law legal system, in
which a
defendant who refused to
plead ("stood
mute") would be subjected to having heavier and heavier stones placed upon
his or her chest until a plea was entered, or the defendant died.
Many defendants charged with capital offences would refuse to plead in
order to avoid forfeiture of property. If the defendant pleaded either
guilty or not guilty and was executed, their heirs would inherit nothing,
their property
escheating
to the Crown. If they refused to plead their heirs would inherit their
estate, even if they died in the process.
The common law courts originally took a very limited view of their own
jurisdiction. They considered themselves to lack jurisdiction over a
defendant until he had voluntarily submitted to it by entering a plea
seeking judgment from the court.[1]
Obviously, a
criminal justice system that could punish only those who had volunteered
for possible punishment was unworkable; a means was needed to coerce them
into entering a plea.[2]
Alternatively, individuals were frequently tried under the law of
the sea as observed by
Bracton.[3]
Jewish
Doctors Help Shin Bet Torture Arabs
[ 17 October 2019 ]
QUOTE
From approving brutal interrogation techniques to writing false
medical reports, doctors in Israel have taken an active role in the torture
of Palestinian prisoners.
By Ruchama
Marton [ a Jew ], Reposted from
+972 Magazine
If the Shin Bet runs a school for its agents and interrogators, the
curriculum most certainly includes a class on how to tell a lie. The
texts taught, it seems, do not change with the years. In 1993,
responding to accusations that the Shin Bet brutally tortured
Palestinian detainee Hassan Zubeidi, then Commander of the IDF Northern
Command Yossi Peled told Israeli journalist Gabi Nitzan that “there is
no torture in Israel. I served for 30 years in the IDF and I know what I
am talking about.”
Twenty-six years later, Deputy Chief of the Shin Bet and former Shin
Bet interrogator, Yitzhak Ilan repeated the same line to news presenter
Ya’akov Eilon on national television while speaking about Samer Arbeed,
a 44-year-old Palestinian who was hospitalized in critical condition
after he had been reportedly tortured by the Shin Bet. Arbeed is
suspected of organizing a deadly bombing that killed a teenage Israeli
girl and wounded her father and brother at a spring in the West Bank in
August. Ilan bristled at the notion that the Shin Bet was somehow
responsible for Arbeed’s condition.
Putting aside these absurd forms of denial, as a doctor and founder
of
Physicians for Human Rights - Israel, I have always been troubled by
how Israeli doctors cooperate with and enable Israel’s torture industry..............
But it is not only doctors in the Shin Bet and the
Israel Prison Service that collaborate with torture. Doctors in emergency rooms across
Israel write false medical opinions in accordance with the demands of
the Shin Bet. Take, for example, the case of Nader Qumsieh from the West
Bank city of Beit Sahour. He was arrested in his home on May 4, 1993 and
was brought to Soroka Medical Center in Be’er Sheva five days
later. There a urologist diagnosed him a hemorrhage and a torn scrotum...........
History teaches us that doctors everywhere easily and effectively
internalize the regime’s values, and many of them become loyal servants
of the regime. That was the case in Nazi Germany, in the United States,
and in various countries in Latin America. The same goes for Israel.
Qumsieh’s case, along with countless others, reflects the ethical,
moral, and practical failure of the medical establishment in Israel
vis-à-vis torture.
UNQUOTE
The Jews running Shin Bet use with the banana position
to Torture; it is cheap,
simple, effective. This comedian seems to have been a volunteer trying his
strength - notice the scissors close to hand. Then there is waterboarding;
also cheap. It has an extra virtue. The damage done is internal, invisible
and deniable.
You want to know more?
Danny Steinberg explains Jews And
Torture. It is evil; it is crime. It is what Obama
did in GITMO. He was put in the White House by
Zionist crazies, rather like the Shin Bet mob. They
told
Luwaii Ashqar they would paralyze him; they told the
truth for once. Now You Are
Paralyzed. Why? Pass; ruling by terror worked for the
Nazis - for a while but..............
In case you are not convinced by the
forgoing here are some books from Amazon which bear on the point:-
Oath
Betrayed: Torture, Medical Complicity, and the War on Terror
by
Steven Miles
Malpractice.
Oath Betrayed: Torture, Medical Complicity, and the War on
Terror) ( Book review): An article from: Commonweal
by
Daniel P. Sulmasy
Monstering:
Inside America's Policy of Secret Interrogations and Torture in the
Terror War
by Tara McKelvey
Ethics
and Epidemics, Volume 9 (Advances in Bioethics) (Advances in
Bioethics)
by John Balint et al
http://legal.un.org/icc/statute/99_corr/cstatute.htm
Rome Statute 1998
page 161
#Article 6 -
Genocide
#Article 7 -
Crimes against humanity
#Article 8 -
War
crimes
#Article 25 -
Individual criminal responsibility
aiding and abetting
= legal jeopardy
https://thelawdictionary.org/legal-jeopardy/
Legal Jeopardy
ROME STATUTE OF THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT*
PREAMBLE
The
States Parties to this Statute,
Conscious
that all peoples are united by common bonds, their cultures pieced together in a
shared heritage, and concerned that this delicate mosaic may be shattered at any
time,
Mindful
that during this century millions of children, women and men have been victims
of unimaginable atrocities that deeply shock the conscience of humanity,
Recognizing that such grave crimes threaten the peace, security and
well-being of the world,
Affirming
that the most serious crimes of concern to the international community as a
whole must not go unpunished and that their effective prosecution must be
ensured by taking measures at the national level and by enhancing international
cooperation,
Determined to put an end to impunity for the perpetrators of these crimes
and thus to contribute to the prevention of such crimes,
Recalling
that it is the duty of every State to exercise its criminal jurisdiction over
those responsible for international crimes,
Reaffirming the Purposes and Principles of the Charter of the United
Nations, and in particular that all States shall refrain from the threat or use
of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any
State, or in any other manner inconsistent with the Purposes of the United
Nations,
Emphasizing in this connection that nothing in this Statute shall be taken
as authorizing any State Party to intervene in an armed conflict or in the
internal affairs of any State,
Determined to these ends and for the sake of present and future generations,
to establish an independent permanent International Criminal Court in
relationship with the United Nations system, with jurisdiction over the most
serious crimes of concern to the international community as a whole,
Emphasizing that the International Criminal Court established under this
Statute shall be complementary to national criminal jurisdictions,
Resolved
to guarantee lasting respect for and the enforcement of international justice,
Have
agreed as follows
PART 1. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE COURT
Article 1
The Court
An International Criminal Court ("the Court") is hereby established. It shall be
a permanent institution and shall have the power to exercise its jurisdiction
over persons for the most serious crimes of international concern, as referred
to in this Statute, and shall be complementary to national criminal
jurisdictions. The jurisdiction and functioning of the Court shall be governed
by the provisions of this Statute.
Article 2
Relationship of the Court with the United Nations
The Court shall be brought into relationship with the United Nations through an
agreement to be approved by the Assembly of States Parties to this Statute and
thereafter concluded by the President of the Court on its behalf.
Article 3
Seat of the Court
1. The seat
of the Court shall be established at The Hague in the Netherlands ("the host
State").
2.
The Court shall enter into a headquarters agreement with the host State, to be
approved by the Assembly of States Parties and thereafter concluded by the
President of the Court on its behalf.
3. The Court
may sit elsewhere, whenever it considers it desirable, as provided in this
Statute.
Article 4
Legal status and powers of the Court
1. The Court
shall have international legal personality. It shall also have such legal
capacity as may be necessary for the exercise of its functions and the
fulfillment of its purposes.
2.
The Court may exercise its functions and powers, as provided in this Statute, on
the territory of any State Party and, by special agreement, on the territory of
any other State.
PART 2. JURISDICTION, ADMISSIBILITY
AND APPLICABLE LAW
Article 5Crimes
within the jurisdiction of the Court
1. The
jurisdiction of the Court shall be limited to the most serious crimes of concern
to the international community as a whole. The Court has jurisdiction in
accordance with this Statute with respect to the following crimes:
(a) The crime of genocide;
(b) Crimes against humanity;
(c) War crimes;
(d) The crime of aggression.
2. The Court shall exercise jurisdiction over the
crime of aggression once a provision is adopted in accordance with articles 121
and 123 defining the crime and setting out the conditions under which the Court
shall exercise jurisdiction with respect to this crime. Such a provision shall
be consistent with the relevant provisions of the Charter of the United Nations.
Article 6
Genocide
For the purpose of this Statute, "genocide" means any of the following acts
committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical,
racial or religious group, as such:
(a) Killing members of the group;
(b) Causing serious bodily or
mental harm to members of the group;
(c) Deliberately inflicting on
the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical
destruction in whole or in part;
(d) Imposing measures intended to
prevent births within the group;
(e) Forcibly transferring
children of the group to another group.
Article 7
Crimes against humanity
1. For the
purpose of this Statute, "crime against humanity" means any of the following
acts when committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed
against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack:
(a) Murder;
(b) Extermination;
(c) Enslavement;
(d) Deportation or forcible
transfer of population;
(e) Imprisonment or other severe
deprivation of physical liberty in violation of fundamental rules of
international law;
(f) Torture;
(g) Rape, sexual slavery,
enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, enforced sterilization, or any
other form of sexual violence of comparable gravity;
(h) Persecution against any
identifiable group or collectivity on political, racial, national, ethnic,
cultural, religious, gender as defined in paragraph 3, or other grounds that
are universally recognized as impermissible under international law, in
connection with any act referred to in this paragraph or any crime within
the jurisdiction of the Court;
(i) Enforced disappearance of
persons;
(j) The crime of apartheid;
(k) Other inhumane acts of a
similar character intentionally causing great suffering, or serious injury
to body or to mental or physical health.
2. For the purpose of paragraph 1:
(a) "Attack directed against any civilian population"
means a course of conduct involving the multiple commission of acts referred
to in paragraph 1 against any civilian population, pursuant to or in
furtherance of a State or organizational policy to commit such attack;
(b) "Extermination" includes the
intentional infliction of conditions of life, inter alia the
deprivation of access to food and medicine, calculated to bring about the
destruction of part of a population;
(c) "Enslavement" means the
exercise of any or all of the powers attaching to the right of ownership
over a person and includes the exercise of such power in the course of
trafficking in persons, in particular women and children;
(d) "Deportation or forcible
transfer of population" means forced displacement of the persons concerned
by expulsion or other coercive acts from the area in which they are lawfully
present, without grounds permitted under international law;
(e) "Torture" means the
intentional infliction of severe pain or suffering, whether physical or
mental, upon a person in the custody or under the control of the accused;
except that torture shall not include pain or suffering arising only from,
inherent in or incidental to, lawful sanctions;
(f) "Forced pregnancy" means the
unlawful confinement of a woman forcibly made pregnant, with the intent of
affecting the ethnic composition of any population or carrying out other
grave violations of international law. This definition shall not in any way
be interpreted as affecting national laws relating to pregnancy;
(g) "Persecution" means the
intentional and severe deprivation of fundamental rights contrary to
international law by reason of the identity of the group or collectivity;
(h) "The crime of apartheid"
means inhumane acts of a character similar to those referred to in paragraph
1, committed in the context of an institutionalized regime of systematic
oppression and domination by one racial group over any other racial group or
groups and committed with the intention of maintaining that regime;
(i) "Enforced disappearance of
persons" means the arrest, detention or abduction of persons by, or with the
authorization, support or acquiescence of, a State or a political
organization, followed by a refusal to acknowledge that deprivation of
freedom or to give information on the fate or whereabouts of those persons,
with the intention of removing them from the protection of the law for a
prolonged period of time.
3. For the purpose of this Statute, it is understood
that the term "gender" refers to the two sexes, male and female, within the
context of society. The term "gender" does not indicate any meaning different
from the above.
Article 8War
crimes
1. The Court shall have
jurisdiction in respect of war crimes in particular when committed as part of a
plan or policy or as part of a large-scale commission of such crimes.
2. For the purpose of this Statute, "war crimes"
means:
(a) Grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions of 12
August 1949, namely, any of the following acts against persons or property
protected under the provisions of the relevant Geneva Convention:
(i) Wilful killing;
(ii) Torture or inhuman
treatment, including biological experiments;
(iii) Wilfully causing great
suffering, or serious injury to body or health;
(iv) Extensive destruction
and appropriation of property, not justified by military necessity and
carried out unlawfully and wantonly;
(v) Compelling a prisoner of
war or other protected person to serve in the forces of a hostile Power;
(vi) Wilfully depriving a
prisoner of war or other protected person of the rights of fair and
regular trial;
(vii) Unlawful deportation or
transfer or unlawful confinement;
(viii) Taking of hostages.
(b) Other serious violations of the laws and customs
applicable in international armed conflict, within the established framework
of international law, namely, any of the following acts:
(i) Intentionally directing attacks against the
civilian population as such or against individual civilians not taking
direct part in hostilities;
(ii) Intentionally directing
attacks against civilian objects, that is, objects which are not
military objectives;
(iii) Intentionally directing
attacks against personnel, installations, material, units or vehicles
involved in a humanitarian assistance or peacekeeping mission in
accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, as long as they are
entitled to the protection given to civilians or civilian objects under
the international law of armed conflict;
(iv) Intentionally launching
an attack in the knowledge that such attack will cause incidental loss
of life or injury to civilians or damage to civilian objects or
widespread, long-term and severe damage to the natural environment which
would be clearly excessive in relation to the concrete and direct
overall military advantage anticipated;
(v) Attacking or bombarding,
by whatever means, towns, villages, dwellings or buildings which are
undefended and which are not military objectives;
(vi) Killing or wounding a
combatant who, having laid down his arms or having no longer means of
defence, has surrendered at discretion;
(vii) Making improper use of
a flag of truce, of the flag or of the military insignia and uniform of
the enemy or of the United Nations, as well as of the distinctive
emblems of the Geneva Conventions, resulting in death or serious
personal injury;
(viii) The transfer, directly
or indirectly, by the Occupying Power of parts of its own civilian
population into the territory it occupies, or the deportation or
transfer of all or parts of the population of the occupied territory
within or outside this territory;
(ix) Intentionally directing
attacks against buildings dedicated to religion, education, art, science
or charitable purposes, historic monuments, hospitals and places where
the sick and wounded are collected, provided they are not military
objectives;
(x) Subjecting persons who
are in the power of an adverse party to physical mutilation or to
medical or scientific experiments of any kind which are neither
justified by the medical, dental or hospital treatment of the person
concerned nor carried out in his or her interest, and which cause death
to or seriously endanger the health of such person or persons;
(xi) Killing or wounding
treacherously individuals belonging to the hostile nation or army;
(xii) Declaring that no
quarter will be given;
(xiii) Destroying or seizing
the enemy's property unless such destruction or seizure be imperatively
demanded by the necessities of war;
(xiv) Declaring abolished,
suspended or inadmissible in a court of law the rights and actions of
the nationals of the hostile party;
(xv) Compelling the nationals
of the hostile party to take part in the operations of war directed
against their own country, even if they were in the belligerent's
service before the commencement of the war;
(xvi) Pillaging a town or
place, even when taken by assault;
(xvii) Employing poison or
poisoned weapons;
(xviii) Employing
asphyxiating, poisonous or other gases, and all analogous liquids,
materials or devices;
(xix) Employing bullets which
expand or flatten easily in the human body, such as bullets with a hard
envelope which does not entirely cover the core or is pierced with
incisions;
(xx) Employing weapons,
projectiles and material and methods of warfare which are of a nature to
cause superfluous injury or unnecessary suffering or which are
inherently indiscriminate in violation of the international law of armed
conflict, provided that such weapons, projectiles and material and
methods of warfare are the subject of a comprehensive prohibition and
are included in an annex to this Statute, by an amendment in accordance
with the relevant provisions set forth in articles 121 and 123;
(xxi) Committing outrages
upon personal dignity, in particular humiliating and degrading
treatment;
(xxii) Committing rape,
sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, as defined in
article 7, paragraph 2 (f), enforced sterilization, or any other form of
sexual violence also constituting a grave breach of the Geneva
Conventions;
(xxiii) Utilizing the
presence of a civilian or other protected person to render certain
points, areas or military forces immune from military operations;
(xxiv) Intentionally
directing attacks against buildings, material, medical units and
transport, and personnel using the distinctive emblems of the Geneva
Conventions in conformity with international law;
(xxv) Intentionally using
starvation of civilians as a method of warfare by depriving them of
objects indispensable to their survival, including wilfully impeding
relief supplies as provided for under the Geneva Conventions;
(xxvi) Conscripting or
enlisting children under the age of fifteen years into the national
armed forces or using them to participate actively in hostilities.
(c) In the case of an armed conflict not of an
international character, serious violations of article 3 common to the four
Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, namely, any of the following acts
committed against persons taking no active part in the hostilities,
including members of armed forces who have laid down their arms and those
placed hors de combat by sickness, wounds, detention or any other
cause:
(i) Violence to life and person, in particular
murder of all kinds, mutilation, cruel treatment and torture;
(ii) Committing outrages upon
personal dignity, in particular humiliating and degrading treatment;
(iii) Taking of hostages;
(iv) The passing of sentences
and the carrying out of executions without previous judgement pronounced
by a regularly constituted court, affording all judicial guarantees
which are generally recognized as indispensable.
(d) Paragraph 2 (c) applies to armed conflicts not of an
international character and thus does not apply to situations of internal
disturbances and tensions, such as riots, isolated and sporadic acts of
violence or other acts of a similar nature.
