Communiqué: 4 juin 2010

ICC - ICC and IBA launch national “Calling African Female Lawyers” campaign in Uganda

Communiqué: 04.06.2010


ICC and IBA launch national “Calling African Female Lawyers” campaign in Uganda

ICC-CPI-20100604-PR539

Image
From Left to right: Judge Elizabeth Ibanda-Nahamya of the Special War Crimes Division of the High Court of Uganda, ICC Registrar, Silvana Arbia and Athaliah L. Molokomme, Attorney-General of Botswana ©ICC-CPI

Today, the national campaign for Uganda to increase the number of African female lawyers authorised to practice before the International Criminal Court (ICC) was launched in Kampala. The campaign, which is a part of a broader, international six-month campaign jointly-conducted by the ICC and the International Bar Association (IBA), aims to encourage experienced female lawyers from Uganda to play a crucial role at the ICC by representing victims or defendants in proceedings before the Court.


The campaign in Uganda started off with a panel discussion, chaired by Lorraine Smith, Programme Manager at the IBA, in the context of the Review Conference of the Rome Statute. In her keynote speech, Athaliah L. Molokomme, Attorney-General of Botswana, encouraged female lawyers to apply to the ICC List of Counsel, which has been created to ensure that every person implicated in proceedings before the Court receives effective legal representation. ICC Registrar, Silvana Arbia, stressed that applications from qualified African female lawyers would be given priority throughout the campaign period until the end of 2010. Judge Elizabeth Ibanda-Nahamya of the Special War Crimes Division of the High Court of Uganda, said: “This campaign could not have come at a better time. With the advent of women’s emancipation and affirmative action, many women have made it to law school and have attained the requisite legal education. What they need now is motivation.” Bruce Kyerere, President of the Ugandan Law Society, suggested that law faculties include international criminal law as a subject in their curricula. The event concluded with a session of questions and answers, during which the approximately 70 participants engaged in a lively discussion.

The “Calling African Female Lawyers” campaign was internationally launched on 12 May, 2010 at the Court’s headquarters in The Hague. To date, women counsel are still under-represented on the ICC List of Counsel. In particular, the ICC recognises the need to increase the number of female counsel from African countries, including those with situations under investigation before the Court. Currently, less than four per cent of all members of the ICC List of Counsel are African women.

During an intense information campaign, the ICC and the IBA will organise special events and will distribute comprehensive information packages mainly through the national bar associations in a number of African and European countries, providing detailed information on how to become a member of the ICC List of Counsel and the List of Assistants to Counsel. Electronic copies of the information package can be downloaded from the campaign website at http://www.femalecounsel.icc-cpi.info/.


For more information on the campaign in Uganda, please contact Maria Mabinty Kamara, Field Outreach Co-ordinator for Uganda on Tel: +256-772-700655 or email: [email protected]

For further information on the international campaign, please contact Ms Sonia Robla, Chief of Public Information and Documentation Section at +31 (0)70 515-8089 or +31 (0) 6 46 44 87 26 or at [email protected].