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United Nations Security Council

PGA’s Secretariat and PGA members of parliament have publicly and repeatedly called on the Security Council to actively make use of its prerogatives and refer situations of alleged commission of international crimes to the ICC; UN Photo/Loey Felipe
PGA’s Secretariat and PGA members of parliament have publicly and repeatedly called on the Security Council to actively make use of its prerogatives and refer situations of alleged commission of international crimes to the ICC; UN Photo/Loey Felipe

What is the UNSC?

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is the organ whose primary responsibility is the maintenance of international peace and security under the UN Charter. It has 15 members, and each Member has one vote. China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States serve as the body's five permanent members and can veto any Security Council resolution.

Under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations, the UNSC has the power to decide what measures are to be taken in situations involving "threats to the peace, breaches of the peace, or acts of aggression”. Decisions taken under Chapter VII are binding on UN members.

In the framework of the Rome Statute of the ICC and acting under Chapter VII of the United Nations, the Security Council can:

  • Refer situations to the ICC where it would otherwise not have jurisdiction, thus promoting the universality of the ICC; and
  • Promote or enhance cooperation and assistance from States Parties and not Parties to the ICC.

Yet, to date, the Security Council has:

  • Referred only two situations - Sudan, under Resolution 1593 (2005) and Libya, under Resolution 1970 (2011) - in which it expressly recognizes that States not Parties have no obligation under the Rome Statute, and instead only urges them to cooperate with the ICC.
  • Failed to provide adequate support to the enforcement of arrest warrants and compliance with the orders of the Court in situations referred by it.
  • Not addressed situations of non-cooperation with the Rome Statute and the Resolutions of the Council itself.
  • Purported to limited the financial resources that the UN could offer to support the costs of investigations and prosecutions in cases arising from situations referred by the Council.

PGA’s Work

PGA organized several high-level strategic meetings and consultations between its members, Ambassadors to the UN, experts and the civil society on the relationship between the UNSC and the ICC.

The PGA Secretariat compiled the practice of the Security Council towards the ICC since the adoption of the Rome Statute in 1998 to assist experts, parliamentarians and other policy-makers interested in having a deeper understanding of the issue.

PGA’s Secretariat and PGA members of parliament have publicly and repeatedly called on the Security Council to actively make use of its prerogatives and refer situations of alleged commission of international crimes to the ICC and ensure the cooperation of the States with the Court.


ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda briefs the UN Security Council on the situation in Sudan and South Sudan

Status of the Rome Statute System as of October 2024:

 
States that have ratified the Rome Statute [125]
 
States that have signed the Rome Statute but have not ratified it yet [29]
 
States that have withdrawn from the Rome Statute [2]
 
States that have neither signed nor ratified the Rome Statute
 

125 countries are States Parties to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. Of these, 33 are African States, 19 are Asia-Pacific States, 20 are from Eastern Europe, 28 are from Latin American and Caribbean States, and 25 are from Western European and other States.

Work of PGA in this Country:

Publication

Parliamentary Kit on the International Criminal Court
Parliamentary Kit on the International Criminal Court

Parliamentary Kit on the International Criminal Court

It is imperative that the Rome Statute be ratified universally for the successful functioning of the Court. Parliamentarians should ensure that the ICC is truly universal.

Description

Created by the Rome Statute, the International Criminal Court (ICC) is the first permanent and independent international court capable of investigating and bringing to justice individuals who commit the most serious violations of international criminal law, international humanitarian law, and human rights.

The Rome Statute defines the crimes under the Court’s jurisdiction and provides the general principles and procedures for the operation of the Court. It also outlines the cooperation obligations of its State Parties. It is imperative that the Rome Statute be ratified universally for the successful functioning of the Court. Parliamentarians should ensure that the ICC is truly universal.

PDF(s)

Additional Details

  • Publication Type: Toolkit
  • Author(s): Parliamentarians for Global Action

Publication

National Nomination of Judicial Candidates for the International Criminal Court
National Nomination of Judicial Candidates for the International Criminal Court

National Nomination of Judicial Candidates for the International Criminal Court

Criteria and recommendations for parliamentarians to improve national nomination procedures for International Criminal Court judicial candidates.

Description

The ICC is the first and only permanent independent court with the mandate to investigate and prosecute individuals responsible for committing international crimes, namely genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression. Its 18 judges from around the world, elected for a nine-year term, play a key role in ensuring this expectation is lived up to through their primary mandate to render authoritative and high-quality jurisprudence and guarantee fair trials.

Therefore, the quality of the judges has fundamental importance to the performance, efficiency, and effectiveness of the ICC, which is at the heart of the long-term success of the ICC and the Rome Statute system as a whole. In this handbook, PGA sets forth specific criteria and recommendations for Parliamentarians to encourage their governments to improve national nomination procedures for ICC judicial candidates and adopt good practices and requirements to ensure these processes are fair, transparent, and merit-based. The goal of robust nomination procedures is to ensure that only candidate judges or jurists of the highest caliber make it on the ballot.

PDF(s)

Additional Details

  • Publication Type: Handbook
  • Author(s): Parliamentarians for Global Action

Publication

Ratification and Implementation of the Kampala Amendments on the Crime of Aggression to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court
Ratification and Implementation of the Kampala Amendments on the Crime of Aggression to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

Ratification and Implementation of the Kampala Amendments on the Crime of Aggression to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

A handbook aimed at assisting States in ratifying the Kampala Amendments, helping criminalize the most serious forms of the illegal use of force.

Description

It is our honor and privilege to present to you the Third Edition of the Handbook on the Ratification and Implementation of the Kampala Amendments on the Crime of Aggression to the Rome Statute of the ICC.

It is the product of our collaborative effort aimed at assisting States in ratifying the amendments adopted by consensus in Kampala and helping criminalize the most serious forms of the illegal use of force.

PDF(s)

Additional Details

  • Publication Type: Handbook
  • Author(s): Permanent Mission of the Principality of Liechtenstein to the United Nations; Global Institute for the Prevention of Aggression; Liechtenstein Institute on Self-Determination at Princeton University (LISD); (Drafting Assistance by PGA)