(e) Other serious violations of
the laws and customs applicable in armed conflicts not of an international
character, within the established framework of international law, namely,
any of the following acts:
(i) Intentionally directing attacks against the
civilian population as such or against individual civilians not taking
direct part in hostilities;
(ii) Intentionally directing
attacks against buildings, material, medical units and transport, and
personnel using the distinctive emblems of the Geneva Conventions in
conformity with international law;
(iii) Intentionally directing
attacks against personnel, installations, material, units or vehicles
involved in a humanitarian assistance or peacekeeping mission in
accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, as long as they are
entitled to the protection given to civilians or civilian objects under
the international law of armed conflict;
(iv) Intentionally directing
attacks against buildings dedicated to religion, education, art, science
or charitable purposes, historic monuments, hospitals and places where
the sick and wounded are collected, provided they are not military
objectives;
(v) Pillaging a town or
place, even when taken by assault;
(vi) Committing rape, sexual
slavery, enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, as defined in article
7, paragraph 2 (f), enforced sterilization, and any other form of sexual
violence also constituting a serious violation of article 3 common to
the four Geneva Conventions;
(vii) Conscripting or
enlisting children under the age of fifteen years into armed forces or
groups or using them to participate actively in hostilities;
(viii) Ordering the
displacement of the civilian population for reasons related to the
conflict, unless the security of the civilians involved or imperative
military reasons so demand;
(ix) Killing or wounding
treacherously a combatant adversary;
(x) Declaring that no quarter
will be given;
(xi) Subjecting persons who
are in the power of another party to the conflict to physical mutilation
or to medical or scientific experiments of any kind which are neither
justified by the medical, dental or hospital treatment of the person
concerned nor carried out in his or her interest, and which cause death
to or seriously endanger the health of such person or persons;
(xii) Destroying or seizing
the property of an adversary unless such destruction or seizure be
imperatively demanded by the necessities of the conflict;
(f) Paragraph 2 (e) applies to armed conflicts not of
an international character and thus does not apply to situations of internal
disturbances and tensions, such as riots, isolated and sporadic acts of
violence or other acts of a similar nature. It applies to armed conflicts
that take place in the territory of a State when there is protracted armed
conflict between governmental authorities and organized armed groups or
between such groups.
3. Nothing in paragraph 2 (c) and (e) shall affect the
responsibility of a Government to maintain or re-establish law and order in the
State or to defend the unity and territorial integrity of the State, by all
legitimate means.
Article 9Elements
of Crimes
1. Elements of Crimes
shall assist the Court in the interpretation and application of articles 6, 7
and 8. They shall be adopted by a two-thirds majority of the members of the
Assembly of States Parties.
2. Amendments
to the Elements of Crimes may be proposed by:
Such amendments shall be adopted by a two-thirds majority of the
members of the Assembly of States Parties.
3. The Elements of Crimes and amendments thereto shall be consistent
with this Statute.
Article 10
Nothing in this Part shall be interpreted as limiting or prejudicing in any way
existing or developing rules of international law for purposes other than this
Statute.
Article 11Jurisdiction ratione
temporis
1. The Court has
jurisdiction only with respect to crimes committed after the entry into force of
this Statute.
2. If a State becomes a
Party to this Statute after its entry into force, the Court may exercise its
jurisdiction only with respect to crimes committed after the entry into force of
this Statute for that State, unless that State has made a declaration under
article 12, paragraph 3.
Article 12
Preconditions to the exercise of jurisdiction
1. A State which becomes a Party to this Statute
thereby accepts the jurisdiction of the Court with respect to the crimes
referred to in article 5.
2. In the
case of article 13, paragraph (a) or (c), the Court may exercise its
jurisdiction if one or more of the following States are Parties to this Statute
or have accepted the jurisdiction of the Court in accordance with paragraph 3:
3. If the acceptance of a State which is not a Party to
this Statute is required under paragraph 2, that State may, by declaration
lodged with the Registrar, accept the exercise of jurisdiction by the Court with
respect to the crime in question. The accepting State shall cooperate with the
Court without any delay or exception in accordance with Part 9.
Article 13
Exercise of jurisdiction
The Court may exercise its jurisdiction with respect
to a crime referred to in article 5 in accordance with the provisions of this
Statute if:
(a) A situation in which one or more of such crimes
appears to have been committed is referred to the Prosecutor by a State
Party in accordance with article 14;
(b) A situation in which one or
more of such crimes appears to have been committed is referred to the
Prosecutor by the Security Council acting under Chapter VII of the Charter
of the United Nations; or
(c) The Prosecutor has initiated
an investigation in respect of such a crime in accordance with article 15.
Article 14
Referral of a situation by a State Party
1. A State Party may refer to the Prosecutor a
situation in which one or more crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court
appear to have been committed requesting the Prosecutor to investigate the
situation for the purpose of determining whether one or more specific persons
should be charged with the commission of such crimes.
2. As far as possible, a referral shall specify the
relevant circumstances and be accompanied by such supporting documentation as is
available to the State referring the situation.
Article 15
Prosecutor
1. The
Prosecutor may initiate investigations proprio motu on the basis of
information on crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court.
2. The
Prosecutor shall analyse the seriousness of the information received. For this
purpose, he or she may seek additional information from States, organs of the
United Nations, intergovernmental or non-governmental organizations, or other
reliable sources that he or she deems appropriate, and may receive written or
oral testimony at the seat of the Court.
3. If the Prosecutor concludes
that there is a reasonable basis to proceed with an investigation, he or she
shall submit to the Pre-Trial Chamber a request for authorization of an
investigation, together with any supporting material collected. Victims may make
representations to the Pre-Trial Chamber, in accordance with the Rules of
Procedure and Evidence.
4.
If the Pre-Trial Chamber, upon examination of the request and the supporting
material, considers that there is a reasonable basis to proceed with an
investigation, and that the case appears to fall within the jurisdiction of the
Court, it shall authorize the commencement of the investigation, without
prejudice to subsequent determinations by the Court with regard to the
jurisdiction and admissibility of a case.
5. The refusal of the Pre-Trial
Chamber to authorize the investigation shall not preclude the presentation of a
subsequent request by the Prosecutor based on new facts or evidence regarding
the same situation.
6.
If, after the preliminary examination referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2, the
Prosecutor concludes that the information provided does not constitute a
reasonable basis for an investigation, he or she shall inform those who provided
the information. This shall not preclude the Prosecutor from considering further
information submitted to him or her regarding the same situation in the light of
new facts or evidence.
Article 16
Deferral of investigation or prosecution
No investigation or prosecution may be
commenced or proceeded with under this Statute for a period of 12 months after
the Security Council, in a resolution adopted under Chapter VII of the Charter
of the United Nations, has requested the Court to that effect; that request may
be renewed by the Council under the same conditions.
Article 17
Issues of admissibility
1. Having regard to paragraph 10 of the Preamble and
article 1, the Court shall determine that a case is inadmissible where:
(a) The case is being investigated or prosecuted by a
State which has jurisdiction over it, unless the State is unwilling or
unable genuinely to carry out the investigation or prosecution;
(b) The case has been
investigated by a State which has jurisdiction over it and the State has
decided not to prosecute the person concerned, unless the decision resulted
from the unwillingness or inability of the State genuinely to prosecute;
(c) The person concerned has
already been tried for conduct which is the subject of the complaint, and a
trial by the Court is not permitted under article 20, paragraph 3;
(d) The case is not of sufficient
gravity to justify further action by the Court.
2. In order to determine unwillingness in a particular
case, the Court shall consider, having regard to the principles of due process
recognized by international law, whether one or more of the following exist, as
applicable:
(a) The proceedings were or are being undertaken or the
national decision was made for the purpose of shielding the person concerned
from criminal responsibility for crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court
referred to in article 5;
(b) There has been an unjustified
delay in the proceedings which in the circumstances is inconsistent with an
intent to bring the person concerned to justice;
(c) The proceedings were not or
are not being conducted independently or impartially, and they were or are
being conducted in a manner which, in the circumstances, is inconsistent
with an intent to bring the person concerned to justice.
3. In order to determine inability in a particular case,
the Court shall consider whether, due to a total or substantial collapse or
unavailability of its national judicial system, the State is unable to obtain
the accused or the necessary evidence and testimony or otherwise unable to carry
out its proceedings.
Article 18
Preliminary rulings regarding admissibility
1. When a situation has been referred to the Court
pursuant to article 13 (a) and the Prosecutor has determined that there would be
a reasonable basis to commence an investigation, or the Prosecutor initiates an
investigation pursuant to articles 13 (c) and 15, the Prosecutor shall notify
all States Parties and those States which, taking into account the information
available, would normally exercise jurisdiction over the crimes concerned. The
Prosecutor may notify such States on a confidential basis and, where the
Prosecutor believes it necessary to protect persons, prevent destruction of
evidence or prevent the absconding of persons, may limit the scope of the
information provided to States.
2. Within one
month of receipt of that notification, a State may inform the Court that it is
investigating or has investigated its nationals or others within its
jurisdiction with respect to criminal acts which may constitute crimes referred
to in article 5 and which relate to the information provided in the notification
to States. At the request of that State, the Prosecutor shall defer to the
State's investigation of those persons unless the Pre-Trial Chamber, on the
application of the Prosecutor, decides to authorize the investigation.
3.
The Prosecutor's deferral to a State's investigation shall be open to review by
the Prosecutor six months after the date of deferral or at any time when there
has been a significant change of circumstances based on the State's
unwillingness or inability genuinely to carry out the investigation.
4. The State
concerned or the Prosecutor may appeal to the Appeals Chamber against a ruling
of the Pre-Trial Chamber, in accordance with article 82. The appeal may be heard
on an expedited basis.
5.
When the Prosecutor has deferred an investigation in accordance with paragraph
2, the Prosecutor may request that the State concerned periodically inform the
Prosecutor of the progress of its investigations and any subsequent
prosecutions. States Parties shall respond to such requests without undue delay.
6.
Pending a ruling by the Pre-Trial Chamber, or at any time when the Prosecutor
has deferred an investigation under this article, the Prosecutor may, on an
exceptional basis, seek authority from the Pre-Trial Chamber to pursue necessary
investigative steps for the purpose of preserving evidence where there is a
unique opportunity to obtain important evidence or there is a significant risk
that such evidence may not be subsequently available.
7. A State which
has challenged a ruling of the Pre-Trial Chamber under this article may
challenge the admissibility of a case under article 19 on the grounds of
additional significant facts or significant change of circumstances.
Article 19
Challenges to the jurisdiction of the Court
or the admissibility of a case
1. The Court shall satisfy itself that it has
jurisdiction in any case brought before it. The Court may, on its own motion,
determine the admissibility of a case in accordance with article 17.
2. Challenges to the admissibility of a case on
the grounds referred to in article 17 or challenges to the jurisdiction of the
Court may be made by:
(a) An accused or a person for whom a warrant of arrest
or a summons to appear has been issued under article 58;
(b) A State which has
jurisdiction over a case, on the ground that it is investigating or
prosecuting the case or has investigated or prosecuted; or
(c) A State from which acceptance
of jurisdiction is required under article 12.
3. The Prosecutor may seek a ruling from the Court
regarding a question of jurisdiction or admissibility. In proceedings with
respect to jurisdiction or admissibility, those who have referred the situation
under article 13, as well as victims, may also submit observations to the Court.
4. The admissibility of a case or the
jurisdiction of the Court may be challenged only once by any person or State
referred to in paragraph 2. The challenge shall take place prior to or at the
commencement of the trial. In exceptional circumstances, the Court may grant
leave for a challenge to be brought more than once or at a time later than the
commencement of the trial. Challenges to the admissibility of a case, at the
commencement of a trial, or subsequently with the leave of the Court, may be
based only on article 17, paragraph 1 (c).
5. A State referred to in paragraph 2 (b) and (c) shall make a challenge
at the earliest opportunity.
6. Prior
to the confirmation of the charges, challenges to the admissibility of a case or
challenges to the jurisdiction of the Court shall be referred to the Pre-Trial
Chamber. After confirmation of the charges, they shall be referred to the Trial
Chamber. Decisions with respect to jurisdiction or admissibility may be appealed
to the Appeals Chamber in accordance with article 82.
7. If a challenge is made by a State referred to in
paragraph 2 (b) or (c), the Prosecutor shall suspend the investigation until
such time as the Court makes a determination in accordance with article 17.
8. Pending a ruling by the Court, the
Prosecutor may seek authority from the Court:
(a) To pursue necessary investigative steps of the kind
referred to in article 18, paragraph 6;
(b) To take a statement or
testimony from a witness or complete the collection and examination of
evidence which had begun prior to the making of the challenge; and
(c) In cooperation with the
relevant States, to prevent the absconding of persons in respect of whom the
Prosecutor has already requested a warrant of arrest under article 58.
9. The making of a challenge shall not affect the
validity of any act performed by the Prosecutor or any order or warrant issued
by the Court prior to the making of the challenge.
10. If the Court has decided that a case is inadmissible
under article 17, the Prosecutor may submit a request for a review of the
decision when he or she is fully satisfied that new facts have arisen which
negate the basis on which the case had previously been found inadmissible under
article 17.
11. If the Prosecutor,
having regard to the matters referred to in article 17, defers an investigation,
the Prosecutor may request that the relevant State make available to the
Prosecutor information on the proceedings. That information shall, at the
request of the State concerned, be confidential. If the Prosecutor thereafter
decides to proceed with an investigation, he or she shall notify the State to
which deferral of the proceedings has taken place.
Article
20Ne bis in idem
1. Except as provided in this Statute, no person
shall be tried before the Court with respect to conduct which formed the basis
of crimes for which the person has been convicted or acquitted by the Court.
2. No person
shall be tried by another court for a crime referred to in article 5 for which
that person has already been convicted or acquitted by the Court.
3. No person
who has been tried by another court for conduct also proscribed under article 6,
7 or 8 shall be tried by the Court with respect to the same conduct unless the
proceedings in the other court:
(a) Were for the purpose of shielding the person
concerned from criminal responsibility for crimes within the jurisdiction of
the Court; or
(b) Otherwise were not conducted
independently or impartially in accordance with the norms of due process
recognized by international law and were conducted in a manner which, in the
circumstances, was inconsistent with an intent to bring the person concerned
to justice.
Article 21
Applicable law
1. The Court shall apply:
(a) In the first place, this Statute, Elements of Crimes
and its Rules of Procedure and Evidence;
(b) In the second place, where
appropriate, applicable treaties and the principles and rules of
international law, including the established principles of the international
law of armed conflict;
(c) Failing that, general
principles of law derived by the Court from national laws of legal systems
of the world including, as appropriate, the national laws of States that
would normally exercise jurisdiction over the crime, provided that those
principles are not inconsistent with this Statute and with international law
and internationally recognized norms and standards.
2. The Court may apply principles and rules of law as
interpreted in its previous decisions.
3. The application and interpretation of law pursuant to this article
must be consistent with internationally recognized human rights, and be without
any adverse distinction founded on grounds such as gender as defined in article
7, paragraph 3, age, race, colour, language, religion or belief, political or
other opinion, national, ethnic or social origin, wealth, birth or other status.
PART 3. GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF
CRIMINAL LAW
Article 22Nullum crimen sine lege
1. A person
shall not be criminally responsible under this Statute unless the conduct in
question constitutes, at the time it takes place, a crime within the
jurisdiction of the Court.
2.
The definition of a crime shall be strictly construed and shall not be extended
by analogy. In case of ambiguity, the definition shall be interpreted in favour
of the person being investigated, prosecuted or convicted.
3. This
article shall not affect the characterization of any conduct as criminal under
international law independently of this Statute.
Article 23
Nulla poena sine lege
A person convicted by the Court may be punished only in accordance with this
Statute.
Article 24
Non-retroactivity ratione personae
1. No person
shall be criminally responsible under this Statute for conduct prior to the
entry into force of the Statute.
2.
In the event of a change in the law applicable to a given case prior to a final
judgement, the law more favourable to the person being investigated, prosecuted
or convicted shall apply.
Article 25
Individual criminal responsibility
1. The Court
shall have jurisdiction over natural persons pursuant to this Statute.
2.
A person who commits a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court shall be
individually responsible and liable for punishment in accordance with this
Statute.
3.
In accordance with this Statute, a person shall be criminally responsible and
liable for punishment for a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court if that
person:
(a) Commits such a crime, whether as an individual,
jointly with another or through another person, regardless of whether that
other person is criminally responsible;
(b) Orders, solicits or induces
the commission of such a crime which in fact occurs or is attempted;
(c) For the purpose of
facilitating the commission of such a crime, aids, abets or otherwise
assists in its commission or its attempted commission, including providing
the means for its commission;
(d) In any other way contributes
to the commission or attempted commission of such a crime by a group of
persons acting with a common purpose. Such contribution shall be intentional
and shall either:
(e) In respect of the crime of genocide, directly and
publicly incites others to commit genocide;
(f) Attempts to commit such a
crime by taking action that commences its execution by means of a
substantial step, but the crime does not occur because of circumstances
independent of the person's intentions. However, a person who abandons the
effort to commit the crime or otherwise prevents the completion of the crime
shall not be liable for punishment under this Statute for the attempt to
commit that crime if that person completely and voluntarily gave up the
criminal purpose.
4. No provision in this Statute relating to individual
criminal responsibility shall affect the responsibility of States under
international law.
Article 26Exclusion of
jurisdiction over persons under eighteen
The Court shall have no jurisdiction over any person who was under the age of 18
at the time of the alleged commission of a crime.
Article 27
Irrelevance of official capacity
1. This
Statute shall apply equally to all persons without any distinction based on
official capacity. In particular, official capacity as a Head of State or
Government, a member of a Government or parliament, an elected representative or
a government official shall in no case exempt a person from criminal
responsibility under this Statute, nor shall it, in and of itself, constitute a
ground for reduction of sentence.
2.
Immunities or special procedural rules which may attach to the official capacity
of a person, whether under national or international law, shall not bar the
Court from exercising its jurisdiction over such a person.
