According to the Coalition for the International Criminal Court (CICC) a global network of more than 2,500 civil society organizations by ratifying by April 1st it will enable states parties to have the opportunity to participate in the forthcoming Review Conference convened by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, to be held in Kampala, Uganda from May 31 to June 11, later this year.

“The Court’s jurisdiction grows each time a state ratifies the ICC treaty,” said Brigitte Suhr, CICC Director of Regional Programs. “The Court’s long term effectiveness and legitimacy is dependent on a growing web of states being committed to it. We therefore call on states that haven’t joined, to do so now, and call on those that have joined to recommit themselves publicly to support and cooperate with the Court’s work.”

The Conference is a special meeting of ICC states parties to consider amendments to the Rome Statute and to take stock of its implementation and impact.

The Rome Statute and the ICC represent the greatest advance in international criminal law in the last fifty years. The Statute, adopted by a vote of 120-7 in Rome in 1998, called for a review of the Statute and the Court seven years after its entry into force.

“The CICC believes the Review Conference offers an excellent opportunity for strengthening the commitment of world leaders and the world community to this historic initiative to end impunity for the worst perpetrators of the most serious crimes of concern to the international community,” said CICC Convenor William R. Pace.

The discussions at the Review Conference will be centered on two substantive tracks: proposals to amend the Rome Statute and a stocktaking process focused on four important topics related to the impact and implementation of the treaty.

“We call on governments that have not done so to complete the process of ratification of the Rome Statute and to prepare national legislation providing for implementation and cooperation with the Treaty and the new system of international criminal justice it has created,” added Pace.

The ICC is complementary to national criminal jurisdictions. States should enact national laws implementing the provisions of the treaty, to ensure that national justice systems can investigate and prosecute individuals accused of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide and cooperate with the Court in its investigations and prosecutions.

The Coalition also reiterates its call for governments to ratify the APIC and adopt robust ICC legislation in time for the Review Conference, as these actions will enrich and invigorate the work in Kampala, and will ultimately make both the ICC and individual states stronger and better equipped to fulfil their role in ensuring that genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes no longer go unpunished.