November 2, 1995

Statement by Mrs. Hemda Golan, Representative of Israel to the Sixth Committee

...The report of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Establishment of an International Criminal Court shows that in the past year much thought has gone in to this subject. Many significant problems in the original proposal have been identified and discussed at length. In some cases, interesting means of overcoming these problems have been proposed, which merit further consideration and clarification. In others, unfortunately, the problems remain unsolved...

...It would also be necessary to provide that the request may be refused if the execution is likely to prejudice the sovereignty, security, public order or other essential interests of the requested country.

in addition, a clear definition of the crimes subject to the jurisdiction of the Court is necessary for its appropriate functioning.

This list is by no means exhaustive, and many other major issues need consideration - among them those listed in the Annex to the report.

as to the future work on this subject, my delegation favors a step-by-step approach in order to further consider the relevant issues not yet settled: the proposal to hold additional meetings during next year to further discuss the major substantive issues arising out of the draft Statute prepared by the ILC is a constructive step in that direction.