Article 28
Responsibility of commanders and other superiors
In addition to other grounds of criminal responsibility under this Statute for
crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court:
(a) A military commander or person effectively acting as
a military commander shall be criminally responsible for crimes within the
jurisdiction of the Court committed by forces under his or her effective
command and control, or effective authority and control as the case may be,
as a result of his or her failure to exercise control properly over such
forces, where:
(i) That military commander or person either knew
or, owing to the circumstances at the time, should have known that the
forces were committing or about to commit such crimes; and
(ii) That military commander
or person failed to take all necessary and reasonable measures within
his or her power to prevent or repress their commission or to submit the
matter to the competent authorities for investigation and prosecution.
(b) With respect to superior and subordinate
relationships not described in paragraph (a), a superior shall be criminally
responsible for crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court committed by
subordinates under his or her effective authority and control, as a result
of his or her failure to exercise control properly over such subordinates,
where:
(i) The superior either knew, or consciously
disregarded information which clearly indicated, that the subordinates
were committing or about to commit such crimes;
(ii) The crimes concerned
activities that were within the effective responsibility and control of
the superior; and
(iii) The superior failed to
take all necessary and reasonable measures within his or her power to
prevent or repress their commission or to submit the matter to the
competent authorities for investigation and prosecution.
Article 29
Non-applicability of statute of limitations
The crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court shall not be subject to any
statute of limitations.
Article 30
Mental element
1. Unless
otherwise provided, a person shall be criminally responsible and liable for
punishment for a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court only if the material
elements are committed with intent and knowledge.
2. For the
purposes of this article, a person has intent where:
(a) In relation to conduct, that person means to engage
in the conduct;
(b) In relation to a consequence,
that person means to cause that consequence or is aware that it will occur
in the ordinary course of events.
3. For the purposes of this article, "knowledge" means
awareness that a circumstance exists or a consequence will occur in the ordinary
course of events. "Know" and "knowingly" shall be construed accordingly.
Article 31
Grounds for excluding criminal responsibility
1. In
addition to other grounds for excluding criminal responsibility provided for in
this Statute, a person shall not be criminally responsible if, at the time of
that person's conduct:
(a) The person suffers from a mental disease or defect
that destroys that person's capacity to appreciate the unlawfulness or
nature of his or her conduct, or capacity to control his or her conduct to
conform to the requirements of law;
(b) The person is in a state of
intoxication that destroys that person's capacity to appreciate the
unlawfulness or nature of his or her conduct, or capacity to control his or
her conduct to conform to the requirements of law, unless the person has
become voluntarily intoxicated under such circumstances that the person
knew, or disregarded the risk, that, as a result of the intoxication, he or
she was likely to engage in conduct constituting a crime within the
jurisdiction of the Court;
(c) The person acts reasonably to
defend himself or herself or another person or, in the case of war crimes,
property which is essential for the survival of the person or another person
or property which is essential for accomplishing a military mission, against
an imminent and unlawful use of force in a manner proportionate to the
degree of danger to the person or the other person or property protected.
The fact that the person was involved in a defensive operation conducted by
forces shall not in itself constitute a ground for excluding criminal
responsibility under this subparagraph;
(d) The conduct which is alleged
to constitute a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court has been caused
by duress resulting from a threat of imminent death or of continuing or
imminent serious bodily harm against that person or another person, and the
person acts necessarily and reasonably to avoid this threat, provided that
the person does not intend to cause a greater harm than the one sought to be
avoided. Such a threat may either be:
2. The Court shall determine the applicability of the
grounds for excluding criminal responsibility provided for in this Statute to
the case before it.
3. At trial, the
Court may consider a ground for excluding criminal responsibility other than
those referred to in paragraph 1 where such a ground is derived from applicable
law as set forth in article 21. The procedures relating to the consideration of
such a ground shall be provided for in the Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
Article 32
Mistake of fact or mistake of law
1. A mistake
of fact shall be a ground for excluding criminal responsibility only if it
negates the mental element required by the crime.
2. A mistake of
law as to whether a particular type of conduct is a crime within the
jurisdiction of the Court shall not be a ground for excluding criminal
responsibility. A mistake of law may, however, be a ground for excluding
criminal responsibility if it negates the mental element required by such a
crime, or as provided for in article 33.
Article 33
Superior orders and prescription of law
1. The fact
that a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court has been committed by a person
pursuant to an order of a Government or of a superior, whether military or
civilian, shall not relieve that person of criminal responsibility unless:
(a) The person was under a legal obligation to obey
orders of the Government or the superior in question;
(b) The person did not know that
the order was unlawful; and
(c) The order was not manifestly
unlawful.
2. For the purposes of this article, orders to commit
genocide or crimes against humanity are manifestly unlawful.
PART 4. COMPOSITION AND
ADMINISTRATION OF THE COURT
Article 34Organs
of the Court
The Court shall be composed of the following organs:
(a) The Presidency;
(b) An Appeals Division, a Trial
Division and a Pre-Trial Division;
(c) The Office of the Prosecutor;
(d) The Registry.
Article 35
Service of judges
1. All judges
shall be elected as full-time members of the Court and shall be available to
serve on that basis from the commencement of their terms of office.
2. The
judges composing the Presidency shall serve on a full-time basis as soon as they
are elected.
3.
The Presidency may, on the basis of the workload of the Court and in
consultation with its members, decide from time to time to what extent the
remaining judges shall be required to serve on a full-time basis. Any such
arrangement shall be without prejudice to the provisions of article 40.
4.
The financial arrangements for judges not required to serve on a full-time basis
shall be made in accordance with article 49.
Article 36
Qualifications, nomination and election of judges
1. Subject to
the provisions of paragraph 2, there shall be 18 judges of the Court.
2. (a)
The Presidency, acting on behalf of the Court, may propose an increase in the
number of judges specified in paragraph 1, indicating the reasons why this is
considered necessary and appropriate. The Registrar shall promptly circulate any
such proposal to all States Parties.
(b) Any such proposal shall then be considered at a
meeting of the Assembly of States Parties to be convened in accordance with
article 112. The proposal shall be considered adopted if approved at the meeting
by a vote of two thirds of the members of the Assembly of States Parties and
shall enter into force at such time as decided by the Assembly of States
Parties.
(c) (i) Once a proposal for an
increase in the number of judges has been adopted under subparagraph (b), the
election of the additional judges shall take place at the next session of the
Assembly of States Parties in accordance with paragraphs 3 to 8, and article 37,
paragraph 2;
(ii) Once a proposal for an increase in the number of
judges has been adopted and brought into effect under subparagraphs (b) and (c)
(i), it shall be open to the Presidency at any time thereafter, if the workload
of the Court justifies it, to propose a reduction in the number of judges,
provided that the number of judges shall not be reduced below that specified in
paragraph 1. The proposal shall be dealt with in accordance with the procedure
laid down in subparagraphs (a) and (b). In the event that the proposal is
adopted, the number of judges shall be progressively decreased as the terms of
office of serving judges expire, until the necessary number has been reached.
3. (a)
The judges shall be chosen from among persons of high moral character,
impartiality and integrity who possess the qualifications required in their
respective States for appointment to the highest judicial offices.
(b) Every candidate for election to the Court shall:
(c) Every candidate for election to the Court
shall have an excellent knowledge of and be fluent in at least one of the
working languages of the Court.
4.
(a) Nominations of candidates for election to the Court may be made by any
State Party to this Statute, and shall be made either:
Nominations shall be accompanied by a statement in
the necessary detail specifying how the candidate fulfils the requirements of
paragraph 3.
(b) Each State
Party may put forward one candidate for any given election who need not
necessarily be a national of that State Party but shall in any case be a
national of a State Party.
(c)
The Assembly of States Parties may decide to establish, if appropriate, an
Advisory Committee on nominations. In that event, the Committee's composition
and mandate shall be established by the Assembly of States Parties.
5. For the purposes of the election, there shall be
two lists of candidates:
List A containing the names of candidates with the
qualifications specified in paragraph 3 (b) (i); and
List B containing the names of candidates with the
qualifications specified in paragraph 3 (b) (ii).
A candidate with sufficient qualifications for both
lists may choose on which list to appear. At the first election to the Court, at
least nine judges shall be elected from list A and at least five judges from
list B. Subsequent elections shall be so organized as to maintain the equivalent
proportion on the Court of judges qualified on the two lists.
6. (a) The judges shall be elected by secret ballot
at a meeting of the Assembly of States Parties convened for that purpose under
article 112. Subject to paragraph 7, the persons elected to the Court shall be
the 18 candidates who obtain the highest number of votes and a two-thirds
majority of the States Parties present and voting.
(b) In the event that a sufficient number of
judges is not elected on the first ballot, successive ballots shall be held in
accordance with the procedures laid down in subparagraph (a) until the remaining
places have been filled.
7. No two
judges may be nationals of the same State. A person who, for the purposes of
membership of the Court, could be regarded as a national of more than one State
shall be deemed to be a national of the State in which that person ordinarily
exercises civil and political rights.
8. (a) The States Parties shall, in the selection of judges, take
into account the need, within the membership of the Court, for:
(b) States Parties shall also take into account
the need to include judges with legal expertise on specific issues, including,
but not limited to, violence against women or children.
9. (a) Subject to subparagraph (b), judges shall
hold office for a term of nine years and, subject to subparagraph (c) and to
article 37, paragraph 2, shall not be eligible for re-election.
(b) At the first election, one third of the
judges elected shall be selected by lot to serve for a term of three years; one
third of the judges elected shall be selected by lot to serve for a term of six
years; and the remainder shall serve for a term of nine years.
(c) A judge who is selected to serve for a term
of three years under subparagraph (b) shall be eligible for re-election for a
full term.
10. Notwithstanding
paragraph 9, a judge assigned to a Trial or Appeals Chamber in accordance with
article 39 shall continue in office to complete any trial or appeal the hearing
of which has already commenced before that Chamber.
Article 37
Judicial vacancies
1. In the
event of a vacancy, an election shall be held in accordance with article 36 to
fill the vacancy.
2.
A judge elected to fill a vacancy shall serve for the remainder of the
predecessor's term and, if that period is three years or less, shall be eligible
for re-election for a full term under article 36.
Article 38
The Presidency
1. The
President and the First and Second Vice-Presidents shall be elected by an
absolute majority of the judges. They shall each serve for a term of three years
or until the end of their respective terms of office as judges, whichever
expires earlier. They shall be eligible for re-election once.
2. The First
Vice-President shall act in place of the President in the event that the
President is unavailable or disqualified. The Second Vice-President shall act in
place of the President in the event that both the President and the First
Vice-President are unavailable or disqualified.
3. The
President, together with the First and Second Vice-Presidents, shall constitute
the Presidency, which shall be responsible for:
(a) The proper administration of the Court, with the
exception of the Office of the Prosecutor; and
(b) The other functions conferred upon it in accordance
with this Statute.
4.
In discharging its responsibility under paragraph 3 (a), the Presidency shall
coordinate with and seek the concurrence of the Prosecutor on all matters of
mutual concern.
Article 39
Chambers
1. As soon as
possible after the election of the judges, the Court shall organize itself into
the divisions specified in article 34, paragraph (b). The Appeals Division shall
be composed of the President and four other judges, the Trial Division of not
less than six judges and the Pre-Trial Division of not less than six judges. The
assignment of judges to divisions shall be based on the nature of the functions
to be performed by each division and the qualifications and experience of the
judges elected to the Court, in such a way that each division shall contain an
appropriate combination of expertise in criminal law and procedure and in
international law. The Trial and Pre-Trial Divisions shall be composed
predominantly of judges with criminal trial experience.
2. (a)
The judicial functions of the Court shall be carried out in each division by
Chambers.
(b) (i)
The Appeals Chamber shall be composed of all the judges of the Appeals Division;
(ii) The functions of the Trial Chamber shall be carried
out by three judges of the Trial Division;
(iii) The functions of the Pre-Trial Chamber shall
be carried out either by three judges of the Pre-Trial Division or by a
single judge of that division in accordance with this Statute and the
Rules of Procedure and Evidence;
(c) Nothing in this paragraph shall preclude the
simultaneous constitution of more than one Trial Chamber or Pre-Trial
Chamber when the efficient management of the Court's workload so requires.
3. (a) Judges assigned to the Trial and
Pre-Trial Divisions shall serve in those divisions for a period of three years,
and thereafter until the completion of any case the hearing of which has already
commenced in the division concerned.
(b) Judges assigned to the Appeals Division shall serve in that
division for their entire term of office.
4. Judges assigned to the Appeals Division shall serve only in that
division. Nothing in this article shall, however, preclude the temporary
attachment of judges from the Trial Division to the Pre-Trial Division or vice
versa, if the Presidency considers that the efficient management of the Court's
workload so requires, provided that under no circumstances shall a judge who has
participated in the pre-trial phase of a case be eligible to sit on the Trial
Chamber hearing that case.
Article 40
Independence of the judges
1. The judges
shall be independent in the performance of their functions.
2. Judges
shall not engage in any activity which is likely to interfere with their
judicial functions or to affect confidence in their independence.
3. Judges
required to serve on a full-time basis at the seat of the Court shall not engage
in any other occupation of a professional nature.
4. Any question
regarding the application of paragraphs 2 and 3 shall be decided by an absolute
majority of the judges. Where any such question concerns an individual judge,
that judge shall not take part in the decision.
Article 41
Excusing and disqualification of judges
1. The
Presidency may, at the request of a judge, excuse that judge from the exercise
of a function under this Statute, in accordance with the Rules of Procedure and
Evidence.
2.
(a) A judge shall not participate in any case in which
his or her impartiality might reasonably be doubted on any ground. A judge shall
be disqualified from a case in accordance with this paragraph if, inter alia,
that judge has previously been involved in any capacity in that case before the
Court or in a related criminal case at the national level involving the person
being investigated or prosecuted. A judge shall also be disqualified on such
other grounds as may be provided for in the Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
(b) The Prosecutor or the person being investigated or
prosecuted may request the disqualification of a judge under this paragraph.
(c) Any question as to the disqualification of a judge
shall be decided by an absolute majority of the judges. The challenged judge
shall be entitled to present his or her comments on the matter, but shall not
take part in the decision.
Article 42
The Office of the Prosecutor
1. The Office
of the Prosecutor shall act independently as a separate organ of the Court. It
shall be responsible for receiving referrals and any substantiated information
on crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court, for examining them and for
conducting investigations and prosecutions before the Court. A member of the
Office shall not seek or act on instructions from any external source.
2.
The Office shall be headed by the Prosecutor. The Prosecutor shall have full
authority over the management and administration of the Office, including the
staff, facilities and other resources thereof. The Prosecutor shall be assisted
by one or more Deputy Prosecutors, who shall be entitled to carry out any of the
acts required of the Prosecutor under this Statute. The Prosecutor and the
Deputy Prosecutors shall be of different nationalities. They shall serve on a
full-time basis.
3.
The Prosecutor and the Deputy Prosecutors shall be persons of high moral
character, be highly competent in and have extensive practical experience in the
prosecution or trial of criminal cases. They shall have an excellent knowledge
of and be fluent in at least one of the working languages of the Court.
4.
The Prosecutor shall be elected by secret ballot by an absolute majority of the
members of the Assembly of States Parties. The Deputy Prosecutors shall be
elected in the same way from a list of candidates provided by the Prosecutor.
The Prosecutor shall nominate three candidates for each position of Deputy
Prosecutor to be filled. Unless a shorter term is decided upon at the time of
their election, the Prosecutor and the Deputy Prosecutors shall hold office for
a term of nine years and shall not be eligible for re-election.
5. Neither
the Prosecutor nor a Deputy Prosecutor shall engage in any activity which is
likely to interfere with his or her prosecutorial functions or to affect
confidence in his or her independence. They shall not engage in any other
occupation of a professional nature.
6.
The Presidency may excuse the Prosecutor or a Deputy Prosecutor, at his or her
request, from acting in a particular case.
7. Neither the
Prosecutor nor a Deputy Prosecutor shall participate in any matter in which
their impartiality might reasonably be doubted on any ground. They shall be
disqualified from a case in accordance with this paragraph if, inter alia,
they have previously been involved in any capacity in that case before the Court
or in a related criminal case at the national level involving the person being
investigated or prosecuted.
8.
Any question as to the disqualification of the Prosecutor or a Deputy Prosecutor
shall be decided by the Appeals Chamber.
(a) The person being investigated or prosecuted may at
any time request the disqualification of the Prosecutor or a Deputy
Prosecutor on the grounds set out in this article;
(b) The Prosecutor or the Deputy
Prosecutor, as appropriate, shall be entitled to present his or her comments
on the matter;
9. The Prosecutor shall appoint advisers with legal
expertise on specific issues, including, but not limited to, sexual and gender
violence and violence against children.
Article 43
The Registry
1. The
Registry shall be responsible for the non-judicial aspects of the administration
and servicing of the Court, without prejudice to the functions and powers of the
Prosecutor in accordance with article 42.
2. The Registry shall be headed
by the Registrar, who shall be the principal administrative officer of the
Court. The Registrar shall exercise his or her functions under the authority of
the President of the Court.
3.
The Registrar and the Deputy Registrar shall be persons of high moral character,
be highly competent and have an excellent knowledge of and be fluent in at least
one of the working languages of the Court.
4. The judges
shall elect the Registrar by an absolute majority by secret ballot, taking into
account any recommendation by the Assembly of States Parties. If the need arises
and upon the recommendation of the Registrar, the judges shall elect, in the
same manner, a Deputy Registrar.
5.
The Registrar shall hold office for a term of five years, shall be eligible for
re-election once and shall serve on a full-time basis. The Deputy Registrar
shall hold office for a term of five years or such shorter term as may be
decided upon by an absolute majority of the judges, and may be elected on the
basis that the Deputy Registrar shall be called upon to serve as required.
6.
The Registrar shall set up a Victims and Witnesses Unit within the Registry.
This Unit shall provide, in consultation with the Office of the Prosecutor,
protective measures and security arrangements, counselling and other appropriate
assistance for witnesses, victims who appear before the Court, and others who
are at risk on account of testimony given by such witnesses. The Unit shall
include staff with expertise in trauma, including trauma related to crimes of
sexual violence.
