President of the Republic of Bolivia visits the International Criminal Court

H.E the President of the Republic of Bolivia, Mr Evo Morales Ayma, visited the International Criminal Court (ICC) yesterday, 27 November 2006, as part of his trip to the Netherlands. President Morales and his delegation met with the ICC President Judge Philippe Kirsch, the 2nd Vice-President Judge René Blattmann, and the Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo.

During the meeting between the Bolivian delegation and the ICC representatives, President Kirsch thanked President Morales for Bolivia’s continued support for the International Criminal Court. President Kirsch provided an overview of the Court’s current activities and emphasised that the co-operation of States Parties and others was essential to the success of the Court.

The Chief Prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo explained the mandate of the Office of the Prosecutor and clarified the requirements for jurisdiction of the Court and complementarity, emphasising that an intervention by the Office would only proceed if states are unwilling or unable to genuinely carry out judicial proceedings.            

President Morales thanked his hosts for receiving him and the delegations then discussed the role of the ICC and international justice more broadly.

The Republic of Bolivia signed the Rome Statute in July 1998 and has been a ratified member of the Assembly of States Parties since June 2002.