Comments and remarks are - as always - much more than welcome, thanks

The xxxx Parliament,

- Recalling its previous resolutions on an International Criminal Court (ICC),

- Recalling a resolution adopted by the European Parliament on the ICC on November ?, 1997,

- Recalling UN General Assembly resolution 207 adopted on December 15, 1997, in which the United Nations decided to hold a Diplomatic Conference from June 15 to July 17, 1998 in Rome, Italy, to establish an ICC,

- Whereas crimes against humanity, genocide and war crimes continue to be perpetrated, and national juridical systems often fail to prosecute those guilty of these crimes,

- Whereas a permanent impartial system of international criminal justice is needed to stop the current reign of impunity and help prevent future serious violations of international law,

- Welcoming the progress in this direction made by the International Tribunals on the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda,

- Welcoming the increasing number of States participating in the negotiations and the progress made by the UN Preparatory Committee (PrepCom) for the establishment of the ICC,

- Welcoming the supportive statement by the Luxembourg Presidency of the European Union made at the 6th Committee of the UN General Assembly on October 20, 1997,

Calls on the Government to urge the Council of Europe and the Member States of the European Union (EU) to reach a common position on all aspects of the Statute for the ICC, and to act in concert in the 3-week session of the March-April PrepCom,

Stresses that in order to have an effective, fair and independent ICC negotiations should be guided by the same principles that have characterised the like-minded States' position at the PrepComs:

1) A Successful Diplomatic Conference with the prompt creation of an independent, fair and effective ICC;

2) The independence of the ICC from the Security Council

3) The independence of the Prosecutor (with ex officio power (?))

4) The extension of the inherent jurisdiction of the ICC to cover all the core crimes

5) The full co-operation of States with the ICC

6) The ICC final decision on questions of admissibility (with regards to the unavailability or unwillingness of national systems to proceed with a case.

7) A reasonable number of ratification (30 to 35) to make the ICC function

Moreover,

Stresses that the Statute of the Court must provide for long-term and secure financing and that the EU must be involved in securing this;

Stresses that the commitment of an increasing number of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) present at the UN PrepComs has made an important contribution to the negotiations, and calls on the Government, the Council of Europe and the Member States of the EU to do their utmost to ensure the participation, along the line of prior PrepComs, of NGOs in the Rome Treaty Conference in Rome in 1998.

Instructs the President of the (House, Chamber, Assembly and Senate) to forward this resolution to the Council of Europe, the European Commission, the governments of the Member States, the Secretary General of the United Nations and the President of the United Nations General Assembly;