Article 44
Staff
1. The
Prosecutor and the Registrar shall appoint such qualified staff as may be
required to their respective offices. In the case of the Prosecutor, this shall
include the appointment of investigators.
2. In the employment of staff,
the Prosecutor and the Registrar shall ensure the highest standards of
efficiency, competency and integrity, and shall have regard, mutatis mutandis,
to the criteria set forth in article 36, paragraph 8.
3. The
Registrar, with the agreement of the Presidency and the Prosecutor, shall
propose Staff Regulations which include the terms and conditions upon which the
staff of the Court shall be appointed, remunerated and dismissed. The Staff
Regulations shall be approved by the Assembly of States Parties.
4. The Court
may, in exceptional circumstances, employ the expertise of gratis personnel
offered by States Parties, intergovernmental organizations or non-governmental
organizations to assist with the work of any of the organs of the Court. The
Prosecutor may accept any such offer on behalf of the Office of the Prosecutor.
Such gratis personnel shall be employed in accordance with guidelines to be
established by the Assembly of States Parties.
Article 45
Solemn undertaking
Before taking up their respective duties under this Statute, the judges, the
Prosecutor, the Deputy Prosecutors, the Registrar and the Deputy Registrar shall
each make a solemn undertaking in open court to exercise his or her respective
functions impartially and conscientiously.
Article 46
Removal from office
1. A judge,
the Prosecutor, a Deputy Prosecutor, the Registrar or the Deputy Registrar shall
be removed from office if a decision to this effect is made in accordance with
paragraph 2, in cases where that person:
2. A decision as to the removal from office of a judge,
the Prosecutor or a Deputy Prosecutor under paragraph 1 shall be made by the
Assembly of States Parties, by secret ballot:
( a) In the case of a judge, by a two-thirds majority of
the States Parties upon a recommendation adopted by a two-thirds majority of
the other judges;
(b) In the case of the
Prosecutor, by an absolute majority of the States Parties;
(c) In the case of a Deputy
Prosecutor, by an absolute majority of the States Parties upon the
recommendation of the Prosecutor.
3. A decision as to the removal from office of the
Registrar or Deputy Registrar shall be made by an absolute majority of the
judges.
4. A judge, Prosecutor, Deputy
Prosecutor, Registrar or Deputy Registrar whose conduct or ability to exercise
the functions of the office as required by this Statute is challenged under this
article shall have full opportunity to present and receive evidence and to make
submissions in accordance with the Rules of Procedure and Evidence. The person
in question shall not otherwise participate in the consideration of the matter.
Article 47
Disciplinary measures
A judge, Prosecutor, Deputy Prosecutor, Registrar or Deputy Registrar who has
committed misconduct of a less serious nature than that set out in article 46,
paragraph 1, shall be subject to disciplinary measures, in accordance with the
Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
Article 48
Privileges and immunities
1. The Court
shall enjoy in the territory of each State Party such privileges and immunities
as are necessary for the fulfilment of its purposes.
2. The judges,
the Prosecutor, the Deputy Prosecutors and the Registrar shall, when engaged on
or with respect to the business of the Court, enjoy the same privileges and
immunities as are accorded to heads of diplomatic missions and shall, after the
expiry of their terms of office, continue to be accorded immunity from legal
process of every kind in respect of words spoken or written and acts performed
by them in their official capacity.
3.
The Deputy Registrar, the staff of the Office of the Prosecutor and the staff of
the Registry shall enjoy the privileges and immunities and facilities necessary
for the performance of their functions, in accordance with the agreement on the
privileges and immunities of the Court.
4.
Counsel, experts, witnesses or any other person required to be present at the
seat of the Court shall be accorded such treatment as is necessary for the
proper functioning of the Court, in accordance with the agreement on the
privileges and immunities of the Court.
5.
The privileges and immunities of:
(a) A judge or the Prosecutor may be waived by an
absolute majority of the judges;
(b) The Registrar may be waived
by the Presidency;
(c) The Deputy Prosecutors and
staff of the Office of the Prosecutor may be waived by the Prosecutor;
(d) The Deputy Registrar and
staff of the Registry may be waived by the Registrar.
Article 49
Salaries, allowances and expenses
The judges, the Prosecutor, the Deputy Prosecutors, the Registrar and the Deputy
Registrar shall receive such salaries, allowances and expenses as may be decided
upon by the Assembly of States Parties. These salaries and allowances shall not
be reduced during their terms of office.
Article 50
Official and working languages
1. The
official languages of the Court shall be Arabic, Chinese, English, French,
Russian and Spanish. The judgements of the Court, as well as other decisions
resolving fundamental issues before the Court, shall be published in the
official languages. The Presidency shall, in accordance with the criteria
established by the Rules of Procedure and Evidence, determine which decisions
may be considered as resolving fundamental issues for the purposes of this
paragraph.
2.
The working languages of the Court shall be English and French. The Rules of
Procedure and Evidence shall determine the cases in which other official
languages may be used as working languages.
3. At the
request of any party to a proceeding or a State allowed to intervene in a
proceeding, the Court shall authorize a language other than English or French to
be used by such a party or State, provided that the Court considers such
authorization to be adequately justified.
Article 51
Rules of Procedure and Evidence
1. The Rules
of Procedure and Evidence shall enter into force upon adoption by a two-thirds
majority of the members of the Assembly of States Parties.
2. Amendments to
the Rules of Procedure and Evidence may be proposed by:
Such amendments shall enter into force upon adoption
by a two-thirds majority of the members of the Assembly of States Parties.
3. After the adoption of the Rules of
Procedure and Evidence, in urgent cases where the Rules do not provide for a
specific situation before the Court, the judges may, by a two-thirds majority,
draw up provisional Rules to be applied until adopted, amended or rejected at
the next ordinary or special session of the Assembly of States Parties.
4. The Rules of Procedure and Evidence,
amendments thereto and any provisional Rule shall be consistent with this
Statute. Amendments to the Rules of Procedure and Evidence as well as
provisional Rules shall not be applied retroactively to the detriment of the
person who is being investigated or prosecuted or who has been convicted.
5. In the event of conflict between the
Statute and the Rules of Procedure and Evidence, the Statute shall prevail.
Article 52
Regulations of the Court
1. The judges
shall, in accordance with this Statute and the Rules of Procedure and Evidence,
adopt, by an absolute majority, the Regulations of the Court necessary for its
routine functioning.
2.
The Prosecutor and the Registrar shall be consulted in the elaboration of the
Regulations and any amendments thereto.
3.
The Regulations and any amendments thereto shall take effect upon adoption
unless otherwise decided by the judges. Immediately upon adoption, they shall be
circulated to States Parties for comments. If within six months there are no
objections from a majority of States Parties, they shall remain in force.
PART 5. INVESTIGATION AND
PROSECUTION
Article 53Initiation of an
investigation
1. The
Prosecutor shall, having evaluated the information made available to him or her,
initiate an investigation unless he or she determines that there is no
reasonable basis to proceed under this Statute. In deciding whether to initiate
an investigation, the Prosecutor shall consider whether:
(a) The information available to the Prosecutor provides
a reasonable basis to believe that a crime within the jurisdiction of the
Court has been or is being committed;
(b) The case is or would be
admissible under article 17; and
(c) Taking into account the
gravity of the crime and the interests of victims, there are nonetheless
substantial reasons to believe that an investigation would not serve the
interests of justice.
If the Prosecutor determines that there is no
reasonable basis to proceed and his or her determination is based solely on
subparagraph (c) above, he or she shall inform the Pre-Trial Chamber.
2. If, upon investigation, the Prosecutor
concludes that there is not a sufficient basis for a prosecution because:
(a) There is not a sufficient legal or factual basis to
seek a warrant or summons under article 58;
(b) The case is inadmissible
under article 17; or
(c) A prosecution is not in the
interests of justice, taking into account all the circumstances, including
the gravity of the crime, the interests of victims and the age or infirmity
of the alleged perpetrator, and his or her role in the alleged crime;
the Prosecutor shall inform the Pre-Trial Chamber and the State
making a referral under article 14 or the Security Council in a case under
article 13, paragraph (b), of his or her conclusion and the reasons for the
conclusion.
3. (a)
At the request of the State making a referral under article 14 or the Security
Council under article 13, paragraph (b), the Pre-Trial Chamber may review a
decision of the Prosecutor under paragraph 1 or 2 not to proceed and may request
the Prosecutor to reconsider that decision.
(b)
In addition, the Pre-Trial Chamber may, on its own initiative, review a decision
of the Prosecutor not to proceed if it is based solely on paragraph 1 (c) or 2
(c). In such a case, the decision of the Prosecutor shall be effective only if
confirmed by the Pre-Trial Chamber.
4.
The Prosecutor may, at any time, reconsider a decision whether to initiate an
investigation or prosecution based on new facts or information.
Article 54
Duties and powers of the Prosecutor with respect to
investigations
1. The
Prosecutor shall:
(a) In order to establish the truth, extend the
investigation to cover all facts and evidence relevant to an assessment of
whether there is criminal responsibility under this Statute, and, in doing
so, investigate incriminating and exonerating circumstances equally;
(b) Take appropriate measures to
ensure the effective investigation and prosecution of crimes within the
jurisdiction of the Court, and in doing so, respect the interests and
personal circumstances of victims and witnesses, including age, gender as
defined in article 7, paragraph 3, and health, and take into account the
nature of the crime, in particular where it involves sexual violence, gender
violence or violence against children; and
(c) Fully respect the rights of
persons arising under this Statute.
2. The Prosecutor may conduct investigations on the
territory of a State:
(a) In accordance with the provisions of Part 9; or
(b) As authorized by the
Pre-Trial Chamber under article 57, paragraph 3 (d).
3. The Prosecutor may:
(a) Collect and examine evidence;
(b) Request the presence of and
question persons being investigated, victims and witnesses;
(c) Seek the cooperation of any
State or intergovernmental organization or arrangement in accordance with
its respective competence and/or mandate;
(d) Enter into such arrangements
or agreements, not inconsistent with this Statute, as may be necessary to
facilitate the cooperation of a State, intergovernmental organization or
person;
(e) Agree not to disclose, at any
stage of the proceedings, documents or information that the Prosecutor
obtains on the condition of confidentiality and solely for the purpose of
generating new evidence, unless the provider of the information consents;
and
(f) Take necessary measures, or
request that necessary measures be taken, to ensure the confidentiality of
information, the protection of any person or the preservation of evidence.
Article 55
Rights of persons during an investigation
1. In respect of an investigation under this
Statute, a person:
(a) Shall not be compelled to incriminate himself or
herself or to confess guilt;
(b) Shall not be subjected to any
form of coercion, duress or threat, to torture or to any other form of
cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment;
(c) Shall, if questioned in a
language other than a language the person fully understands and speaks,
have, free of any cost, the assistance of a competent interpreter and such
translations as are necessary to meet the requirements of fairness; and
(d) Shall not be subjected to
arbitrary arrest or detention, and shall not be deprived of his or her
liberty except on such grounds and in accordance with such procedures as are
established in this Statute.
2. Where there are grounds to believe that a person has
committed a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court and that person is about
to be questioned either by the Prosecutor, or by national authorities pursuant
to a request made under Part 9, that person shall also have the following rights
of which he or she shall be informed prior to being questioned:
(a) To be informed, prior to being questioned, that
there are grounds to believe that he or she has committed a crime within the
jurisdiction of the Court;
(b) To remain silent, without
such silence being a consideration in the determination of guilt or
innocence;
(c) To have legal assistance of
the person's choosing, or, if the person does not have legal assistance, to
have legal assistance assigned to him or her, in any case where the
interests of justice so require, and without payment by the person in any
such case if the person does not have sufficient means to pay for it; and
(d) To be questioned in the
presence of counsel unless the person has voluntarily waived his or her
right to counsel.
Article 56
Role of the Pre-Trial Chamber in relation
to a unique investigative opportunity
1. (a) Where the Prosecutor considers an
investigation to present a unique opportunity to take testimony or a statement
from a witness or to examine, collect or test evidence, which may not be
available subsequently for the purposes of a trial, the Prosecutor shall so
inform the Pre-Trial Chamber.
(b) In that case, the Pre-Trial Chamber may, upon request of the Prosecutor,
take such measures as may be necessary to ensure the efficiency and integrity of
the proceedings and, in particular, to protect the rights of the defence.
(c) Unless the Pre-Trial Chamber
orders otherwise, the Prosecutor shall provide the relevant information to the
person who has been arrested or appeared in response to a summons in connection
with the investigation referred to in subparagraph (a), in order that he or she
may be heard on the matter.
2. The
measures referred to in paragraph 1 (b) may include:
(a) Making recommendations or orders regarding
procedures to be followed;
(b) Directing that a record be
made of the proceedings;
(c) Appointing an expert to
assist;
(d) Authorizing counsel for a
person who has been arrested, or appeared before the Court in response to a
summons, to participate, or where there has not yet been such an arrest or
appearance or counsel has not been designated, appointing another counsel to
attend and represent the interests of the defence;
(e) Naming one of its members or,
if necessary, another available judge of the Pre-Trial or Trial Division to
observe and make recommendations or orders regarding the collection and
preservation of evidence and the questioning of persons;
(f) Taking such other action as
may be necessary to collect or preserve evidence.
3. (a) Where the Prosecutor has not sought measures
pursuant to this article but the Pre-Trial Chamber considers that such measures
are required to preserve evidence that it deems would be essential for the
defence at trial, it shall consult with the Prosecutor as to whether there is
good reason for the Prosecutor's failure to request the measures. If upon
consultation, the Pre-Trial Chamber concludes that the Prosecutor's failure to
request such measures is unjustified, the Pre-Trial Chamber may take such
measures on its own initiative.
(b) A decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber to act on its own initiative under
this paragraph may be appealed by the Prosecutor. The appeal shall be heard on
an expedited basis.
4. The
admissibility of evidence preserved or collected for trial pursuant to this
article, or the record thereof, shall be governed at trial by article 69, and
given such weight as determined by the Trial Chamber.
Article 57
Functions and powers of the Pre-Trial Chamber
1. Unless otherwise provided in this Statute, the
Pre-Trial Chamber shall exercise its functions in accordance with the provisions
of this article.
2 . (a) Orders or
rulings of the Pre-Trial Chamber issued under articles 15, 18, 19, 54, paragraph
2, 61, paragraph 7, and 72 must be concurred in by a majority of its judges.
(b) In all other cases, a single judge
of the Pre-Trial Chamber may exercise the functions provided for in this
Statute, unless otherwise provided for in the Rules of Procedure and Evidence or
by a majority of the Pre-Trial Chamber.
3. In addition to its other functions under this Statute, the Pre-Trial
Chamber may:
(a) At the request of the Prosecutor, issue such orders
and warrants as may be required for the purposes of an investigation;
(b) Upon the request of a person
who has been arrested or has appeared pursuant to a summons under article
58, issue such orders, including measures such as those described in article
56, or seek such cooperation pursuant to Part 9 as may be necessary to
assist the person in the preparation of his or her defence;
(c) Where necessary, provide for
the protection and privacy of victims and witnesses, the preservation of
evidence, the protection of persons who have been arrested or appeared in
response to a summons, and the protection of national security information;
(d) Authorize the Prosecutor to
take specific investigative steps within the territory of a State Party
without having secured the cooperation of that State under Part 9 if,
whenever possible having regard to the views of the State concerned, the
Pre-Trial Chamber has determined in that case that the State is clearly
unable to execute a request for cooperation due to the unavailability of any
authority or any component of its judicial system competent to execute the
request for cooperation under Part 9.
(e) Where a warrant of arrest or
a summons has been issued under article 58, and having due regard to the
strength of the evidence and the rights of the parties concerned, as
provided for in this Statute and the Rules of Procedure and Evidence, seek
the cooperation of States pursuant to article 93, paragraph 1 (k), to take
protective measures for the purpose of forfeiture, in particular for the
ultimate benefit of victims.
Article 58
Issuance by the Pre-Trial Chamber of a warrant of
arrestor a summons to appear
1. At any time after the initiation of an
investigation, the Pre-Trial Chamber shall, on the application of the
Prosecutor, issue a warrant of arrest of a person if, having examined the
application and the evidence or other information submitted by the Prosecutor,
it is satisfied that:
(a) There are reasonable grounds to believe that the
person has committed a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court; and
(b) The arrest of the person
appears necessary:
(i) To ensure the person's appearance at trial,
(ii) To ensure that the
person does not obstruct or endanger the investigation or the court
proceedings, or
(iii) Where applicable, to
prevent the person from continuing with the commission of that crime or
a related crime which is within the jurisdiction of the Court and which
arises out of the same circumstances.
2. The application of the Prosecutor shall contain:
(a) The name of the person and any other relevant
identifying information;
(b) A specific reference to the
crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court which the person is alleged to
have committed;
(c) A concise statement of the
facts which are alleged to constitute those crimes;
(d) A summary of the evidence and
any other information which establish reasonable grounds to believe that the
person committed those crimes; and
(e) The reason why the Prosecutor
believes that the arrest of the person is necessary.
3. The warrant of arrest shall contain:
(a) The name of the person and any other relevant
identifying information;
(b) A specific reference to the
crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court for which the person's arrest is
sought; and
(c) A concise statement of the
facts which are alleged to constitute those crimes.
4. The warrant of arrest shall remain in effect until
otherwise ordered by the Court.
5. On
the basis of the warrant of arrest, the Court may request the provisional arrest
or the arrest and surrender of the person under Part 9.
6. The Prosecutor may request the Pre-Trial Chamber to
amend the warrant of arrest by modifying or adding to the crimes specified
therein. The Pre-Trial Chamber shall so amend the warrant if it is satisfied
that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the person committed the
modified or additional crimes.
