ACP-EU JOINT ASSEMBLY - 24 September 1996

ACP-EU/1866,/96/COMP

JOINT MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

by Mr Castagnède, on behalf of the ARE Group

by Pons Grau and Mr Sauquillo, on behalf of the PSE Group

by Mr Bertens and Mr André, on behalf of the ELDR Group

by Mr Pettinari, on behalf of the GUE/NGL Group

by Mrs Aelvoet and Mr Telkämper, on behalf of the Green Group

by Mrs Baldi, on behalf of the UPE Group

by Mrs Sandbaek , on behalf of the EDN Group

replacing motions for resolutions AP/1807/96, AP/1828/96 and AP/1830/96 on the establishment of the Permanent International Criminal Court The ACP-EU Joint Assembly, meeting in Luxembourg from 23 to 26 September 1996,

A. having regard to the growing number of war crimes and crimes against humanity being committed in a large number of countries and which go unpunished,

B. whereas public opinion is increasingly aware of the need to bring the

perpetrators of these crimes to justice,

C. whereas it is urgently necessary to create the basic core of an impartial international justice system, principally in order to try war crimes and crimes against humanity wherever they may be committed,

D. whereas significant progress has been made in this direction thanks to the creation and the first concrete actions of the ad hoc international tribunals on former Yugoslavia and Rwanda,

E. welcoming the fact that there is no provision for the death penalty either in the Statutes of the ad hoc tribunals or in the draft Statutes of the permanent court,

F. whereas the 50th session of the UN General Assembly formally decided in autumn 1995 to instruct a Preparatory Committee to complete the work on drawing up the Statutes of the International Court with a view to enabling the UN to convene the Constituent Conference of the Permanent International Criminal Court,

G. whereas the Preparatory Committee closed its last session on 30 August 1996, calling on the UN General Assembly to convene the Plenipotentiary Diplomatic Conference before the end of 1998,

H. whereas in spite of this positive outcome, obtained chiefly as a result of the determination of a large number of Member States of the European Union, there is still strong opposition from some countries as well as reservations from two member States of the EU, and whereas it is more than ever necessary to overcome these obstacles in order to permit the final consolidation of an international criminal jurisdiction, whereas the Italian Government has already declared itself willing to host the Plenipotentiary Diplomatic Conference for the establishment of the Court,

J. whereas the work of a Permanent International Criminal Court maybe followed by that of a 'truth commission',

1. Calls on international and regional organization and istitutions to cooperate with thePreparatory Commitee for the Plenipotentiary Diplomatic Conference before the end of 1998;

2. Instructs its Co-Presidents to forward this resolution to the ACP-EU Council of Ministers, the Commission, and the United Nations.