Courtys and partners donate € 75,000 to the Trust Fund for Victims on the occasion of the Day of International Criminal Justice
On 17th July 2014, Courtys (a combination of Visser & Smit Bouw and Boele & van Eesteren, part of the VolkerWessels Group) made a donation of € 75,000 to the International Criminal Court Trust Fund for Victims. The donation was made on the occasion of the commemoration of the Day of International Criminal Justice and it was handed over at the construction site of the Court’s new Permanent Premises in The Hague. This amount is a result of both Courtys’ contribution, and its initiative to invite its partners to participate in a joint donation.
Courtys is the contractor for the construction of the new ICC Premises in The Hague. The company took part in the commemoration of 17th July, Day of International Criminal Justice, jointly with the Permanent Premises Project Team of the International Criminal Court and the Trust Fund for Victims. Present at this event were representatives from Courtys' subcontractors who also contributed to the initiative.
The donation of € 75,000, which is the largest private contribution received by the TFV to date, signals the recognition by the private sector of the importance of the ICC in the fight against impunity, as well as the unique role of the Trust Fund for Victims to address the harm suffered by victims as a result of crimes under jurisdiction of the ICC.
The Executive Director of the Trust Fund for Victims, Mr. Pieter de Baan, received the cheque from the Project Manager of Courtys, Mr. Bart van Eijk who said, "We are not only proud that we can construct the ICC Permanent Premises, but we are also very proud that, together with all our partners, we have managed to collect a donation for the Trust Fund for Victims. This shows the commitment of all parties to the ultimate goal for which we are building the ICC Permanent Premises: International Criminal Justice ".
Pieter de Baan stated: "The Trust Fund is very grateful for this wonderful and unprecedented initiative by Bart van Eijk and his staff at Courtys, coming to the support of victims in association with their partners. This initiative demonstrates that "justice matters", as a rallying cry for the international community, can be made to have real meaning for victims of crimes against humanity and war crimes – people who desperately need recognition and assistance to overcome their harm."
Furthermore, about 100 people working on the construction of the new premises took part in a group picture for the ICC's social media campaign Justice Matters https://www.facebook.com/justicematters.17july. Justice Matters is a worldwide call for photos to be posted on Facebook in the lead-up to 17th July, expressing support for international criminal justice from around the world, and to connect those who strive for this important cause.
About 17 July, Day of International Criminal Justice
17 July is the Day of International Criminal Justice. It marks the anniversary of the adoption of the Rome Statute on 17 July 1998, the founding treaty of the ICC, which seeks to protect people from genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the crime of aggression. 17 July unites all those who wish to support justice, promote victims' rights, and help prevent crimes that threaten the peace, security and well-being of the world.
About the ICC
The International Criminal Court is the first permanent, treaty-based, international criminal court established to help end impunity for the perpetrators of the most serious crimes of concern to the international community, namely the crime of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, and thus to contribute to the prevention of such crimes.
About the Trust Fund for Victims at the International Criminal Court
With the unique mandates of both implementing Court-ordered reparations awards and the provision of assistance to victims of crimes under the ICC's jurisdiction, the Trust Fund for Victims at the ICC offers key advantages for promoting lasting peace, reconciliation, and wellbeing in war-torn societies.
The TFV fulfils two mandates for victims of crimes under jurisdiction of the ICC:
Reparations: implementing Court-ordered reparations awards against a convicted person when directed by the Court to do so.
Assistance: using voluntary contributions from donors to provide victims and their families in situations where the Court is active with physical rehabilitation, material support, and/or psychological rehabilitation.
Currently, the TFV is providing a broad range of support under its second mandate in northern Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo – including access to reproductive health services, vocational training, trauma-based counselling, reconciliation workshops, reconstructive surgery and more – to an estimated 110,000 victims of crimes under the ICC's jurisdiction. Most of our projects have incorporated both gender-specific and child-specific interventions to support the special vulnerability of women, girls, and boys.
About Courtys
Courtys, selected to construct the permanent premises for the ICC, is a combination of Visser & Smit Bouw and Boele & van Eesteren, part of the VolkerWessels Group. VolkerWessels is a Dutch group of companies with 14,500 employees in 120 operating companies and offices in the Netherlands, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States.
About ICC Permanent Premises Project
ICC Permanent Premises is a project that has as its main goal the construction of the permanent headquarters of the International Criminal Court (ICC). As a permanent judicial institution, the ICC requires functional permanent premises to enable the Court to execute its duties effectively and to reflect the significance of the ICC in the fight against impunity for crimes of concern to the international community. Construction will be completed towards the end of 2015, when the premises will be ready for use.
For more information, visit:
International Criminal Court at
www.icc-cpi.int
Trust Fund for Victims at
www.trustfundforvictims.org
Permanent Premises Project at
www.icc-permanentpremises.org