12 June 2003
Security Council Renews Immunity for U.N. Peacekeepers
(U.S.: compromise on International Criminal Court important) (1000)
By Judy Aita
Washington File United Nations Correspondent
United Nations -- The Security Council June 12 renewed a year-old
resolution exempting peacekeepers from nations who do not accept the
jurisdiction of the new International Criminal Court (ICC) from
prosecution by the court.
The resolution was an important priority for the United States when it
was first proposed last year by U.S. Ambassador John Negroponte, who
said that the whole spectrum of U.N. peacekeeping operations could be
in jeopardy if the protection was not enacted. Among U.S. concerns is
the fear that U.S. peacekeepers or national leaders could be subjected
to politically motivated prosecutions by the court.
The International Criminal Court was created after weeks of intense
negotiations in July 2002 when the U.N. Security Council unanimously
passed resolution 1422 invoking Article 16 of the Rome Statute, which
set up the ICC.
The resolution recognizes that nations who are parties to the Rome
Statute have chosen to accept the court's jurisdiction and that
nations not party to the statute "will continue to fulfill their
responsibilities in their national jurisdictions in relation to
international crimes." It declares that the ICC will not begin or
proceed with any investigation or prosecution involving current or
former U.N. peacekeeping personnel from contributing states not party
to the Rome Statute for one year, until June 30, 2003.
The new resolution, 1487, extends that immunity for another 12 months.
It was adopted by a vote of 12-0 with France, Germany, and Syria
abstaining.
U.S. Ambassador James Cunningham welcomed the renewal saying that
"like any compromise, the resolution does not address all of our
concerns about the court," but it does "balance divergent positions
and help ensure against any undermining of U.N. peace operations."
The United States "has a fundamental objection" to the ICC and sees it
as "a fatally flawed institution," said Cunningham, the deputy U.S.
representative to the U.N. "Many others, including some of our closest
friends do not share that view. We are thoroughly familiar with our
respective positions and understand that those positions are not going
to change in the foreseeable future. We all need to acknowledge that
fact and its implications."
"This resolution represents a compromise that respects the strongly
held views of those who support the ICC and the equally strongly held
views of those that do not. Such respect is important to maintain.
This compromise, therefore, is important to maintain," the U.S.
ambassador said.
In a speech to the council, Cunningham said "the resolution does not
in any way affect parties to the court nor the Rome Statute itself.
Nor does it, as some today suggested, elevate an entire category of
people above the law. The ICC is not 'the law.'"
Many states expressed concern that the resolution would become
permanent and asked to participate in an open debate on the issue
before the vote. More than 15 nations who are not members of the
council participated.
Secretary General Kofi Annan said that he believed Article 16 of the
Rome Statute was intended to cover only specific requests relating to
a particular situation, not blanket immunity, but he accepted that the
council was "acting in good faith" and the purpose was "to make it
possible for peace operations to continue, whether established or only
authorized by this council."
"I wish to place on record, however, that, in addition to my concern
about its conformity with Article 16 of the Rome Statute, I do not
believe this request is necessary," Annan said.
Calling the U.S. concern "highly improbable," the secretary general
said that he could "state confidently that in the history of the
United Nations, and certainly during the (more than 30 years) I have
worked for the organization, no peacekeeper or any other mission
personnel have been anywhere near committing the kind of crimes that
fall under the jurisdiction of the ICC."
In addition, Annan pointed out, people serving in U.N. peacekeeping
missions remain under the jurisdiction of their home states and no
case is admissible to the ICC unless a state is unwilling or unable to
genuinely investigate or prosecute.
German Ambassador Gunter Pleuger said "we feel that the concerns of
the United States are being addressed already in the statute of the
International Criminal Court. Although we understand the concerns, we
feel a statute in international treaty that has been ratified by 90
member states and has been ratified or signed by 12 of the 15 members
of the Security Council should not be amended or changed by a Security
Council resolution."
Cunningham said "the resolution is consistent with the fundamental
principle of international law. The need for a state to consent if it
is to be bound is respected by exempting from ICC jurisdiction
personnel and forces of states that are not parties to the Rome
Statute."
The United States "yields to no country its historical leadership in
the struggle for international justice and accountability for war
crimes," Cunningham also said. "After all, the United States was the
first country to codify the laws of war -- international humanitarian
law -- and an original participant in the creation of every successful
international effort to date to adjudicate allegations of war crimes
and crimes against humanity. It has been and will continue to be a
strong supporter of the tribunals established under the aegis of this
council."
The War Crimes Tribunals for the Former Yugoslavia and Rwanda were
created by the Security Council in the 1990s.
The ICC was not created by the Security Council and is not responsible
to the council. It came into being in July 2002 after more than 90
states ratified the Rome Statute creating the court. The court is
currently being organized. Its 18 judges have been elected and Luis
Moreno Ocampo of Argentina has been named chief prosecutor.
(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International
Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site:
http://usinfo.state.gov)
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