Observation for the Review Conference of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC)
May 31, 2010
Japan Federation of Bar Associations
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Observation
The Japan Federation of Bar Associations expresses the following observation to the ICC and the governments of each participating state in the Review Conference, concerning stocktaking of the Review Conference for the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
- Observation concerning Universality of the ICC
The ICC is a court exercising jurisdiction against "those who commit the most serious crimes of concern to the international community as a whole."(*1) In order to achieve this, it is important to achieve participation from all regions of the world;
however there are regions, especially Asia, where there is insufficient participation in the ICC and ratification of the Rome Statute. We believe that the ICC and Assembly of States Parties can encourage the various nations of such regions to participate in the Rome Statute by appealing to the bars and lawyers' associations of each country and implementing measures to promote understanding about the Rome statute and the ICC. - Opinion concerning Issues of Lessons Learned
A fair trial and expeditious trials are internationally recognized human rights and form the core of legitimate criminal processes. In order to resolve some of the issues about how to ensure fair trials and expeditious trials, the Presidency of the ICC has sought to establish a venue for constructive dialogue, without prejudice to the independence of the judiciary, between various ICC organs and those representing criminal lawyers and the legal representatives of victims.
