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Informal Daily Summary from the ASP: Wednesday, 25 November 2009

25 Nov 2009

ASP DAY 7:
INFORMAL DAILY SUMMARY

I. PLENARY

In the morning, informal consultations on the budget took place to discuss the resources that would be allocated to the prospective African Union (AU) Liaison Office. In the afternoon, the Facilitator on the Budget presented his report and explained that consensus had been reached to adopt all the CBF recommendations including on legal aid for the defense on condition that the court would have flexibility to re-allocate resources to meet this expenditure and as a last resort recourse to the contingency fund. Consensus was also reached to accept the CBF recommendations with regards to the non-conversion of the GTA posts for the psychologist within the VWU and audiovisual producer within the PIDS. In addition, it was decided to establish an ICC liaison office to the AU in Addis Ababa and to appoint a D1 staff member to head this Office.

Consensus was also reached to accept the CBF recommendations with regards to the non-conversion of the GTA posts for the psychologist within the VWU and audiovisual producer within the PIDS. In addition, it was decided to establish an ICC liaison office to the AU in Addis Ababa and to appoint a D1 staff member to head this Office.

Informal consultations also took place on the issue of family visits of indigent detainees. In the afternoon, the discussions on the issue resumed and States adopted a resolution on the matter. It was agreed to "invite the Court to report on the feasibility and the conditions for the establishment of a voluntary system of funding family visits, with a view of its establishment by the Assembly at its ninth session."

The last session of informal consultations on the Omnibus Resolution, held this morning, concluded the negotiations on the wording of the “Strengthening the International Criminal Court and the Assembly of States Parties” document. Questions; however, remain on the next venues of upcoming ASP sessions. Informal consultations on the independent oversight mechanism chaired by facilitator, Mr. Akbar Kahn, Director of the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Division of the Commonwealth continued on the discussion of a number of amendments to the draft resolution that were proposed on 24 November during the Working Group in the plenary session.

The Working Group on the Review Conference discussed its draft resolution. Discussions were held on the topics for stocktaking, the duration of the Review Conference, the establishment of a Working Group on amendments, and the possibility of having a resumed ASP session to prepare for the conference.

II. SIDE EVENTS

In the morning, a day after the opening of the second trial of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the case of The Prosecutor vs. Germain Katanga and Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui, the CICC hosted a live question and answer blogging session with ICC expert and NGO representative Georges Kapiamba. The session was conducted in French on the Coalition's blog, In Situ: See Justice through the Eyes of Civil Society from 10 to 11 a.m. To read the transcript (in French), see http://www.coalitionfortheicc.org/blog

At 1 p.m., NGOs met with H.E. Ambassador Christian Wenaweser, President of the Assembly of States Parties. H.E. Ambassador Christian Wenaweser gave his preliminary assessment of the eighth session, including his views on budgetary issues, the review conference, family visits to indigent detainees and the creation of an ICC/AU liaison office and cooperation issues. In particular, he discussed the possibility of holding a resumed session to continue preparations for the review conference. On the topic of the review conference, NGOs in the room highlighted the importance of a high-level participation at this upcoming meeting, the need for specific structures to prepare for stocktaking and lastly, the need for an adequate communications strategy jointly prepared by the ICC and the ASP. CICC members made comments on Article 124, the importance of NGO participation to the review conference, budgetary issues, court governance, state cooperation including with the defense, as well as the possibility of setting up an elections committee.

The government of Uganda, the Human Rights Network – Uganda (HURINET-U), the Ugandan Coalition for the ICC and No peace for Justice (NPWJ) co-organized a luncheon briefing on the pre-review conference delegates' visits to Uganda held to "maximize engagement between ICC States Parties and Victims and Affected Communities"attended by States, Court officials and NGOs. Presenters proposed a series of five day pre-Review Conference visits to Kampala that would include meetings with governments' officials, civil society and representatives of the judiciary as well as in the Northern part of the country to meet with victims' communities, religious leaders and local NGOs. To learn more about this initiative, visit: www.npwj.org/No+Peace+Without+Justice/International+Criminal+Justice/ICJP+Activities/Uganda+ICC+2009-2010

The Registry together with the United Nations Inter-regional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) launched a project to enable online access to summaries of judicial ICC decisions relating to victims issues. More information can be accessed at www.icc-cpi.int/Menus/ICC/Structure+of+the+Court/Victims/Summaries+of+public+ICC+Decisions+on+Victims/

The evening panel "ICC campaigns in Asia: prospects and challenges in Afghanistan, Burma and Indonesia"; was co-organized as part of the Supranational Criminal Law Lectures series by the T.M.C Asser Instituut, the Coalition for the International Criminal Court (CICC) and the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies (Leiden University, Campus The Hague). Ms. Evelyn Serrano, Asia and Pacific Coordinator, Coalition for the ICC (Manila, Philippines) moderated the interventions of Mr. Niamatullah Ibrahimi, Deputy Director, Afghan Watch; Mr. Aung Htoo, general secretary, Burma Lawyers' Council and Mr. Bhatara Ibnu Reza, executive member, Indonesian Civil Society Network for the ICC. For more information on CICC events worldwide, see: http://www.coalitionfortheicc.org/?mod=currentevents

