Seminar on Cooperation with Focal points of Situation Countries
Technical Event to Enhance Cooperation |
The Hague | Netherlands (the) | Western European and other States
The fifth Focal Points Seminar provided an opportunity for the ICC to address challenges posed on a daily basis in relation to cooperation with States. Tackling these challenges remains of crucial importance to the ICC, since the Court cannot function without the cooperation of States, which are the enforcing arm of the Judges' decisions and the cooperation requests from the Court. Participants included a total of 35 focal points (Solicitors, Prosecutors, Attorneys General) from 17 different situation and non-situation countries (Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of Chad, Republic of Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Georgia, Jordan, Kenya, Libya, Mali, Guinea, Niger, Tunisia, Uganda). In addition, three experts from the Dutch War Crimes Unit in The Hague participated, alongside the co-facilitators for cooperation (France, Senegal) and the co-facilitators for complementarity of the ICC Assembly of States Parties (Australia, Romania). This event was made possible thanks to generous financial contributions from the European Commission, Netherlands and the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie.
ICC technical events focus on enhancing cooperation at operational levels amongst senior legal officials and other experts in Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Ministries of Justice, Ministries of Interior, as well as regional and international organisations, so as to allow the Court to carry out its mandate in an efficient and effective manner. In this regard, the Court’s technical events are specific in nature, focusing in particular on technical issues such as victim and witness protection, cooperation agreements, investigations, freezing of assets, arrest and surrender, enforcement of sentences, implementing legislation, ratification of the Rome Statute, strategies and policies, and the role of national experts in international criminal justice matters.
