Key ICC Judicial & Other Developments (Jan. – June 2021)
1) INVESTIGATIONS/CASES
a. Mahamat Saïd Abdel Kani Case – Central African Republic [Arrested and Transferred to the Court]
- On 24 January 2021, Mr. Kani was arrested and transferred to the premises of the ICC to face justice for his alleged crimes. He is accused of several counts of crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in CAR between April and November 2013.
- Mr. Kani made his first appearance on the 28 and 29 January 2021, and the confirmation of charges hearing has been scheduled for 5 October 2021.
Photo: International Criminal Court
b. Paul Gicheru Case – Kenya [Request Interim Release]
Photo: International Criminal Court
- On 4 February 2021, the Trial Chamber IX of the ICC found Mr. Ongwen guilty for a total of 61 counts comprising crimes against humanity and war crimes, committed in Northern Uganda between 1 July 2002 and 31 December 2005.
- The judgment sets a key precedent as it is the first time that an international criminal court has found a person guilty of forced marriage. In this respect, the decision makes a fundamental contribution to the development of international criminal law in matters of sexual offences.
- On 6 May 2021, Trial Chamber IX sentenced Dominic Ongwen to 25 years of imprisonment. The period of his detention between 4 January 2015 and 6 May 2021 will be deducted from the total time of imprisonment imposed on him. See further information on this case.
Photo: International Criminal Court
d. Situation in Palestine
- On 5 February 2021, Pre-Trial Chamber I of the ICC decided, by majority, that the Court’s territorial jurisdiction in the Situation in Palestine, a State party to the ICC, extends to the territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
- The Pre-Trial Chamber I recalled that the ICC is not constitutionally competent to determine matters of statehood that would bind the international community. By ruling on the territorial scope of its jurisdiction, the Chamber is neither adjudicating a border dispute under international law nor prejudging the question of any future borders. The Chamber’s ruling was for the sole purpose of defining the Court’s territorial jurisdiction.
- Followed by this decision, the Prosecutor announced on 3 March 2021, the opening of her investigation into the Situation in Palestine.
e. Yekatom and Ngaïssona Case – Central African Republic [Commencement of Trial]
- On 16 February 2021, the trial in the case The Prosecutor v. Alfred Yekatom and Patrice-Edouard Ngaïssona opened before Trial Chamber V of the ICC for war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly committed in CAR. During the hearings, the Prosecution, the Legal Representatives of the Victims, and the Defense of Mr. Ngaïssona delivered their opening statements.
Photos: International Criminal Court
f. Bosco Ntaganda Case – Democratic Republic of Congo [Reparation Orders]
- Trial Chamber VI of the ICC delivered in a public hearing on 8 March 2021, its Order on Reparations to victims under article 75 of the Rome Statute in the case of The Prosecutor v. Bosco Ntaganda.
- The Chamber set the total reparations award for which Mr. Ntaganda was liable at USD 30,000,000. However, the Chamber found him to be indigent for the purposes of reparations and encouraged the Trust Fund for Victims to complement the reparation awards to the extent possible.
- On 30 March 2021, the Appeals Chamber confirmed, by majority, the decision of Trial Chamber VI of 8 July 2019, which found Bosco Ntaganda guilty of 18 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Furthermore, the Appeals Chamber unanimously confirmed the Trial Chamber’s decision of 7 November 2019, by which Mr. Ntaganda was sentenced to a total of 30 years of imprisonment. The conviction and the sentence are now final.
- For further information about the case, please click here.
Photo: International Criminal Court
- On 31 March 2021, the Appeals Chamber delivered its judgment and confirmed, by majority, Judge Ibáñez and Judge Bossa dissenting, the decision of the Trial Chamber.
Photos: International Criminal Court
2) PRELIMINARY EXAMINATIONS
a. Situation in the Philippines
The Prosecutor of the ICC, announced on 14 June 2021, that the Preliminary Examination into the situation of the Republic of the Philippines concluded and she requested judicial authorization to proceed with a formal investigation.- The Office of the Prosecutor determined that there is reasonable basis to believe that crimes against humanity have been committed in the Philippines between 1 July 2016 and 16 March 2019, in the context of the Government’s “war on drug” campaign.
- Although the Philippines formally withdrew from the Rome Statute on 17 March 2019, the ICC retains jurisdiction over crimes that are alleged to have occurred on the territory of that State during the period when it was a State Party to the RS.
3) Policy Papers, Reports, and Guidelines
a. Policy on Cultural Heritage
On 14 June 2021, the Office of the Prosecutor published the Policy on Cultural Heritage.- The Policy pays particular attention to crimes against, and affecting, cultural heritage and the commitment of the Office of the Prosecutor to systematically investigate and prosecute such crimes.
b. Policy on Situation Completion
On 15 June 2021, the Office of the Prosecutor published the Policy on Situation Completion, which was a commitment made by her Office’s Strategic Plan (2019-2021).- The Policy seeks to illustrate the considerations leading to the decision—in the exercise of prosecutorial discretion—that sufficient prosecutions have been brought in a situation to satisfy the Office’s mandate under the Rome Statute.
4) Other Developments
a. Election of the new ICC Prosecutor
- The Assembly of States Parties elected Mr. Karim Khan (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) as its next Prosecutor. The election took place at the second resumption of the 19th session of the Assembly of States Parties, which was convened at the United Nations Headquarters in New York on 12 February 2021.
- On 15 June 2021, Ms. Fatou Bensouda ended her mandate as ICC prosecutor, and on 16 June Mr. Khan was sworn in as the new Prosecutor.
- Photo: UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe
b. Six new judges sworn in
- The 6 new judges elected during the 19th Session of the Assembly of States Parties, sworn in on 10 March 2021.
Photo: International Criminal Court
c. Election of a new Presidency
Photo: International Criminal Court
The Prosecutor of the ICC, announced on 14 June 2021, that the Preliminary Examination into the situation of the Republic of the Philippines concluded and she requested judicial authorization to proceed with a formal investigation.
On 14 June 2021, the Office of the Prosecutor published the Policy on Cultural Heritage.
On 15 June 2021, the Office of the Prosecutor published the Policy on Situation Completion, which was a commitment made by her Office’s 