On February 10, 2016, the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, in conjunction with  Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA), the War Crimes Research Office of American University Washington College of Law, the Washington Working Group on the International Criminal Court and American Bar Association-ICC Project, organized a congressional briefing titled: “Seeking Justice for Atrocities:  How the International Criminal Court Could Advance Accountability in Iraq and Syria” at the United States House of Representatives in Washington, DC.

The briefing aimed at providing different views on the potential role that the International Criminal Court (ICC) could play in fighting impunity of those responsible for committing international crimes in Syria, Iraq and other areas of the world affected by ISIS/ISIL/‘Daesh’. Given that the prevailing policies to counter ISIS, the Assad regime and other main perpetrators of mass-atrocities may not be sufficient to bring about accountability and justice for the victims of genocide, crimes against humanity and large-scale war crimes, the International Community as a whole is responsible to address these mass-atrocities, which constitute a threat to international peace and security. The Panel discussed policy options towards ending impunity through measures that may also serve the purpose of de-radicalization and generating opposition to the deadly phenomenon of violent extremism.

The briefing began with opening remarks by co-chair of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission and leading PGA member, Rep. James P. McGovern, who started his intervention by noting that the violent situation in Syria and Iraq, as well as the crimes perpetrated by Daesh and the Assad regime, have created a terrible situation for the civilian population in those countries.  Rep. McGovern stressed that the crimes committed in Syria and Iraq could amount to war crimes, crimes against humanity and in some cases even genocide: all crimes under the material jurisdiction of the ICC. After praising the work done by the ICC as a response to crimes committed in other countries, Rep. McGovern regretted that the US is not a state party to the Rome Statute and stressed his support to the accession by the US as well as the fulfilment of the ICC cooperation requests. Finally, Rep. McGovern, highlighting the importance of real accountability as a deterrent for the commission of mass-atrocity crimes, concluded by saying that due to the lack of Rule of Law in the region, accountability is unlikely to happen. Therefore, the ICC and other avenues for accountability must be pursued. For the full statement please click here.

PGA President, Dip. Minou Tavarez Mirabal (Dominican Republic) started her presentation by regretting the lack of action by the UN Security Council in preventing the mass atrocities committed especially in Syria, as well as the terrible situation for the populations in Syria and Iraq who are victims of crimes or forced to leave their homes and live under inhumane conditions. Dip. Tavarez Mirabal stressed that ISIS should not be referred to as a terrorist group but, rather, as a Non State Actor with a totalitarian ideology that distorts the vision of religion, taking inspiration from certain most extreme versions of ‘Salafism’. Therefore, the killing of its leaders and fighters provides ISIS/Daesh’s recruiters with a tool to attract more supporters, since those killed are erroneously depicted as “martyrs.” Hence, military action and targeted killings are not sufficient strategies. Dip. Tavarez Mirabal, in name of PGA, proposed three main policies as fundamental to address the root causes of violent extremism:

1. denouncing the anti-Islamic nature of the self-described ‘Islamic State’;

2. isolating the masters of hate and death who are behind the criminal policies and doctrines of ISIS (who may not participate in combat operations and do not risk being killed); and

3. counter-messaging wherever possible the enormous volume of propaganda that ISIS disseminates.

Dip. Tavarez Mirabal concluded by noting that no action to fight ISIS/Daesh will ever be effective if there is no trial for those responsible for these crimes, imposing in this way “civilization over barbarism, Rule of Law over criminality, and justice over injustice-violence and-revenge.” For the full statement of the PGA President, which powerfully launches PGA’s new Parliamentary Campaign to Prevent and Counter Violent Extremism, please click here.

Professor Jane Stromseth (Georgetown University, former Deputy to the U.S. Ambassador-at-large for Global Criminal Justice) underscored the importance of the pursuit of justice in Syria and Iraq to stand in solidarity with the victims of atrocities, make clear to perpetrators that the international community will not tolerate impunity and, finally, but not less importantly, set the foundations for an inclusive governance and a lasting solution to the conflict. However, given the present circumstances, accountability is a difficult option. In this regard, Prof. Stromseth highlighted that, on the basis of the principle of complementarity with the ICC, the primary responsibility to prosecute is with the domestic jurisdictions and mentioned that in Iraq, a non-state party to the Rome Statute, it is important that the international community supports national prosecutions. However, in Syria, Prof. Stromseth said that the situation is different and, for the moment, domestic efforts appear not possible. She stressed the fact that the International Community, through the UN Security Council (UNSC), intended to refer the situation to the ICC in May 2014, however, the relevant draft resolution was vetoed by Russia and China against 13 positive votes, including the United States.

Against this discouraging scenario, Prof. Stromseth highlighted some possible actions. Firstly, in regard to the ICC, she referred to the acknowledgment by the ICC Prosecutor of the ICC´s potential jurisdiction over nationals of States Parties to the Rome Statute that might be involved in those crimes and the fact that, because of the UNSC referral of the station in Libya to the ICC, there is some possibility of investigations of crimes committed there.  Secondly, Prof. Stromseth mentioned the importance of domestic prosecutions in Europe and other regions of the world to bring cases against Assad regime atrocities and ISIS atrocities based on doctrines of extra-territorial jurisdiction. Finally, she highlighted the importance of evidentiary documentation and support to the survivors of atrocity-crimes as well as outreach to victims’ communities to hear their concerns for justice.

Mr. James Stewart, Deputy Prosecutor of the ICC, clearly explained the ways in which the ICC could have jurisdiction over situations and cases stressing that, even when the Prosecutor is deeply concerned by the crimes committed in Syria and Iraq, she has to act in accordance with the Rome Statute. The Deputy Prosecutor explained that at the moment the ICC does not have territorial jurisdiction over Iraq or Syria but that they are looking into the nationalities of the perpetrator following the Office of the Prosecutor  (OTP) policy of focusing on those most responsible for the crimes. Mr. Stewart stated that, according to the information that they have, even when thousands of fighters from States Parties to the Rome Statute have joined ISIS, at this point it appears that the leaders are from Syria and Iraq and this is a constraint in the OTP prosecutorial duty: Therefore, there is no preliminary investigation for those situations. However, Mr. Stewart mentioned that the Prosecutor remains open to receive information and the OTP is in touch with States authorities.

Regarding the situation in Libya, the Deputy Prosecutor stressed that they examined the situation there to see if there was a legal connection between the facts and the UNSC referral, stating that in most of the cases they did find it. However, he stated that the failure of the UNSC to back up the referral with financial support has placed a tremendous burden on the OTP capacity to investigate these new developments.

After the presentations of the panelists, Professor Susana SáCouto, Director of the War Crimes Research Office at the American University Washington College of Law as the moderator of the panel briefing oversaw numerous questions from the audience that included congressional staffers, representatives from various non-governmental organizations, and the public. PGA’s Secretary General, Dr. David Donat-Cattin, intervened to answer a question concerning Iraq’s non-ratification of the Rome Statute. He reported that PGA Member-Parliamentarians made multi-partisan, cross-sectarian efforts to bring about such a ratification. While these efforts found the support of a large group of Lawmakers and the Presidency of the Republic of Iraq, the Council of Ministers chaired by the Prime Minister wrote to the PGA petitioners that “the time is not suitable for Iraq joining the Rome Statute”. The global PGA Membership will continue their relentless campaign to end impunity for mass-atrocities in Syria, Iraq and all regions of the world.