7. As an
alternative to seeking a warrant of arrest, the Prosecutor may submit an
application requesting that the Pre-Trial Chamber issue a summons for the person
to appear. If the Pre-Trial Chamber is satisfied that there are reasonable
grounds to believe that the person committed the crime alleged and that a
summons is sufficient to ensure the person's appearance, it shall issue the
summons, with or without conditions restricting liberty (other than detention)
if provided for by national law, for the person to appear. The summons shall
contain:
(a) The name of the person and any other relevant
identifying information;
(b) The specified date on which
the person is to appear;
(c) A specific reference to the
crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court which the person is alleged to
have committed; and
(d) A concise statement of the
facts which are alleged to constitute the crime.
The summons shall be served on the person.
Article 59
Arrest proceedings in the custodial State
1. A State Party which has received a request for
provisional arrest or for arrest and surrender shall immediately take steps to
arrest the person in question in accordance with its laws and the provisions of
Part 9.
2. A person arrested shall be
brought promptly before the competent judicial authority in the custodial State
which shall determine, in accordance with the law of that State, that:
(a) The warrant applies to that person;
(b) The person has been arrested
in accordance with the proper process; and
(c) The person's rights have been
respected.
3. The person arrested shall have the right to apply to
the competent authority in the custodial State for interim release pending
surrender.
4. In reaching a decision on
any such application, the competent authority in the custodial State shall
consider whether, given the gravity of the alleged crimes, there are urgent and
exceptional circumstances to justify interim release and whether necessary
safeguards exist to ensure that the custodial State can fulfil its duty to
surrender the person to the Court. It shall not be open to the competent
authority of the custodial State to consider whether the warrant of arrest was
properly issued in accordance with article 58, paragraph 1 (a) and (b).
5. The Pre-Trial Chamber shall be notified of
any request for interim release and shall make recommendations to the competent
authority in the custodial State. The competent authority in the custodial State
shall give full consideration to such recommendations, including any
recommendations on measures to prevent the escape of the person, before
rendering its decision.
6. If the
person is granted interim release, the Pre-Trial Chamber may request periodic
reports on the status of the interim release.
7. Once
ordered to be surrendered by the custodial State, the person shall be delivered
to the Court as soon as possible.
Article 60
Initial proceedings before the Court
1. Upon the surrender of the person to the Court,
or the person's appearance before the Court voluntarily or pursuant to a
summons, the Pre-Trial Chamber shall satisfy itself that the person has been
informed of the crimes which he or she is alleged to have committed, and of his
or her rights under this Statute, including the right to apply for interim
release pending trial.
2. A person
subject to a warrant of arrest may apply for interim release pending trial. If
the Pre-Trial Chamber is satisfied that the conditions set forth in article 58,
paragraph 1, are met, the person shall continue to be detained. If it is not so
satisfied, the Pre-Trial Chamber shall release the person, with or without
conditions.
3. The
Pre-Trial Chamber shall periodically review its ruling on the release or
detention of the person, and may do so at any time on the request of the
Prosecutor or the person. Upon such review, it may modify its ruling as to
detention, release or conditions of release, if it is satisfied that changed
circumstances so require.
4. The
Pre-Trial Chamber shall ensure that a person is not detained for an unreasonable
period prior to trial due to inexcusable delay by the Prosecutor. If such delay
occurs, the Court shall consider releasing the person, with or without
conditions.
5. If
necessary, the Pre-Trial Chamber may issue a warrant of arrest to secure the
presence of a person who has been released.
Article 61
Confirmation of the charges before trial
1. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 2,
within a reasonable time after the person's surrender or voluntary appearance
before the Court, the Pre-Trial Chamber shall hold a hearing to confirm the
charges on which the Prosecutor intends to seek trial. The hearing shall be held
in the presence of the Prosecutor and the person charged, as well as his or her
counsel.
2. The
Pre-Trial Chamber may, upon request of the Prosecutor or on its own motion, hold
a hearing in the absence of the person charged to confirm the charges on which
the Prosecutor intends to seek trial when the person has:
(a) Waived his or her right to be present; or
(b) Fled or cannot be found and
all reasonable steps have been taken to secure his or her appearance before
the Court and to inform the person of the charges and that a hearing to
confirm those charges will be held.
In that case, the person shall be represented by
counsel where the Pre-Trial Chamber determines that it is in the interests of
justice.
3. Within a
reasonable time before the hearing, the person shall:
The Pre-Trial Chamber may issue orders regarding the
disclosure of information for the purposes of the hearing.
4. Before the hearing, the Prosecutor may continue the
investigation and may amend or withdraw any charges. The person shall be given
reasonable notice before the hearing of any amendment to or withdrawal of
charges. In case of a withdrawal of charges, the Prosecutor shall notify the
Pre-Trial Chamber of the reasons for the withdrawal.
5. At the
hearing, the Prosecutor shall support each charge with sufficient evidence to
establish substantial grounds to believe that the person committed the crime
charged. The Prosecutor may rely on documentary or summary evidence and need not
call the witnesses expected to testify at the trial.
6. At the
hearing, the person may:
7. The Pre-Trial Chamber shall, on the basis of the
hearing, determine whether there is sufficient evidence to establish substantial
grounds to believe that the person committed each of the crimes charged. Based
on its determination, the Pre-Trial Chamber shall:
(a) Confirm those charges in relation to which it has
determined that there is sufficient evidence, and commit the person to a
Trial Chamber for trial on the charges as confirmed;
(b) Decline to confirm those
charges in relation to which it has determined that there is insufficient
evidence;
(c) Adjourn the hearing and
request the Prosecutor to consider:
(i) Providing further evidence or conducting further
investigation with respect to a particular charge; or
(ii) Amending a charge
because the evidence submitted appears to establish a different crime
within the jurisdiction of the Court.
8. Where the Pre-Trial Chamber declines to confirm a
charge, the Prosecutor shall not be precluded from subsequently requesting its
confirmation if the request is supported by additional evidence.
9. After the
charges are confirmed and before the trial has begun, the Prosecutor may, with
the permission of the Pre-Trial Chamber and after notice to the accused, amend
the charges. If the Prosecutor seeks to add additional charges or to substitute
more serious charges, a hearing under this article to confirm those charges must
be held. After commencement of the trial, the Prosecutor may, with the
permission of the Trial Chamber, withdraw the charges.
10. Any
warrant previously issued shall cease to have effect with respect to any charges
which have not been confirmed by the Pre-Trial Chamber or which have been
withdrawn by the Prosecutor.
11. Once the
charges have been confirmed in accordance with this article, the Presidency
shall constitute a Trial Chamber which, subject to paragraph 9 and to article
64, paragraph 4, shall be responsible for the conduct of subsequent proceedings
and may exercise any function of the Pre-Trial Chamber that is relevant and
capable of application in those proceedings.
PART 6. THE TRIAL
Article 62
Place of trial
Unless
otherwise decided, the place of the trial shall be the seat of the Court.
Article 63
Trial in the presence of the accused
1. The
accused shall be present during the trial.
2. If the
accused, being present before the Court, continues to disrupt the trial, the
Trial Chamber may remove the accused and shall make provision for him or her to
observe the trial and instruct counsel from outside the courtroom, through the
use of communications technology, if required. Such measures shall be taken only
in exceptional circumstances after other reasonable alternatives have proved
inadequate, and only for such duration as is strictly required.
Article 64
Functions and powers of the Trial Chamber
1. The
functions and powers of the Trial Chamber set out in this article shall be
exercised in accordance with this Statute and the Rules of Procedure and
Evidence.
2. The Trial
Chamber shall ensure that a trial is fair and expeditious and is conducted with
full respect for the rights of the accused and due regard for the protection of
victims and witnesses.
3. Upon
assignment of a case for trial in accordance with this Statute, the Trial
Chamber assigned to deal with the case shall:
(a) Confer with the parties and adopt such procedures as
are necessary to facilitate the fair and expeditious conduct of the
proceedings;
(b) Determine the language or
languages to be used at trial; and
(c) Subject to any other relevant
provisions of this Statute, provide for disclosure of documents or
information not previously disclosed, sufficiently in advance of the
commencement of the trial to enable adequate preparation for trial.
4. The Trial Chamber may, if necessary for its effective
and fair functioning, refer preliminary issues to the Pre-Trial Chamber or, if
necessary, to another available judge of the Pre-Trial Division.
5. Upon
notice to the parties, the Trial Chamber may, as appropriate, direct that there
be joinder or severance in respect of charges against more than one accused.
6. In
performing its functions prior to trial or during the course of a trial, the
Trial Chamber may, as necessary:
(a) Exercise any functions of the Pre-Trial Chamber
referred to in article 61, paragraph 11;
(b) Require the attendance and
testimony of witnesses and production of documents and other evidence by
obtaining, if necessary, the assistance of States as provided in this
Statute;
(c) Provide for the protection of
confidential information;
(d) Order the production of
evidence in addition to that already collected prior to the trial or
presented during the trial by the parties;
(e) Provide for the protection of
the accused, witnesses and victims; and
(f) Rule on any other relevant
matters.
7. The trial shall be held in public. The Trial Chamber
may, however, determine that special circumstances require that certain
proceedings be in closed session for the purposes set forth in article 68, or to
protect confidential or sensitive information to be given in evidence.
8. (a) At the commencement of the trial,
the Trial Chamber shall have read to the accused the charges previously
confirmed by the Pre-Trial Chamber. The Trial Chamber shall satisfy itself that
the accused understands the nature of the charges. It shall afford him or her
the opportunity to make an admission of guilt in accordance with article 65 or
to plead not guilty.
(b) At the
trial, the presiding judge may give directions for the conduct of proceedings,
including to ensure that they are conducted in a fair and impartial manner.
Subject to any directions of the presiding judge, the parties may submit
evidence in accordance with the provisions of this Statute.
9. The Trial Chamber shall have, inter alia, the
power on application of a party or on its own motion to:
10. The Trial Chamber shall ensure that a complete
record of the trial, which accurately reflects the proceedings, is made and that
it is maintained and preserved by the Registrar.
Article 65
Proceedings on an admission of guilt
1. Where the
accused makes an admission of guilt pursuant to article 64, paragraph 8 (a), the
Trial Chamber shall determine whether:
(a) The accused understands the nature and consequences
of the admission of guilt;
(b) The admission is voluntarily
made by the accused after sufficient consultation with defence counsel; and
(c) The admission of guilt is
supported by the facts of the case that are contained in:
(i) The charges brought by the Prosecutor and
admitted by the accused;
(ii) Any materials presented
by the Prosecutor which supplement the charges and which the accused
accepts; and
(iii) Any other evidence,
such as the testimony of witnesses, presented by the Prosecutor or the
accused.
2. Where the Trial Chamber is satisfied that the matters
referred to in paragraph 1 are established, it shall consider the admission of
guilt, together with any additional evidence presented, as establishing all the
essential facts that are required to prove the crime to which the admission of
guilt relates, and may convict the accused of that crime.
3. Where the
Trial Chamber is not satisfied that the matters referred to in paragraph 1 are
established, it shall consider the admission of guilt as not having been made,
in which case it shall order that the trial be continued under the ordinary
trial procedures provided by this Statute and may remit the case to another
Trial Chamber.
4. Where the
Trial Chamber is of the opinion that a more complete presentation of the facts
of the case is required in the interests of justice, in particular the interests
of the victims, the Trial Chamber may:
(a) Request the Prosecutor to present additional
evidence, including the testimony of witnesses; or
(b) Order that the trial be
continued under the ordinary trial procedures provided by this Statute, in
which case it shall consider the admission of guilt as not having been made
and may remit the case to another Trial Chamber.
5. Any discussions between the Prosecutor and the
defence regarding modification of the charges, the admission of guilt or the
penalty to be imposed shall not be binding on the Court.
Article 66
Presumption of innocence
1. Everyone
shall be presumed innocent until proved guilty before the Court in accordance
with the applicable law.
2. The onus
is on the Prosecutor to prove the guilt of the accused.
3. In order
to convict the accused, the Court must be convinced of the guilt of the accused
beyond reasonable doubt.
Article 67
Rights of the accused
1. In the
determination of any charge, the accused shall be entitled to a public hearing,
having regard to the provisions of this Statute, to a fair hearing conducted
impartially, and to the following minimum guarantees, in full equality:
(a) To be informed promptly and in detail of the nature,
cause and content of the charge, in a language which the accused fully
understands and speaks;
(b) To have adequate time and
facilities for the preparation of the defence and to communicate freely with
counsel of the accused's choosing in confidence;
(c) To be tried without undue
delay;
(d) Subject to article 63,
paragraph 2, to be present at the trial, to conduct the defence in person or
through legal assistance of the accused's choosing, to be informed, if the
accused does not have legal assistance, of this right and to have legal
assistance assigned by the Court in any case where the interests of justice
so require, and without payment if the accused lacks sufficient means to pay
for it;
(e) To examine, or have examined,
the witnesses against him or her and to obtain the attendance and
examination of witnesses on his or her behalf under the same conditions as
witnesses against him or her. The accused shall also be entitled to raise
defences and to present other evidence admissible under this Statute;
(f) To have, free of any cost,
the assistance of a competent interpreter and such translations as are
necessary to meet the requirements of fairness, if any of the proceedings of
or documents presented to the Court are not in a language which the accused
fully understands and speaks;
(g) Not to be compelled to
testify or to confess guilt and to remain silent, without such silence being
a consideration in the determination of guilt or innocence;
(h) To make an unsworn oral or
written statement in his or her defence; and
(i) Not to have imposed on him or
her any reversal of the burden of proof or any onus of rebuttal.
2. In addition to any other disclosure provided for in
this Statute, the Prosecutor shall, as soon as practicable, disclose to the
defence evidence in the Prosecutor's possession or control which he or she
believes shows or tends to show the innocence of the accused, or to mitigate the
guilt of the accused, or which may affect the credibility of prosecution
evidence. In case of doubt as to the application of this paragraph, the Court
shall decide.
Article 68Protection of the
victims and witnesses and their
participation in the proceedings
1. The Court
shall take appropriate measures to protect the safety, physical and
psychological well-being, dignity and privacy of victims and witnesses. In so
doing, the Court shall have regard to all relevant factors, including age,
gender as defined in article 7, paragraph 3, and health, and the nature of the
crime, in particular, but not limited to, where the crime involves sexual or
gender violence or violence against children. The Prosecutor shall take such
measures particularly during the investigation and prosecution of such crimes.
These measures shall not be prejudicial to or inconsistent with the rights of
the accused and a fair and impartial trial.
2. As an
exception to the principle of public hearings provided for in article 67, the
Chambers of the Court may, to protect victims and witnesses or an accused,
conduct any part of the proceedings in camera or allow the presentation
of evidence by electronic or other special means. In particular, such measures
shall be implemented in the case of a victim of sexual violence or a child who
is a victim or a witness, unless otherwise ordered by the Court, having regard
to all the circumstances, particularly the views of the victim or witness.
3. Where the
personal interests of the victims are affected, the Court shall permit their
views and concerns to be presented and considered at stages of the proceedings
determined to be appropriate by the Court and in a manner which is not
prejudicial to or inconsistent with the rights of the accused and a fair and
impartial trial. Such views and concerns may be presented by the legal
representatives of the victims where the Court considers it appropriate, in
accordance with the Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
4. The
Victims and Witnesses Unit may advise the Prosecutor and the Court on
appropriate protective measures, security arrangements, counselling and
assistance as referred to in article 43, paragraph 6.
5. Where the
disclosure of evidence or information pursuant to this Statute may lead to the
grave endangerment of the security of a witness or his or her family, the
Prosecutor may, for the purposes of any proceedings conducted prior to the
commencement of the trial, withhold such evidence or information and instead
submit a summary thereof. Such measures shall be exercised in a manner which is
not prejudicial to or inconsistent with the rights of the accused and a fair and
impartial trial.
6. A State
may make an application for necessary measures to be taken in respect of the
protection of its servants or agents and the protection of confidential or
sensitive information.
Article 69
Evidence
1. Before
testifying, each witness shall, in accordance with the Rules of Procedure and
Evidence, give an undertaking as to the truthfulness of the evidence to be given
by that witness.
2. The
testimony of a witness at trial shall be given in person, except to the extent
provided by the measures set forth in article 68 or in the Rules of Procedure
and Evidence. The Court may also permit the giving of viva voce (oral) or
recorded testimony of a witness by means of video or audio technology, as well
as the introduction of documents or written transcripts, subject to this Statute
and in accordance with the Rules of Procedure and Evidence. These measures shall
not be prejudicial to or inconsistent with the rights of the accused.
3. The
parties may submit evidence relevant to the case, in accordance with article 64.
The Court shall have the authority to request the submission of all evidence
that it considers necessary for the determination of the truth.
4. The Court
may rule on the relevance or admissibility of any evidence, taking into account,
inter alia, the probative value of the evidence and any prejudice that
such evidence may cause to a fair trial or to a fair evaluation of the testimony
of a witness, in accordance with the Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
5. The Court
shall respect and observe privileges on confidentiality as provided for in the
Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
6. The Court
shall not require proof of facts of common knowledge but may take judicial
notice of them.
7. Evidence
obtained by means of a violation of this Statute or internationally recognized
human rights shall not be admissible if:
(a) The violation casts substantial doubt on the
reliability of the evidence; or
(b) The admission of the evidence
would be antithetical to and would seriously damage the integrity of the
proceedings.
8. When deciding on the relevance or admissibility of
evidence collected by a State, the Court shall not rule on the application of
the State's national law.
Article 70
Offences against the administration of justice
1. The Court
shall have jurisdiction over the following offences against its administration
of justice when committed intentionally:
(a) Giving false testimony when under an obligation
pursuant to article 69, paragraph 1, to tell the truth;
(b) Presenting evidence that the
party knows is false or forged;
(c) Corruptly influencing a
witness, obstructing or interfering with the attendance or testimony of a
witness, retaliating against a witness for giving testimony or destroying,
tampering with or interfering with the collection of evidence;
(d) Impeding, intimidating or
corruptly influencing an official of the Court for the purpose of forcing or
persuading the official not to perform, or to perform improperly, his or her
duties;
(e) Retaliating against an
official of the Court on account of duties performed by that or another
official;
(f) Soliciting or accepting a
bribe as an official of the Court in connection with his or her official
duties.
