People's Republic of China

Mission to the United Nations

Statement By Mr. Gao Feng

Representative of the People's Republic of China

To the United Nations

At the 54th Session of the

United Nations General Assembly

(Sixth Committee)

On Item 158:

ESTABLISHMENT OF AN INTERNATIONAL

CRIMINAL COURT

New York, October 21, 1999

Mr. Chairman,

With a view to ensuring the fair and efficient functioning of the International criminal court to be established, the preparatory committee, after the Diplomatic Conference in Rome, started to formulate Elements of Crimes and Rules of Procedure and Evidence in accordance with GA Resolution 53/105. To date, the preparatory committee has met for two sessions during which the Chinese Government took an active part in the formulation of those two documents with an earnest, practical and constructive approach. We are satisfied with the progress achieved so far in the work of the preparatory committee and appreciate the positive and constructive approach taken by all members of the committee. We believe that to maintain this cooperative working atmosphere is undoubtedly conducive to the early completion of the two documents.

Mr. Chairman,

Elements of Crimes is one of the applicable laws of the Court as stipulated in

Article 21 of the Statute. Its provisions cover elements which constitute crimes

under the jurisdiction of the Court and therefore, will play an important role among the applicable laws of the Court. We maintain that in formulating this document, the following principles should be followed:

1. The document should fully respect, in letter and spirit, the provisions of

the Statute concerning crimes under the jurisdiction of the Court;

2. According to the principle of "nullun crime sine lege", the elements which

constitute crimes under the jurisdiction of the Court should be described in

accurate terms;

3. The document should reflect the purpose and objective of the Court to suppres the most serious international crimes.

Only by strictly abiding by the above principles, can the document accurately

reflect the spirit of the Statute and enjoy the universal acceptance of the

international community. Any attempt to lower or raise the threshold of crimes, or to expand or limit the jurisdiction of the Court will only weaken the function of the Court in suppressing the most serious crimes and runs counter to

the original purpose of the international community for establishing such a

court.

Mr. Chairman,

Rules of Procedure and Evidence concerns many parts of the Statute. Its

provisions are not only complex but also call for harmonization of different legal systems and rules of nations. The document is highly technical in nature. In order to ensure the fair and efficient functioning of the Court, we are of the view that the document should be as comprehensive as possible and have some

flexibility built in at the same time. Although Rules of Procedure and Evidence only provide for the procedure according to which the Court functions, any irrational provision may create a serious imbalance in the rights and obligations of the parties concerned and thereby runs counter to the purposes and objectives of the Court.

Mr. Chairman,

On the crime of aggression, the Chinese Government supports the establishment of a working group on this crime. We consider the crime of aggression among the most serious international crimes which should be suppressed beyond any doubt. Meanwhile, we are aware that defining the crime of aggression is a difficult job which involves sensitive political and legal issues that have to be solved. We maintain that in defining the crime of aggression, the role of the Security

Council should be reflected and the Charter of the United Nations be adhered to.

We hope that the international community will find a proper solution to this issue with a realistic and cooperative approach.

Mr. Chairman,

The time available to the preparatory committee is limited while the work it

faces is enormous. With regard to Elements of Crimes, in addition to provisions on the crime of aggression and the crimes against humanity which remain to be

considered, a second reading has to be conducted on all rolling texts. In spite of certain progress achieved on Rules of Procedure and Evidence, a lot of provisions in that document require further discussion. It is undoubtedly

difficult to bring so much work to a successful conclusion within three weeks. It is our hope that the preparatory committee will, on the basis of ensuring the quality of the documents, complete the relevant documents at an early date. In light of this, we are in favor of the request to extend the duration of the session as appropriate.

Mr. Chairman,

The Chinese delegation will continue to give importance to and take an active

part in the work of the preparatory committee. We are ready to join other

delegations in a continued effort to establish the international criminal court and to promote the universality and authority of such a court.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.