President of the Assembly visit to The Hague

The President of the Assembly of States Parties (“the Assembly”), Ambassador Christian Wenaweser, visited The Hague from 27 to 29 June 2011. He met in an informal meeting with 16 of the judges of the Court for an open and informal exchange of views on, inter alia, current and future relationship between the Court and the United Nations, in particular in light of the latest referrals to the ICC by the Security Council; aspects of the work of the Court with relevance to its budget, including the budget cycle; possibilities to expedite judicial proceedings; and the Assembly’s Study Group on Governance. He also held a retreat, with the participation of the Vice-President of the Assembly and Chair of The Hague Working Group, Ambassador Jorge Lomónaco, the President of the Court, the Prosecutor, the Registrar, the Chef de Cabinet of the Presidency and the Director of the Secretariat of the Assembly, for an informal exchange on matters of mutual interest to States Parties and the Court, in particular the budget for 2012 and on other topics concerning the relationship between the Assembly and the Court. In addition, he held meetings with senior officials of the Court, members of the diplomatic community, including the Secretary – General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, Mr. Ben Knapen. The President also briefed The Hague based ICC Group of Friends on Assembly related activities and forthcoming challenges. In addition, he convened a Bureau meeting in order to discuss issues, such as interim premises and the independent oversight mechanism, as well as to provide an update on the work of the Search Committee for the Position of Prosecutor. At a press conference, the President welcomed the 27 June 2011 decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber I to issue warrants of arrest for Muammar Abu Minyar Gaddafi, Saif Al Islam Gaddafi and Abdullah Al-Senussi and expressed his appreciation for Court’s efforts in rendering this decision in a quick and efficient manner. He also emphasized the obligations of States Parties and the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya to execute the arrest warrants and the need to secure the financing of the costs incurred by the Court. Furthermore, the For further information on the Assembly of States Parties, please e-mail to asp@icc-cpi.int. President welcomed Tunisia as the 116th State, first northern African State and fourth State of the Arab League, to become party to the Rome Statute. He referred to the accession as “…an important development that is testimony to the fundamental changes that we have been witnessing over the past few months, in particular in that region, but also globally.” He also provided a short update on the work of the Search Committee for the Position of Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court.