2. The principles and procedures governing the Court's
exercise of jurisdiction over offences under this article shall be those
provided for in the Rules of Procedure and Evidence. The conditions for
providing international cooperation to the Court with respect to its proceedings
under this article shall be governed by the domestic laws of the requested
State.
3. In the
event of conviction, the Court may impose a term of imprisonment not exceeding
five years, or a fine in accordance with the Rules of Procedure and Evidence, or
both.
4. (a)
Each State Party shall extend its criminal laws penalizing offences against the
integrity of its own investigative or judicial process to offences against the
administration of justice referred to in this article, committed on its
territory, or by one of its nationals;
(b) Upon request by the Court, whenever it deems it
proper, the State Party shall submit the case to its competent authorities for
the purpose of prosecution. Those authorities shall treat such cases with
diligence and devote sufficient resources to enable them to be conducted
effectively.
Article 71
Sanctions for misconduct before the Court
1. The Court
may sanction persons present before it who commit misconduct, including
disruption of its proceedings or deliberate refusal to comply with its
directions, by administrative measures other than imprisonment, such as
temporary or permanent removal from the courtroom, a fine or other similar
measures provided for in the Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
2. The
procedures governing the imposition of the measures set forth in paragraph 1
shall be those provided for in the Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
Article 72
Protection of national security information
1. This
article applies in any case where the disclosure of the information or documents
of a State would, in the opinion of that State, prejudice its national security
interests. Such cases include those falling within the scope of article 56,
paragraphs 2 and 3, article 61, paragraph 3, article 64, paragraph 3, article
67, paragraph 2, article 68, paragraph 6, article 87, paragraph 6 and article
93, as well as cases arising at any other stage of the proceedings where such
disclosure may be at issue.
2. This
article shall also apply when a person who has been requested to give
information or evidence has refused to do so or has referred the matter to the
State on the ground that disclosure would prejudice the national security
interests of a State and the State concerned confirms that it is of the opinion
that disclosure would prejudice its national security interests.
3. Nothing in
this article shall prejudice the requirements of confidentiality applicable
under article 54, paragraph 3 (e) and (f), or the application of article 73.
4. If a State
learns that information or documents of the State are being, or are likely to
be, disclosed at any stage of the proceedings, and it is of the opinion that
disclosure would prejudice its national security interests, that State shall
have the right to intervene in order to obtain resolution of the issue in
accordance with this article.
5. If, in the
opinion of a State, disclosure of information would prejudice its national
security interests, all reasonable steps will be taken by the State, acting in
conjunction with the Prosecutor, the defence or the Pre-Trial Chamber or Trial
Chamber, as the case may be, to seek to resolve the matter by cooperative means.
Such steps may include:
(a) Modification or clarification of the request;
(b) A determination by the Court
regarding the relevance of the information or evidence sought, or a
determination as to whether the evidence, though relevant, could be or has
been obtained from a source other than the requested State;
(c) Obtaining the information or
evidence from a different source or in a different form; or
(d) Agreement on conditions under
which the assistance could be provided including, among other things,
providing summaries or redactions, limitations on disclosure, use of in
camera or ex parte proceedings, or other protective measures
permissible under the Statute and the Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
6. Once all reasonable steps have been taken to resolve
the matter through cooperative means, and if the State considers that there are
no means or conditions under which the information or documents could be
provided or disclosed without prejudice to its national security interests, it
shall so notify the Prosecutor or the Court of the specific reasons for its
decision, unless a specific description of the reasons would itself necessarily
result in such prejudice to the State's national security interests.
7.
Thereafter, if the Court determines that the evidence is relevant and necessary
for the establishment of the guilt or innocence of the accused, the Court may
undertake the following actions:
(a) Where disclosure of the information or document is
sought pursuant to a request for cooperation under Part 9 or the
circumstances described in paragraph 2, and the State has invoked the ground
for refusal referred to in article 93, paragraph 4:
(i) The Court may, before making any conclusion
referred to in subparagraph 7 (a) (ii), request further consultations
for the purpose of considering the State's representations, which may
include, as appropriate, hearings in camera and ex parte;
(ii) If the Court concludes
that, by invoking the ground for refusal under article 93, paragraph 4,
in the circumstances of the case, the requested State is not acting in
accordance with its obligations under this Statute, the Court may refer
the matter in accordance with article 87, paragraph 7, specifying the
reasons for its conclusion; and
(iii) The Court may make such
inference in the trial of the accused as to the existence or
non-existence of a fact, as may be appropriate in the circumstances; or
(b) In all other circumstances:
(i) Order disclosure; or
(ii) To the extent it does
not order disclosure, make such inference in the trial of the accused as
to the existence or non-existence of a fact, as may be appropriate in
the circumstances.
Article 73
Third-party information or documents
If a State Party is requested by the Court to provide a document or information
in its custody, possession or control, which was disclosed to it in confidence
by a State, intergovernmental organization or international organization, it
shall seek the consent of the originator to disclose that document or
information. If the originator is a State Party, it shall either consent to
disclosure of the information or document or undertake to resolve the issue of
disclosure with the Court, subject to the provisions of article 72. If the
originator is not a State Party and refuses to consent to disclosure, the
requested State shall inform the Court that it is unable to provide the document
or information because of a pre-existing obligation of confidentiality to the
originator.
Article 74
Requirements for the decision
1. All the
judges of the Trial Chamber shall be present at each stage of the trial and
throughout their deliberations. The Presidency may, on a case-by-case basis,
designate, as available, one or more alternate judges to be present at each
stage of the trial and to replace a member of the Trial Chamber if that member
is unable to continue attending.
2. The Trial
Chamber's decision shall be based on its evaluation of the evidence and the
entire proceedings. The decision shall not exceed the facts and circumstances
described in the charges and any amendments to the charges. The Court may base
its decision only on evidence submitted and discussed before it at the trial.
3. The judges
shall attempt to achieve unanimity in their decision, failing which the decision
shall be taken by a majority of the judges.
4. The
deliberations of the Trial Chamber shall remain secret.
5. The
decision shall be in writing and shall contain a full and reasoned statement of
the Trial Chamber's findings on the evidence and conclusions. The Trial Chamber
shall issue one decision. When there is no unanimity, the Trial Chamber's
decision shall contain the views of the majority and the minority. The decision
or a summary thereof shall be delivered in open court.
Article 75
Reparations to victims
1. The Court
shall establish principles relating to reparations to, or in respect of,
victims, including restitution, compensation and rehabilitation. On this basis,
in its decision the Court may, either upon request or on its own motion in
exceptional circumstances, determine the scope and extent of any damage, loss
and injury to, or in respect of, victims and will state the principles on which
it is acting.
2. The Court
may make an order directly against a convicted person specifying appropriate
reparations to, or in respect of, victims, including restitution, compensation
and rehabilitation.
Where appropriate, the Court may order that the award for reparations be made
through the Trust Fund provided for in article 79.
3. Before making
an order under this article, the Court may invite and shall take account of
representations from or on behalf of the convicted person, victims, other
interested persons or interested States.
4. In
exercising its power under this article, the Court may, after a person is
convicted of a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court, determine whether, in
order to give effect to an order which it may make under this article, it is
necessary to seek measures under article 93, paragraph 1.
5. A State
Party shall give effect to a decision under this article as if the provisions of
article 109 were applicable to this article.
6. Nothing in
this article shall be interpreted as prejudicing the rights of victims under
national or international law.
Article 76
Sentencing
1. In the
event of a conviction, the Trial Chamber shall consider the appropriate sentence
to be imposed and shall take into account the evidence presented and submissions
made during the trial that are relevant to the sentence.
2. Except
where article 65 applies and before the completion of the trial, the Trial
Chamber may on its own motion and shall, at the request of the Prosecutor or the
accused, hold a further hearing to hear any additional evidence or submissions
relevant to the sentence, in accordance with the Rules of Procedure and
Evidence.
3. Where
paragraph 2 applies, any representations under article 75 shall be heard during
the further hearing referred to in paragraph 2 and, if necessary, during any
additional hearing.
4. The
sentence shall be pronounced in public and, wherever possible, in the presence
of the accused.
PART 7. PENALTIES
Article 77
Applicable penalties
1. Subject to
article 110, the Court may impose one of the following penalties on a person
convicted of a crime referred to in article 5 of this Statute:
(a) Imprisonment for a specified number of years, which
may not exceed a maximum of 30 years; or
(b) A term of life imprisonment
when justified by the extreme gravity of the crime and the individual
circumstances of the convicted person.
2. In addition to imprisonment, the Court may order:
(a) A fine under the criteria provided for in the Rules
of Procedure and Evidence;
(b) A forfeiture of proceeds,
property and assets derived directly or indirectly from that crime, without
prejudice to the rights of bona fide third parties.
Article 78
Determination of the sentence
1. In
determining the sentence, the Court shall, in accordance with the Rules of
Procedure and Evidence, take into account such factors as the gravity of the
crime and the individual circumstances of the convicted person.
2. In
imposing a sentence of imprisonment, the Court shall deduct the time, if any,
previously spent in detention in accordance with an order of the Court. The
Court may deduct any time otherwise spent in detention in connection with
conduct underlying the crime.
3. When a
person has been convicted of more than one crime, the Court shall pronounce a
sentence for each crime and a joint sentence specifying the total period of
imprisonment. This period shall be no less than the highest individual sentence
pronounced and shall not exceed 30 years imprisonment or a sentence of life
imprisonment in conformity with article 77, paragraph 1 (b).
Article 79
Trust Fund
1. A Trust
Fund shall be established by decision of the Assembly of States Parties for the
benefit of victims of crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court, and of the
families of such victims.
2. The Court
may order money and other property collected through fines or forfeiture to be
transferred, by order of the Court, to the Trust Fund.
3. The Trust
Fund shall be managed according to criteria to be determined by the Assembly of
States Parties.
Article 80
Non-prejudice to national application of
penalties and national laws
Nothing in this Part affects the application by States of penalties prescribed
by their national law, nor the law of States which do not provide for penalties
prescribed in this Part.
PART 8. APPEAL AND REVISION
Article 81
Appeal against decision of acquittal or conviction
or against sentence
1. A decision
under article 74 may be appealed in accordance with the Rules of Procedure and
Evidence as follows:
2. (a) A sentence may be appealed, in accordance
with the Rules of Procedure and Evidence, by the Prosecutor or the convicted
person on the ground of disproportion between the crime and the sentence;
(b) If on an appeal against sentence the Court
considers that there are grounds on which the conviction might be set aside,
wholly or in part, it may invite the Prosecutor and the convicted person to
submit grounds under article 81, paragraph 1 (a) or (b), and may render a
decision on conviction in accordance with article 83;
(c) The same procedure applies when the Court, on
an appeal against conviction only, considers that there are grounds to reduce
the sentence under paragraph 2 (a).
3. (a)
Unless the Trial Chamber orders otherwise, a convicted person shall remain in
custody pending an appeal;
(b) When a convicted person's time in custody
exceeds the sentence of imprisonment imposed, that person shall be released,
except that if the Prosecutor is also appealing, the release may be subject to
the conditions under subparagraph (c) below;
(c) In case of an acquittal, the accused shall be
released immediately, subject to the following:
4. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 3 (a) and (b),
execution of the decision or sentence shall be suspended during the period
allowed for appeal and for the duration of the appeal proceedings.
Article 82
Appeal against other decisions
1. Either
party may appeal any of the following decisions in accordance with the Rules of
Procedure and Evidence:
(a) A decision with respect to jurisdiction or
admissibility;
(b) A decision granting or
denying release of the person being investigated or prosecuted;
(c) A decision of the Pre-Trial
Chamber to act on its own initiative under article 56, paragraph 3;
(d) A decision that involves an
issue that would significantly affect the fair and expeditious conduct of
the proceedings or the outcome of the trial, and for which, in the opinion
of the Pre-Trial or Trial Chamber, an immediate resolution by the Appeals
Chamber may materially advance the proceedings.
2. A decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber under article 57,
paragraph 3 (d), may be appealed against by the State concerned or by the
Prosecutor, with the leave of the Pre-Trial Chamber. The appeal shall be heard
on an expedited basis.
3. An appeal shall not of itself have
suspensive effect unless the Appeals Chamber so orders, upon request, in
accordance with the Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
4. A legal representative of the
victims, the convicted person or a bona fide owner of property adversely
affected by an order under article 75 may appeal against the order for
reparations, as provided in the Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
Article 83
Proceedings on appeal
1. For the
purposes of proceedings under article 81 and this article, the Appeals Chamber
shall have all the powers of the Trial Chamber.
2. If the
Appeals Chamber finds that the proceedings appealed from were unfair in a way
that affected the reliability of the decision or sentence, or that the decision
or sentence appealed from was materially affected by error of fact or law or
procedural error, it may:
For these purposes, the Appeals Chamber may remand a
factual issue to the original Trial Chamber for it to determine the issue and to
report back accordingly, or may itself call evidence to determine the issue.
When the decision or sentence has been appealed only by the person convicted, or
the Prosecutor on that person's behalf, it cannot be amended to his or her
detriment.
3. If in an
appeal against sentence the Appeals Chamber finds that the sentence is
disproportionate to the crime, it may vary the sentence in accordance with Part
7.
4. The
judgement of the Appeals Chamber shall be taken by a majority of the judges and
shall be delivered in open court. The judgement shall state the reasons on which
it is based. When there is no unanimity, the judgement of the Appeals Chamber
shall contain the views of the majority and the minority, but a judge may
deliver a separate or dissenting opinion on a question of law.
5. The
Appeals Chamber may deliver its judgement in the absence of the person acquitted
or convicted.
Article 84
Revision of conviction or sentence
1. The
convicted person or, after death, spouses, children, parents or one person alive
at the time of the accused's death who has been given express written
instructions from the accused to bring such a claim, or the Prosecutor on the
person's behalf, may apply to the Appeals Chamber to revise the final judgement
of conviction or sentence on the grounds that:
(a) New evidence has been discovered that:
(i) Was not available at the time of trial, and such
unavailability was not wholly or partially attributable to the party
making application; and
(ii) Is sufficiently
important that had it been proved at trial it would have been likely to
have resulted in a different verdict;
(b) It has been newly discovered that decisive evidence,
taken into account at trial and upon which the conviction depends, was
false, forged or falsified;
(c) One or more of the judges who
participated in conviction or confirmation of the charges has committed, in
that case, an act of serious misconduct or serious breach of duty of
sufficient gravity to justify the removal of that judge or those judges from
office under article 46.
2. The Appeals Chamber shall reject the application if it
considers it to be unfounded. If it determines that the application is
meritorious, it may, as appropriate:
(a) Reconvene the original Trial Chamber;
(b) Constitute a new Trial
Chamber; or
(c) Retain jurisdiction over the
matter,
with a view to, after hearing the parties in the manner set
forth in the Rules of Procedure and Evidence, arriving at a determination on
whether the judgement should be revised.
Article 85
Compensation to an arrested or convicted person
1. Anyone who has been the victim of unlawful
arrest or detention shall have an enforceable right to compensation.
2. When a
person has by a final decision been convicted of a criminal offence, and when
subsequently his or her conviction has been reversed on the ground that a new or
newly discovered fact shows conclusively that there has been a miscarriage of
justice, the person who has suffered punishment as a result of such conviction
shall be compensated according to law, unless it is proved that the
non-disclosure of the unknown fact in time is wholly or partly attributable to
him or her.
3. In
exceptional circumstances, where the Court finds conclusive facts showing that
there has been a grave and manifest miscarriage of justice, it may in its
discretion award compensation, according to the criteria provided in the Rules
of Procedure and Evidence, to a person who has been released from detention
following a final decision of acquittal or a termination of the proceedings for
that reason.
PART 9. INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
AND JUDICIAL ASSISTANCE
Article 86General
obligation to cooperate
States Parties shall, in accordance with the provisions of this Statute,
cooperate fully with the Court in its investigation and prosecution of crimes
within the jurisdiction of the Court.
Article 87
Requests for cooperation: general provisions
1. (a)
The Court shall have the authority to make requests to States Parties for
cooperation. The requests shall be transmitted through the diplomatic channel or
any other appropriate channel as may be designated by each State Party upon
ratification, acceptance, approval or accession.
Subsequent changes to the designation shall be made by each State Party in
accordance with the Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
(b) When appropriate, without prejudice to the
provisions of subparagraph (a), requests may also be transmitted through the
International Criminal Police Organization or any appropriate regional
organization.
2. Requests
for cooperation and any documents supporting the request shall either be in or
be accompanied by a translation into an official language of the requested State
or one of the working languages of the Court, in accordance with the choice made
by that State upon ratification, acceptance, approval or accession.
Subsequent changes to this choice shall be made in accordance with the Rules of
Procedure and Evidence.
3. The
requested State shall keep confidential a request for cooperation and any
documents supporting the request, except to the extent that the disclosure is
necessary for execution of the request.
4. In
relation to any request for assistance presented under this Part, the Court may
take such measures, including measures related to the protection of information,
as may be necessary to ensure the safety or physical or psychological well-being
of any victims, potential witnesses and their families. The Court may request
that any information that is made available under this Part shall be provided
and handled in a manner that protects the safety and physical or psychological
well-being of any victims, potential witnesses and their families.
5. (a)
The Court may invite any State not party to this Statute to provide assistance
under this Part on the basis of an ad hoc arrangement, an agreement with such
State or any other appropriate basis.
(b) Where a State not party to this Statute, which has
entered into an ad hoc arrangement or an agreement with the Court, fails to
cooperate with requests pursuant to any such arrangement or agreement, the Court
may so inform the Assembly of States Parties or, where the Security Council
referred the matter to the Court, the Security Council.
