ICC - Ceremony for the solemn undertaking of the Deputy Prosecutor (Prosecutions) of the ICC

Ceremony for the solemn undertaking of the Deputy Prosecutor (Prosecutions) of the ICC

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In a ceremony on Monday, 1 November 2004 Ms Fatou Bensouda of Gambia will make her solemn undertaking as Deputy Prosecutor (Prosecutions) of the International Criminal Court.

Ms Bensouda will make her undertaking in an open session of the Court presided by Judge Philippe Kirsch, President of the ICC. The ceremony will be held at the Court premises in The Hague at 5 P.M. on 1 November. The session will be open for invited guests and media representatives. Following the solemn undertaking of the Deputy Prosecutor there will be statements by ICC Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo, Chief Prosecutor Carla Del Ponte of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia and by Prosecutor Hassan Jallow of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. After the Court session there will be a reception.

Ms Fatou Bensouda was elected to the office of Deputy Prosecutor (Prosecutions) for a term of nine years by the Assembly of States Parties of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on 8 September 2004. 
The new Deputy Prosecutor (Prosecutions) was selected from a group of three candidates submitted by the Prosecutor to the States Parties on 15 July 2004.
As Deputy Prosecutor (Prosecutions), Ms Fatou Bensouda will head the management of the Prosecution Division of the Office of the Prosecutor. She will report directly to the Prosecutor.

Ms Fatou Bensouda has worked as a lawyer, a prosecutor, and a government Minister in the Republic of the Gambia. She began her career as a Public Prosecutor in 1987 and rose successively to the offices of Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions, Solicitor General, Attorney General and Secretary of State (Minister) for Justice of her country. In May 2002, she took up the post of Legal Adviser and Trial Attorney at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. She has been the manager of a leading commercial bank and a delegate of the Gambia to the meetings of the Preparatory Commission for the International Criminal Court in New York in 1999.

Press conference prior to the ceremony

Prior to the ceremony, on 1 November 2004, at 16:15, at the ICC conference room C-0286, there will be a press conference by ICC Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo, Chief Prosecutor Carla Del Ponte of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia and by Prosecutor Hassan Jallow of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.

All journalists wishing to attend the press conference and the ceremony should request accreditation by filling the Media Request Accreditation Form  and sending it to [email protected] before 25 October 2004.
The results of the accreditation procedure will be posted in the ICC web site on Wednesday, 27 October 2004. All journalists must present passport or a valid ID with photo to have access to the ICC.

No admittance will be allowed to any of the scheduled events without prior accreditation. Journalists are expected to arrive at the ICC premises no later than 16:00 hours.

• For information about the ICC please contact Sonia Robla +31 (0)70 515-8089.
• For information about the ICC Office of the Prosecutor please contact Christian Palme +31 (0)70 515-8487.
• For information about media accreditation and ICC issues please contact Joanne Moore +31 (0)70 515-8438.

Source: Office of the Prosecutor