21 August 1996 L/2804
PREPARATORY COMMITTEE ON ESTABLISHMENT OF INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT EXAMINES MANAGEMENT ISSUES, GROUNDS FOR JUDICIAL DISQUALIFICATION 19960821The registry of the proposed international criminal court, with responsibility for its overall management, should be subject to careful oversight mechanisms, the Preparatory Committee on the Establishment of an International Criminal Court was told this morning. The delegates discussed various issues pertaining to the composition and organization of the court, including the mandate of the presidency of the proposed court, grounds for excusing and disqualifying judges and election procedures for court members.According to the representative of the United States, the registry should be subject to controls that would prevent arbitrary decisions regarding such matters as court salaries and expenditures. Australia said that if the registrar was to be elected by the judges, only the most qualified candidates should be put forward. The representative of Japan said that terms of the draft statute governing the role of the registry should be re-drafted along the lines used in the statute of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. Judges and prosecutors should enjoy privileges and immunities comparable to those enjoyed by diplomats under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, he added. Regarding procedures for excusing or disqualifying court judges, Australia recommended that the statute enumerate such circumstances, such as serious illness, threats against a judge or conflicts of interest. The representative of the United States said that she saw no reason why judges of certain nationality should be disqualified. Disqualifications should not be left to the Presidency to make on an ad hoc basis. Italy added that disqualification grounds for prosecutors should be similar to those for the judges. Court judges should be free to undertake other employment provided that it did not conflict with their judicial duties, according to the representatives of the United States and of China. The United States representative noted that judges of the International Court of Judges often participate in teaching or publishing. International Criminal Court - 2 - Press Release L/2804 39th Meeting (AM) 21 August 1996 China said that the presidency of the proposed court should limit itself to the administrative tasks. Trinidad and Tobago said that the presidency could have a hand in other tasks, keeping in mind the need to not overburden that office. The representatives of the United Kingdom and of Trinidad and Tobago asked that the term "procuracy" in the draft statute should be replaced by "prosecutor's office". The United Kingdom noted that for English speakers, the term procuracy had a "vaguely obscene" connotation. Trinidad and Tobago also preferred the term "office of the prosecutor", as among other things the word procuracy was difficult to pronounce. Italy, recalling the proposed term of five years for the office of the prosecutor, suggested that a longer term, with no possibility of re-election, would better ensure the consistency and independence of the office. The representative of the Russian Federation said that the draft statute needed greater clarity regarding the terms by which appeals chambers were to be established. Voicing concern about the possibility of concentration of power in the presidency, Singapore suggested that the appeals chamber would be "strengthened" if its members were elected by the judges of the court, rather than through "some sort of appointment by the presidency". A similar procedure might be applied to the members of the trial chamber. Since the draft only specified the presence of three lawyers specialized in international law in the appeals chamber, the representative added, an additional provision was needed as "the possibility of a total absence of criminal law experts in the appeals chamber should not be left open". Returning to a point raised earlier in the week, Norway said that the court should seek to achieve gender balance in the designation of judges. The suggestion, however, should not be a quota for female judges; nor should the employment of female judges be considered a form of affirmative action. Finland pointed out the need for the judges to be able to adopt supplementary rules according to the functioning of the court. States party to the court, as well as the judges, should be able to take part in the amendment of the rules, he added. The Preparatory Committee will meet again tomorrow at 10 a.m. to continue its discussion. * *** *
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