6. The Court
may ask any intergovernmental organization to provide information or documents.
The Court may also ask for other forms of cooperation and assistance which may
be agreed upon with such an organization and which are in accordance with its
competence or mandate.
7. Where a
State Party fails to comply with a request to cooperate by the Court contrary to
the provisions of this Statute, thereby preventing the Court from exercising its
functions and powers under this Statute, the Court may make a finding to that
effect and refer the matter to the Assembly of States Parties or, where the
Security Council referred the matter to the Court, to the Security Council.
Article 88
Availability of procedures under national law
States Parties shall ensure that there are procedures available under their
national law for all of the forms of cooperation which are specified under this
Part.
Article 89
Surrender of persons to the Court
1. The Court
may transmit a request for the arrest and surrender of a person, together with
the material supporting the request outlined in article 91, to any State on the
territory of which that person may be found and shall request the cooperation of
that State in the arrest and surrender of such a person. States Parties shall,
in accordance with the provisions of this Part and the procedure under their
national law, comply with requests for arrest and surrender.
2. Where the
person sought for surrender brings a challenge before a national court on the
basis of the principle of ne bis in idem as provided in article 20, the
requested State shall immediately consult with the Court to determine if there
has been a relevant ruling on admissibility. If the case is admissible, the
requested State shall proceed with the execution of the request. If an
admissibility ruling is pending, the requested State may postpone the execution
of the request for surrender of the person until the Court makes a determination
on admissibility.
3. (a)
A State Party shall authorize, in accordance with its national procedural law,
transportation through its territory of a person being surrendered to the Court
by another State, except where transit through that State would impede or delay
the surrender.
(b) A request by the Court for transit shall be
transmitted in accordance with article 87. The request for transit shall
contain:
(i) A description of the person being transported;
(ii) A brief statement of the facts of the case and
their legal characterization; and
(iii) The warrant for arrest and surrender;
(c) A person being transported shall be detained
in custody during the period of transit;
(d) No authorization is required if the person is
transported by air and no landing is scheduled on the territory of the transit
State;
(e) If an unscheduled landing occurs on the territory of
the transit State, that State may require a request for transit from the Court
as provided for in subparagraph (b). The transit State shall detain the person
being transported until the request for transit is received and the transit is
effected, provided that detention for purposes of this subparagraph may not be
extended beyond 96 hours from the unscheduled landing unless the request is
received within that time.
4. If the
person sought is being proceeded against or is serving a sentence in the
requested State for a crime different from that for which surrender to the Court
is sought, the requested State, after making its decision to grant the request,
shall consult with the Court.
Article 90
Competing requests
1. A State
Party which receives a request from the Court for the surrender of a person
under article 89 shall, if it also receives a request from any other State for
the extradition of the same person for the same conduct which forms the basis of
the crime for which the Court seeks the person's surrender, notify the Court and
the requesting State of that fact.
2. Where the
requesting State is a State Party, the requested State shall give priority to
the request from the Court if:
(a) The Court has, pursuant to article 18 or 19, made a
determination that the case in respect of which surrender is sought is
admissible and that determination takes into account the investigation or
prosecution conducted by the requesting State in respect of its request for
extradition; or
(b) The Court makes the
determination described in subparagraph (a) pursuant to the requested
State's notification under paragraph 1.
3. Where a determination under paragraph 2 (a) has not
been made, the requested State may, at its discretion, pending the determination
of the Court under paragraph 2 (b), proceed to deal with the request for
extradition from the requesting State but shall not extradite the person until
the Court has determined that the case is inadmissible. The Court's
determination shall be made on an expedited basis.
4. If the
requesting State is a State not Party to this Statute the requested State, if it
is not under an international obligation to extradite the person to the
requesting State, shall give priority to the request for surrender from the
Court, if the Court has determined that the case is admissible.
5. Where a
case under paragraph 4 has not been determined to be admissible by the Court,
the requested State may, at its discretion, proceed to deal with the request for
extradition from the requesting State.
6. In cases
where paragraph 4 applies except that the requested State is under an existing
international obligation to extradite the person to the requesting State not
Party to this Statute, the requested State shall determine whether to surrender
the person to the Court or extradite the person to the requesting State. In
making its decision, the requested State shall consider all the relevant
factors, including but not limited to:
(a) The respective dates of the requests;
(b) The interests of the
requesting State including, where relevant, whether the crime was committed
in its territory and the nationality of the victims and of the person
sought; and
(c) The possibility of subsequent
surrender between the Court and the requesting State.
7. Where a State Party which receives a request from the
Court for the surrender of a person also receives a request from any State for
the extradition of the same person for conduct other than that which constitutes
the crime for which the Court seeks the person's surrender:
(a) The requested State shall, if it is not under an
existing international obligation to extradite the person to the requesting
State, give priority to the request from the Court;
(b) The requested State shall, if
it is under an existing international obligation to extradite the person to
the requesting State, determine whether to surrender the person to the Court
or to extradite the person to the requesting State. In making its decision,
the requested State shall consider all the relevant factors, including but
not limited to those set out in paragraph 6, but shall give special
consideration to the relative nature and gravity of the conduct in question.
8. Where pursuant to a notification under this article,
the Court has determined a case to be inadmissible, and subsequently extradition
to the requesting State is refused, the requested State shall notify the Court
of this decision.
Article 91
Contents of request for arrest and surrender
1. A request
for arrest and surrender shall be made in writing. In urgent cases, a request
may be made by any medium capable of delivering a written record, provided that
the request shall be confirmed through the channel provided for in article 87,
paragraph 1 (a).
2. In the
case of a request for the arrest and surrender of a person for whom a warrant of
arrest has been issued by the Pre-Trial Chamber under article 58, the request
shall contain or be supported by:
(a) Information describing the person sought, sufficient
to identify the person, and information as to that person's probable
location;
(b) A copy of the warrant of
arrest; and
(c) Such documents, statements or
information as may be necessary to meet the requirements for the surrender
process in the requested State, except that those requirements should not be
more burdensome than those applicable to requests for extradition pursuant
to treaties or arrangements between the requested State and other States and
should, if possible, be less burdensome, taking into account the distinct
nature of the Court.
3. In the case of a request for the arrest and surrender
of a person already convicted, the request shall contain or be supported by:
(a) A copy of any warrant of arrest for that person;
(b) A copy of the judgement of
conviction;
(c) Information to demonstrate
that the person sought is the one referred to in the judgement of
conviction; and
(d) If the person sought has been
sentenced, a copy of the sentence imposed and, in the case of a sentence for
imprisonment, a statement of any time already served and the time remaining
to be served.
4. Upon the request of the Court, a State Party shall
consult with the Court, either generally or with respect to a specific matter,
regarding any requirements under its national law that may apply under paragraph
2 (c). During the consultations, the State Party shall advise the Court of the
specific requirements of its national law.
Article 92
Provisional arrest
1. In urgent
cases, the Court may request the provisional arrest of the person sought,
pending presentation of the request for surrender and the documents supporting
the request as specified in article 91.
2. The
request for provisional arrest shall be made by any medium capable of delivering
a written record and shall contain:
(a) Information describing the person sought, sufficient
to identify the person, and information as to that person's probable
location;
(b) A concise statement of the
crimes for which the person's arrest is sought and of the facts which are
alleged to constitute those crimes, including, where possible, the date and
location of the crime;
(c) A statement of the existence
of a warrant of arrest or a judgement of conviction against the person
sought; and
(d) A statement that a request
for surrender of the person sought will follow.
3. A person who is provisionally arrested may be
released from custody if the requested State has not received the request for
surrender and the documents supporting the request as specified in article 91
within the time limits specified in the Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
However, the person may consent to surrender before the expiration of this
period if permitted by the law of the requested State. In such a case, the
requested State shall proceed to surrender the person to the Court as soon as
possible.
4. The fact
that the person sought has been released from custody pursuant to paragraph 3
shall not prejudice the subsequent arrest and surrender of that person if the
request for surrender and the documents supporting the request are delivered at
a later date.
Article 93
Other forms of cooperation
1. States
Parties shall, in accordance with the provisions of this Part and under
procedures of national law, comply with requests by the Court to provide the
following assistance in relation to investigations or prosecutions:
(a) The identification and whereabouts of persons or the
location of items;
(b) The taking of evidence,
including testimony under oath, and the production of evidence, including
expert opinions and reports necessary to the Court;
(c) The questioning of any person
being investigated or prosecuted;
(d) The service of documents,
including judicial documents;
(e) Facilitating the voluntary
appearance of persons as witnesses or experts before the Court;
(f) The temporary transfer of
persons as provided in paragraph 7;
(g) The examination of places or
sites, including the exhumation and examination of grave sites;
(h) The execution of searches and
seizures;
(i) The provision of records and
documents, including official records and documents;
(j) The protection of victims and
witnesses and the preservation of evidence;
(k) The identification, tracing
and freezing or seizure of proceeds, property and assets and
instrumentalities of crimes for the purpose of eventual forfeiture, without
prejudice to the rights of bona fide third parties; and
(l) Any other type of assistance
which is not prohibited by the law of the requested State, with a view to
facilitating the investigation and prosecution of crimes within the
jurisdiction of the Court.
2. The Court shall have the authority to provide an
assurance to a witness or an expert appearing before the Court that he or she
will not be prosecuted, detained or subjected to any restriction of personal
freedom by the Court in respect of any act or omission that preceded the
departure of that person from the requested State.
3. Where
execution of a particular measure of assistance detailed in a request presented
under paragraph 1, is prohibited in the requested State on the basis of an
existing fundamental legal principle of general application, the requested State
shall promptly consult with the Court to try to resolve the matter. In the
consultations, consideration should be given to whether the assistance can be
rendered in another manner or subject to conditions. If after consultations the
matter cannot be resolved, the Court shall modify the request as necessary.
4. In
accordance with article 72, a State Party may deny a request for assistance, in
whole or in part, only if the request concerns the production of any documents
or disclosure of evidence which relates to its national security.
5. Before
denying a request for assistance under paragraph 1 (l), the requested State
shall consider whether the assistance can be provided subject to specified
conditions, or whether the assistance can be provided at a later date or in an
alternative manner, provided that if the Court or the Prosecutor accepts the
assistance subject to conditions, the Court or the Prosecutor shall abide by
them.
6. If a
request for assistance is denied, the requested State Party shall promptly
inform the Court or the Prosecutor of the reasons for such denial.
7. (a)
The Court may request the temporary transfer of a person in custody for purposes
of identification or for obtaining testimony or other assistance. The person may
be transferred if the following conditions are fulfilled:
(b) The person being transferred shall remain in
custody. When the purposes of the transfer have been fulfilled, the Court shall
return the person without delay to the requested State.
8. (a)
The Court shall ensure the confidentiality of documents and information, except
as required for the investigation and proceedings described in the request.
(b) The requested State may, when necessary, transmit
documents or information to the Prosecutor on a confidential basis. The
Prosecutor may then use them solely for the purpose of generating new evidence.
(c) The requested State may, on its own motion or at the
request of the Prosecutor, subsequently consent to the disclosure of such
documents or information. They may then be used as evidence pursuant to the
provisions of Parts 5 and 6 and in accordance with the Rules of Procedure and
Evidence.
9. (a)
(i) In the event that a State Party receives competing
requests, other than for surrender or extradition, from the Court and from
another State pursuant to an international obligation, the State Party shall
endeavour, in consultation with the Court and the other State, to meet both
requests, if necessary by postponing or attaching conditions to one or the other
request.
(ii) Failing that, competing requests shall be resolved
in accordance with the principles established in article 90.
(b) Where, however, the request from the Court concerns
information, property or persons which are subject to the control of a third
State or an international organization by virtue of an international agreement,
the requested States shall so inform the Court and the Court shall direct its
request to the third State or international organization.
10. (a)
The Court may, upon request, cooperate with and provide assistance to a State
Party conducting an investigation into or trial in respect of conduct which
constitutes a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court or which constitutes a
serious crime under the national law of the requesting State.
(b) (i) The assistance provided
under subparagraph (a) shall include, inter alia:
(ii) In the case of assistance under
subparagraph (b) (i) a:
(c) The Court may, under the conditions set out
in this paragraph, grant a request for assistance under this paragraph from a
State which is not a Party to this Statute.
Article 94
Postponement of execution of a request in respect
of ongoing investigation or prosecution
1. If the immediate execution of a request would
interfere with an ongoing investigation or prosecution of a case different from
that to which the request relates, the requested State may postpone the
execution of the request for a period of time agreed upon with the Court.
However, the postponement shall be no longer than is necessary to complete the
relevant investigation or prosecution in the requested State. Before making a
decision to postpone, the requested State should consider whether the assistance
may be immediately provided subject to certain conditions.
2. If a
decision to postpone is taken pursuant to paragraph 1, the Prosecutor may,
however, seek measures to preserve evidence, pursuant to article 93, paragraph 1
(j).
Article 95
Postponement of execution of a request in
respect of an admissibility challenge
Where there is an admissibility challenge
under consideration by the Court pursuant to article 18 or 19, the requested
State may postpone the execution of a request under this Part pending a
determination by the Court, unless the Court has specifically ordered that the
Prosecutor may pursue the collection of such evidence pursuant to article 18 or
19.
Article 96
Contents of request for other forms of
assistance under article 93
1. A request for other forms of assistance referred to
in article 93 shall be made in writing. In urgent cases, a request may be made
by any medium capable of delivering a written record, provided that the request
shall be confirmed through the channel provided for in article 87, paragraph 1
(a).
2. The
request shall, as applicable, contain or be supported by the following:
(a) A concise statement of the purpose of the request
and the assistance sought, including the legal basis and the grounds for the
request;
(b) As much detailed information
as possible about the location or identification of any person or place that
must be found or identified in order for the assistance sought to be
provided;
(c) A concise statement of the
essential facts underlying the request;
(d) The reasons for and details
of any procedure or requirement to be followed;
(e) Such information as may be
required under the law of the requested State in order to execute the
request; and
(f) Any other information
relevant in order for the assistance sought to be provided.
3. Upon the request of the Court, a State Party shall
consult with the Court, either generally or with respect to a specific matter,
regarding any requirements under its national law that may apply under paragraph
2 (e). During the consultations, the State Party shall advise the Court of the
specific requirements of its national law.
4. The
provisions of this article shall, where applicable, also apply in respect of a
request for assistance made to the Court.
Article 97
Consultations
Where a State Party receives a request under this
Part in relation to which it identifies problems which may impede or prevent the
execution of the request, that State shall consult with the Court without delay
in order to resolve the matter. Such problems may include, inter alia:
(a) Insufficient information to execute the request;
(b) In the case of a request for
surrender, the fact that despite best efforts, the person sought cannot be
located or that the investigation conducted has determined that the person
in the requested State is clearly not the person named in the warrant; or
(c) The fact that execution of
the request in its current form would require the requested State to breach
a pre-existing treaty obligation undertaken with respect to another State.
Article 98
Cooperation with respect to waiver of immunity
and consent to surrender
1. The Court may not proceed with a request for
surrender or assistance which would require the requested State to act
inconsistently with its obligations under international law with respect to the
State or diplomatic immunity of a person or property of a third State, unless
the Court can first obtain the cooperation of that third State for the waiver of
the immunity.
2. The Court
may not proceed with a request for surrender which would require the requested
State to act inconsistently with its obligations under international agreements
pursuant to which the consent of a sending State is required to surrender a
person of that State to the Court, unless the Court can first obtain the
cooperation of the sending State for the giving of consent for the surrender.
Article 99
Execution of requests under articles 93 and 96
1. Requests for assistance shall be executed in
accordance with the relevant procedure under the law of the requested State and,
unless prohibited by such law, in the manner specified in the request, including
following any procedure outlined therein or permitting persons specified in the
request to be present at and assist in the execution process.
2. In the
case of an urgent request, the documents or evidence produced in response shall,
at the request of the Court, be sent urgently.
3. Replies
from the requested State shall be transmitted in their original language and
form.
4. Without
prejudice to other articles in this Part, where it is necessary for the
successful execution of a request which can be executed without any compulsory
measures, including specifically the interview of or taking evidence from a
person on a voluntary basis, including doing so without the presence of the
authorities of the requested State Party if it is essential for the request to
be executed, and the examination without modification of a public site or other
public place, the Prosecutor may execute such request directly on the territory
of a State as follows:
(a) When the State Party requested is a State on the
territory of which the crime is alleged to have been committed, and there
has been a determination of admissibility pursuant to article 18 or 19, the
Prosecutor may directly execute such request following all possible
consultations with the requested State Party;
(b) In other cases, the
Prosecutor may execute such request following consultations with the
requested State Party and subject to any reasonable conditions or concerns
raised by that State Party. Where the requested State Party identifies
problems with the execution of a request pursuant to this subparagraph it
shall, without delay, consult with the Court to resolve the matter.
5. Provisions allowing a person heard or examined by the
Court under article 72 to invoke restrictions designed to prevent disclosure of
confidential information connected with national security shall also apply to
the execution of requests for assistance under this article.
Article 100
Costs
1. The ordinary costs for execution of requests in the territory of the
requested State shall be borne by that State, except for the following, which
shall be borne by the Court:
(a) Costs associated with the travel and security of
witnesses and experts or the transfer under article 93 of persons in
custody;
(b) Costs of translation,
interpretation and transcription;
(c) Travel and subsistence costs
of the judges, the Prosecutor, the Deputy Prosecutors, the Registrar, the
Deputy Registrar and staff of any organ of the Court;
(d) Costs of any expert opinion
or report requested by the Court;
(e) Costs associated with the
transport of a person being surrendered to the Court by a custodial State;
and
(f) Following consultations, any
extraordinary costs that may result from the execution of a request.
2. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall, as appropriate,
apply to requests from States Parties to the Court. In that case, the Court
shall bear the ordinary costs of execution.