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News Browse by Region Media Digests Country Updates UN Excerpts on the ICC Updates of the Assembly Browse by Region		Informal Daily Summary from the ASP: Wednesday, 25 November 2009 25 Nov 2009 ASP DAY 7: INFORMAL DAILY SUMMARY I. PLENARY In the morning, informal consultations on the budget took place to discuss the resources that would be allocated to the prospective African Union (AU) Liaison Office. In the afternoon, the Facilitator on the Budget presented his report and explained that consensus had been reached to adopt all the CBF recommendations including on legal aid for the defense on condition that the court would have flexibility to re-allocate resources to meet this expenditure and as a last resort recourse to the contingency fund. Consensus was also reached to accept the CBF recommendations with regards to the non-conversion of the GTA posts for the psychologist within the VWU and audiovisual producer within the PIDS. In addition, it was decided to establish an ICC liaison office to the AU in Addis Ababa and to appoint a D1 staff member to head this Office. Consensus was also reached to accept the CBF recommendations with regards to the non-conversion of the GTA posts for the psychologist within the VWU and audiovisual producer within the PIDS. In addition, it was decided to establish an ICC liaison office to the AU in Addis Ababa and to appoint a D1 staff member to head this Office. Informal consultations also took place on the issue of family visits of indigent detainees. In the afternoon, the discussions on the issue resumed and States adopted a resolution on the matter. It was agreed to "invite the Court to report on the feasibility and the conditions for the establishment of a voluntary system of funding family visits, with a view of its establishment by the Assembly at its ninth session." The last session of informal consultations on the Omnibus Resolution, held this morning, concluded the negotiations on the wording of the “Strengthening the International Criminal Court and the Assembly of States Parties” document. Questions; however, remain on the next venues of upcoming ASP sessions. Informal consultations on the independent oversight mechanism chaired by facilitator, Mr. Akbar Kahn, Director of the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Division of the Commonwealth continued on the discussion of a number of amendments to the draft resolution that were proposed on 24 November during the Working Group in the plenary session. The Working Group on the Review Conference discussed its draft resolution. Discussions were held on the topics for stocktaking, the duration of the Review Conference, the establishment of a Working Group on amendments, and the possibility of having a resumed ASP session to prepare for the conference. II. SIDE EVENTS In the morning, a day after the opening of the second trial of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the case of The Prosecutor vs. Germain Katanga and Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui, the CICC hosted a live question and answer blogging session with ICC expert and NGO representative Georges Kapiamba. The session was conducted in French on the Coalition's blog, In Situ: See Justice through the Eyes of Civil Society from 10 to 11 a.m. To read the transcript (in French), see http://www.coalitionfortheicc.org/blog At 1 p.m., NGOs met with H.E. Ambassador Christian Wenaweser, President of the Assembly of States Parties. H.E. Ambassador Christian Wenaweser gave his preliminary assessment of the eighth session, including his views on budgetary issues, the review conference, family visits to indigent detainees and the creation of an ICC/AU liaison office and cooperation issues. In particular, he discussed the possibility of holding a resumed session to continue preparations for the review conference. On the topic of the review conference, NGOs in the room highlighted the importance of a high-level participation at this upcoming meeting, the need for specific structures to prepare for stocktaking and lastly, the need for an adequate communications strategy jointly prepared by the ICC and the ASP. CICC members made comments on Article 124, the importance of NGO participation to the review conference, budgetary issues, court governance, state cooperation including with the defense, as well as the possibility of setting up an elections committee. The government of Uganda, the Human Rights Network – Uganda (HURINET-U), the Ugandan Coalition for the ICC and No peace for Justice (NPWJ) co-organized a luncheon briefing on the pre-review conference delegates' visits to Uganda held to "maximize engagement between ICC States Parties and Victims and Affected Communities"attended by States, Court officials and NGOs. Presenters proposed a series of five day pre-Review Conference visits to Kampala that would include meetings with governments' officials, civil society and representatives of the judiciary as well as in the Northern part of the country to meet with victims' communities, religious leaders and local NGOs. To learn more about this initiative, visit: www.npwj.org/No+Peace+Without+Justice/International+Criminal+Justice/ICJP+Activities/Uganda+ICC+2009-2010 The Registry together with the United Nations Inter-regional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) launched a project to enable online access to summaries of judicial ICC decisions relating to victims issues. More information can be accessed at www.icc-cpi.int/Menus/ICC/Structure+of+the+Court/Victims/Summaries+of+public+ICC+Decisions+on+Victims/ The evening panel "ICC campaigns in Asia: prospects and challenges in Afghanistan, Burma and Indonesia"; was co-organized as part of the Supranational Criminal Law Lectures series by the T.M.C Asser Instituut, the Coalition for the International Criminal Court (CICC) and the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies (Leiden University, Campus The Hague). Ms. Evelyn Serrano, Asia and Pacific Coordinator, Coalition for the ICC (Manila, Philippines) moderated the interventions of Mr. Niamatullah Ibrahimi, Deputy Director, Afghan Watch; Mr. Aung Htoo, general secretary, Burma Lawyers' Council and Mr. Bhatara Ibnu Reza, executive member, Indonesian Civil Society Network for the ICC. For more information on CICC events worldwide, see: http://www.coalitionfortheicc.org/?mod=currentevents