Article 101
Rule of speciality
1. A person surrendered to the Court under this Statute
shall not be proceeded against, punished or detained for any conduct committed
prior to surrender, other than the conduct or course of conduct which forms the
basis of the crimes for which that person has been surrendered.
2. The Court
may request a waiver of the requirements of paragraph 1 from the State which
surrendered the person to the Court and, if necessary, the Court shall provide
additional information in accordance with article 91. States Parties shall have
the authority to provide a waiver to the Court and should endeavour to do so.
Article 102
Use of terms
For the purposes of this Statute:
(a) "surrender" means the delivering up of a person
by a State to the Court, pursuant to this Statute.
(b)
"extradition" means the delivering up of a person by one State to another as
provided by treaty, convention or national legislation.
PART 10. ENFORCEMENT
Article 103
Role of States in enforcement of
sentences of imprisonment
1. (a)
A sentence of imprisonment shall be served in a State designated by the Court
from a list of States which have indicated to the Court their willingness to
accept sentenced persons.
(b) At the time of declaring its willingness to accept
sentenced persons, a State may attach conditions to its acceptance as agreed by
the Court and in accordance with this Part.
(c) A State designated in a particular case shall
promptly inform the Court whether it accepts the Court's designation.
2. (a)
The State of enforcement shall notify the Court of any circumstances, including
the exercise of any conditions agreed under paragraph 1, which could materially
affect the terms or extent of the imprisonment. The Court shall be given at
least 45 days' notice of any such known or foreseeable circumstances. During
this period, the State of enforcement shall take no action that might prejudice
its obligations under article 110.
(b) Where the Court cannot agree to the circumstances
referred to in subparagraph (a), it shall notify the State of enforcement and
proceed in accordance with article 104, paragraph 1.
3. In
exercising its discretion to make a designation under paragraph 1, the Court
shall take into account the following:
(a) The principle that States Parties should share the
responsibility for enforcing sentences of imprisonment, in accordance with
principles of equitable distribution, as provided in the Rules of Procedure and
Evidence;
(b) The application of widely accepted international
treaty standards governing the treatment of prisoners;
(c) The views of the sentenced person;
(d) The nationality of the sentenced person;
(e) Such other factors regarding the circumstances of
the crime or the person sentenced, or the effective enforcement of the sentence,
as may be appropriate in designating the State of enforcement.
4. If no
State is designated under paragraph 1, the sentence of imprisonment shall be
served in a prison facility made available by the host State, in accordance with
the conditions set out in the headquarters agreement referred to in article 3,
paragraph 2. In such a case, the costs arising out of the enforcement of a
sentence of imprisonment shall be borne by the Court.
Article 104
Change in designation of State of enforcement
1. The Court
may, at any time, decide to transfer a sentenced person to a prison of another
State.
2. A
sentenced person may, at any time, apply to the Court to be transferred from the
State of enforcement.
Article 105
Enforcement of the sentence
1. Subject to
conditions which a State may have specified in accordance with article 103,
paragraph 1 (b), the sentence of imprisonment shall be binding on the States
Parties, which shall in no case modify it.
2. The Court
alone shall have the right to decide any application for appeal and revision.
The State of enforcement shall not impede the making of any such application by
a sentenced person.
Article 106
Supervision of enforcement of sentences and
conditions of imprisonment
1. The
enforcement of a sentence of imprisonment shall be subject to the supervision of
the Court and shall be consistent with widely accepted international treaty
standards governing treatment of prisoners.
2. The
conditions of imprisonment shall be governed by the law of the State of
enforcement and shall be consistent with widely accepted international treaty
standards governing treatment of prisoners; in no case shall such conditions be
more or less favourable than those available to prisoners convicted of similar
offences in the State of enforcement.
3.
Communications between a sentenced person and the Court shall be unimpeded and
confidential.
Article 107
Transfer of the person upon completion of sentence
1. Following
completion of the sentence, a person who is not a national of the State of
enforcement may, in accordance with the law of the State of enforcement, be
transferred to a State which is obliged to receive him or her, or to another
State which agrees to receive him or her, taking into account any wishes of the
person to be transferred to that State, unless the State of enforcement
authorizes the person to remain in its territory.
2. If no
State bears the costs arising out of transferring the person to another State
pursuant to paragraph 1, such costs shall be borne by the Court.
3. Subject to
the provisions of article 108, the State of enforcement may also, in accordance
with its national law, extradite or otherwise surrender the person to a State
which has requested the extradition or surrender of the person for purposes of
trial or enforcement of a sentence.
Article 108
Limitation on the prosecution or punishment of other
offences
1. A
sentenced person in the custody of the State of enforcement shall not be subject
to prosecution or punishment or to extradition to a third State for any conduct
engaged in prior to that person's delivery to the State of enforcement, unless
such prosecution, punishment or extradition has been approved by the Court at
the request of the State of enforcement.
2. The Court
shall decide the matter after having heard the views of the sentenced person.
3. Paragraph
1 shall cease to apply if the sentenced person remains voluntarily for more than
30 days in the territory of the State of enforcement after having served the
full sentence imposed by the Court, or returns to the territory of that State
after having left it.
Article 109
Enforcement of fines and forfeiture measures
1. States
Parties shall give effect to fines or forfeitures ordered by the Court under
Part 7, without prejudice to the rights of bona fide third parties, and in
accordance with the procedure of their national law.
2. If a State
Party is unable to give effect to an order for forfeiture, it shall take
measures to recover the value of the proceeds, property or assets ordered by the
Court to be forfeited, without prejudice to the rights of bona fide third
parties.
3. Property,
or the proceeds of the sale of real property or, where appropriate, the sale of
other property, which is obtained by a State Party as a result of its
enforcement of a judgement of the Court shall be transferred to the Court.
Article 110
Review by the Court concerning reduction of sentence
1. The State
of enforcement shall not release the person before expiry of the sentence
pronounced by the Court.
2. The Court
alone shall have the right to decide any reduction of sentence, and shall rule
on the matter after having heard the person.
3. When the
person has served two thirds of the sentence, or 25 years in the case of life
imprisonment, the Court shall review the sentence to determine whether it should
be reduced. Such a review shall not be conducted before that time.
4. In its
review under paragraph 3, the Court may reduce the sentence if it finds that one
or more of the following factors are present:
(a) The early and continuing willingness of the person
to cooperate with the Court in its investigations and prosecutions;
(b) The voluntary assistance of
the person in enabling the enforcement of the judgements and orders of the
Court in other cases, and in particular providing assistance in locating
assets subject to orders of fine, forfeiture or reparation which may be used
for the benefit of victims; or
(c) Other factors establishing a
clear and significant change of circumstances sufficient to justify the
reduction of sentence, as provided in the Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
5. If the Court determines in its initial review under
paragraph 3 that it is not appropriate to reduce the sentence, it shall
thereafter review the question of reduction of sentence at such intervals and
applying such criteria as provided for in the Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
Article 111
Escape
If a convicted person escapes from custody and flees the State of enforcement,
that State may, after consultation with the Court, request the person's
surrender from the State in which the person is located pursuant to existing
bilateral or multilateral arrangements, or may request that the Court seek the
person's surrender, in accordance with Part 9. It may direct that the person be
delivered to the State in which he or she was serving the sentence or to another
State designated by the Court.
PART 11. ASSEMBLY OF STATES
PARTIESArticle
112Assembly of States Parties
1. An
Assembly of States Parties to this Statute is hereby established. Each State
Party shall have one representative in the Assembly who may be accompanied by
alternates and advisers. Other States which have signed this Statute or the
Final Act may be observers in the Assembly.
2. The
Assembly shall:
(a) Consider and adopt, as appropriate, recommendations
of the Preparatory Commission;
(b) Provide management oversight
to the Presidency, the Prosecutor and the Registrar regarding the
administration of the Court;
(c) Consider the reports and
activities of the Bureau established under paragraph 3 and take appropriate
action in regard thereto;
(d) Consider and decide the
budget for the Court;
(e) Decide whether to alter, in
accordance with article 36, the number of judges;
(f) Consider pursuant to article
87, paragraphs 5 and 7, any question relating to non-cooperation;
(g) Perform any other function
consistent with this Statute or the Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
3. (a) The Assembly shall have a Bureau consisting
of a President, two Vice-Presidents and 18 members elected by the Assembly for
three-year terms.
(b) The Bureau shall have a representative character,
taking into account, in particular, equitable geographical distribution and the
adequate representation of the principal legal systems of the world.
(c) The Bureau shall meet as often as necessary, but at
least once a year. It shall assist the Assembly in the discharge of its
responsibilities.
4. The
Assembly may establish such subsidiary bodies as may be necessary, including an
independent oversight mechanism for inspection, evaluation and investigation of
the Court, in order to enhance its efficiency and economy.
5. The
President of the Court, the Prosecutor and the Registrar or their
representatives may participate, as appropriate, in meetings of the Assembly and
of the Bureau.
6. The
Assembly shall meet at the seat of the Court or at the Headquarters of the
United Nations once a year and, when circumstances so require, hold special
sessions. Except as otherwise specified in this Statute, special sessions shall
be convened by the Bureau on its own initiative or at the request of one third
of the States Parties.
7. Each State
Party shall have one vote. Every effort shall be made to reach decisions by
consensus in the Assembly and in the Bureau. If consensus cannot be reached,
except as otherwise provided in the Statute:
(a) Decisions on matters of substance must be approved
by a two-thirds majority of those present and voting provided that an
absolute majority of States Parties constitutes the quorum for voting;
(b) Decisions on matters of
procedure shall be taken by a simple majority of States Parties present and
voting.
8. A State Party which is in arrears in the payment of
its financial contributions towards the costs of the Court shall have no vote in
the Assembly and in the Bureau if the amount of its arrears equals or exceeds
the amount of the contributions due from it for the preceding two full years.
The Assembly may, nevertheless, permit such a State Party to vote in the
Assembly and in the Bureau if it is satisfied that the failure to pay is due to
conditions beyond the control of the State Party.
9. The
Assembly shall adopt its own rules of procedure.
10. The
official and working languages of the Assembly shall be those of the General
Assembly of the United Nations.
PART 12. FINANCING
Article 113
Financial Regulations
Except as otherwise specifically provided, all financial matters related to the
Court and the meetings of the Assembly of States Parties, including its Bureau
and subsidiary bodies, shall be governed by this Statute and the Financial
Regulations and Rules adopted by the Assembly of States Parties.
Article 114
Payment of expenses
Expenses of the Court and the Assembly of States Parties, including its Bureau
and subsidiary bodies, shall be paid from the funds of the Court.
Article 115
Funds of the Court and of the Assembly of States
Parties
The expenses of the Court and the Assembly of States Parties, including its
Bureau and subsidiary bodies, as provided for in the budget decided by the
Assembly of States Parties, shall be provided by the following sources:
(a) Assessed contributions made by States Parties;
(b) Funds provided by the United
Nations, subject to the approval of the General Assembly, in particular in
relation to the expenses incurred due to referrals by the Security Council.
Article 116
Voluntary contributions
Without prejudice to article 115, the Court may receive and utilize, as
additional funds, voluntary contributions from Governments, international
organizations, individuals, corporations and other entities, in accordance with
relevant criteria adopted by the Assembly of States Parties.
Article 117
Assessment of contributions
The contributions of States Parties shall be assessed in accordance with an
agreed scale of assessment, based on the scale adopted by the United Nations for
its regular budget and adjusted in accordance with the principles on which that
scale is based.
Article 118
Annual audit
The records, books and accounts of the Court, including its annual financial
statements, shall be audited annually by an independent auditor.
PART 13. FINAL CLAUSES
Article 119
Settlement of disputes
1. Any
dispute concerning the judicial functions of the Court shall be settled by the
decision of the Court.
2. Any other
dispute between two or more States Parties relating to the interpretation or
application of this Statute which is not settled through negotiations within
three months of their commencement shall be referred to the Assembly of States
Parties. The Assembly may itself seek to settle the dispute or may make
recommendations on further means of settlement of the dispute, including
referral to the International Court of Justice in conformity with the Statute of
that Court.
Article 120
Reservations
No reservations may be made to this Statute.
Article 121
Amendments
1. After the
expiry of seven years from the entry into force of this Statute, any State Party
may propose amendments thereto. The text of any proposed amendment shall be
submitted to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, who shall promptly
circulate it to all States Parties.
2. No sooner
than three months from the date of notification, the Assembly of States Parties,
at its next meeting, shall, by a majority of those present and voting, decide
whether to take up the proposal. The Assembly may deal with the proposal
directly or convene a Review Conference if the issue involved so warrants.
3. The
adoption of an amendment at a meeting of the Assembly of States Parties or at a
Review Conference on which consensus cannot be reached shall require a
two-thirds majority of States Parties.
4. Except as
provided in paragraph 5, an amendment shall enter into force for all States
Parties one year after instruments of ratification or acceptance have been
deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations by seven-eighths of
them.
5. Any
amendment to articles 5, 6, 7 and 8 of this Statute shall enter into force for
those States Parties which have accepted the amendment one year after the
deposit of their instruments of ratification or acceptance. In respect of a
State Party which has not accepted the amendment, the Court shall not exercise
its jurisdiction regarding a crime covered by the amendment when committed by
that State Party's nationals or on its territory.
6. If an
amendment has been accepted by seven-eighths of States Parties in accordance
with paragraph 4, any State Party which has not accepted the amendment may
withdraw from this Statute with immediate effect, notwithstanding article 127,
paragraph 1, but subject to article 127, paragraph 2, by giving notice no later
than one year after the entry into force of such amendment.
7. The
Secretary-General of the United Nations shall circulate to all States Parties
any amendment adopted at a meeting of the Assembly of States Parties or at a
Review Conference.
Article 122
Amendments to provisions of an institutional nature
1. Amendments
to provisions of this Statute which are of an exclusively institutional nature,
namely, article 35, article 36, paragraphs 8 and 9, article 37, article 38,
article 39, paragraphs 1 (first two sentences), 2 and 4, article 42, paragraphs
4 to 9, article 43, paragraphs 2 and 3, and articles 44, 46, 47 and 49, may be
proposed at any time, notwithstanding article 121, paragraph 1, by any State
Party. The text of any proposed amendment shall be submitted to the
Secretary-General of the United Nations or such other person designated by the
Assembly of States Parties who shall promptly circulate it to all States Parties
and to others participating in the Assembly.
2. Amendments
under this article on which consensus cannot be reached shall be adopted by the
Assembly of States Parties or by a Review Conference, by a two-thirds majority
of States Parties. Such amendments shall enter into force for all States Parties
six months after their adoption by the Assembly or, as the case may be, by the
Conference.
Article 123
Review of the Statute
1. Seven
years after the entry into force of this Statute the Secretary-General of the
United Nations shall convene a Review Conference to consider any amendments to
this Statute. Such review may include, but is not limited to, the list of crimes
contained in article 5. The Conference shall be open to those participating in
the Assembly of States Parties and on the same conditions.
2. At any
time thereafter, at the request of a State Party and for the purposes set out in
paragraph 1, the Secretary-General of the United Nations shall, upon approval by
a majority of States Parties, convene a Review Conference.
3. The
provisions of article 121, paragraphs 3 to 7, shall apply to the adoption and
entry into force of any amendment to the Statute considered at a Review
Conference.
Article 124
Transitional Provision
Notwithstanding article 12, paragraphs 1 and 2, a State, on becoming a party to
this Statute, may declare that, for a period of seven years after the entry into
force of this Statute for the State concerned, it does not accept the
jurisdiction of the Court with respect to the category of crimes referred to in
article 8 when a crime is alleged to have been committed by its nationals or on
its territory. A declaration under this article may be withdrawn at any time.
The provisions of this article shall be reviewed at the Review Conference
convened in accordance with article 123, paragraph 1.
Article 125
Signature, ratification, acceptance, approval or
accession
1. This
Statute shall be open for signature by all States in Rome, at the headquarters
of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, on 17 July 1998.
Thereafter, it shall remain open for signature in Rome at the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs of Italy until 17 October 1998. After that date, the Statute
shall remain open for signature in New York, at United Nations Headquarters,
until 31 December 2000.
2. This
Statute is subject to ratification, acceptance or approval by signatory States.
Instruments of ratification, acceptance or approval shall be deposited with the
Secretary-General of the United Nations.
3. This
Statute shall be open to accession by all States. Instruments of accession shall
be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
Article 126
Entry into force
1. This
Statute shall enter into force on the first day of the month after the 60th day
following the date of the deposit of the 60th instrument of ratification,
acceptance, approval or accession with the Secretary-General of the United
Nations.
2. For each
State ratifying, accepting, approving or acceding to this Statute after the
deposit of the 60th instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or
accession, the Statute shall enter into force on the first day of the month
after the 60th day following the deposit by such State of its instrument of
ratification, acceptance, approval or accession.
Article 127
Withdrawal
1. A State
Party may, by written notification addressed to the Secretary-General of the
United Nations, withdraw from this Statute. The withdrawal shall take effect one
year after the date of receipt of the notification, unless the notification
specifies a later date.
2. A State
shall not be discharged, by reason of its withdrawal, from the obligations
arising from this Statute while it was a Party to the Statute, including any
financial obligations which may have accrued. Its withdrawal shall not affect
any cooperation with the Court in connection with criminal investigations and
proceedings in relation to which the withdrawing State had a duty to cooperate
and which were commenced prior to the date on which the withdrawal became
effective, nor shall it prejudice in any way the continued consideration of any
matter which was already under consideration by the Court prior to the date on
which the withdrawal became effective.
Article 128
Authentic texts
The original of this Statute, of which the Arabic, Chinese, English, French,
Russian and Spanish texts are equally authentic, shall be deposited with the
Secretary-General of the United Nations, who shall send certified copies thereof
to all States.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned, being duly authorized thereto by their
respective Governments, have signed this Statute.
DONE at Rome, this 17th day of July 1998.
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