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ICC-OTP Statement on Cote d Ivoire; Related releases and coverage

06 Apr 2011

Dear all,

Please find below the latest media advisory issued by the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on the situation in Cote d'Ivoire (I), as well as other related media statements (II) and news articles (III).

For your information, key statements and documents on these developments are also available at: http://www.coalitionfortheicc.org/?mod=country&iduct=84

Please take note of the Coalition's policy on situations before the ICC (below), which explicitly states that the Coalition will not take a position on potential and current situations before the Court or situations under preliminary examination. The Coalition, however, will continue to provide the most up-to-date information about the ICC.

Best regards,

CICC Secretariat
www.coalitionfortheicc.org

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I. ICC-OTP MEDIA STATEMENT

Note: This document has been produced by the ICC. The CICC Secretariat distributes it as part of its mandate to keep member organizations and individuals informed about developments related to the ICC. The document does not reflect the views of the CICC as a whole or its individual members.

1. "Widespread or systematic killings in Cote d'Ivoire may trigger OTP investigation," Media statement, ICC-OTP, http://www.icc-cpi.int/NR/exeres/85A578D5-946A-44C3-9908-1C2243062EF0.htm

"The Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) is very concerned about the deteriorating situation in Ivory Coast including recent information about alleged mass killings in the Western part of the country. The Office continues to collect information on alleged crimes committed there by different parties to the conflict.

The OTP has been conducting a preliminary examination in Ivory Coast and the next step will be for the Prosecutor to use his independent proprio motu power to request authorization from the Pre Trial Chamber in order to initiate an investigation. Ivory Coast is not a state party of the Rome Statute, but then President Gbagbo accepted jurisdiction of the Court in accordance with article 12(3). Current President Ouattara confirmed by letter his acceptance of ICC jurisdiction and provided information to the office.

However, to expedite the process, if a state party of the Rome Statute refers Ivory Coast to the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, the Office of the Prosecutor can proceed faster with an investigation and start to prepare a request for an arrest warrant for those most responsible for crimes in Ivory Coast...."

II. RELATED MEDIA STATEMENTS

1. "Côte d'Ivoire: Ouattara Should Act to Control Troops," HRW, 2 April 2011, http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2011/04/02/c-te-d-ivoire-ouattara-should-act-control-troops

2. "Côte d'Ivoire: West African Immigrants Massacred," HRW, 31 March 2011, http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2011/03/31/c-te-d-ivoire-west-african-immigrants-massacred

3. "Côte d'Ivoire: Massacres à Duékoué et graves exactions commises contre la population civile dans tout le pays (Côte d'Ivoire: Killings in Duekoue and serious abuses against the civilian population throughout the country)," FIDH, 2 April 2011, http://www.fidh.org/IMG/article_PDF/article_a9444.pdf (In French)

4. "Côte d'Ivoire: Is War the Only Option?", International Crisis Group, 3 March 2011, http://www.crisisgroup.org/en/regions/africa/west-africa/cote-divoire/171-cote-divoire-is-war-the-only-option.aspx

5. « Security Council demands end to violence in Cote d'Ivoire, imposing sanctions against former president and urging him to "step aside" in resolution 1975," UN news centre, 30 March 2011, http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2011/sc10215.doc.htm

6. "Statement by EU High Representative Catherine Ashton on Côte d'Ivoire," Catherine Ashton, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the Commission, 3 March 2011, http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/EN/foraff/119597.pdf

III. RELATED NEWS AND OPINIONS

1. "International court prosecutor wants to open Ivory Coast investigation as soon as possible," Mike Corder, AP, 5 April 2011, http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5hbZl8brGVGvmyqMhDfz18SzFwkDw?docId=6471363
1. "ICC prosecutor wants Ivory Coast atrocities referred", By Svebor Kranjc, Reuters, 5 April 2011,, http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/04/05/us-ivorycoast-icc-idUSTRE7346HM20110405
2. "Highlights of the Noon Briefing," Office of the Spokesperson, United Nations Secretary General, 5 April 2011, http://www.un.org/News/ossg/hilites.shtml
3. "French take control of key Ivory Coast airport," CNN, 4 April 2011, http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/04/03/ivory.coast.unrest/
4. "UN chief repeats call for Gbagbo to step down to avert deaths," Ronald Njoroge and Ben Ochieng, Xinhua, 2 April 2011, http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2011-04/02/c_13810914.htm
5. "U.N. rights office urges Ouattara to rein in forces," Reuters, 1 April 2011, http://af.reuters.com/article/ghanaNews/idAFLDE7300WI20110401?sp=true
6. "The case for intervention in Ivory Coast," Corinne Dufka, The Nation (Pakistan), http://nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/International/30-Mar-2011/The-case-for-intervention--in-Ivory-Coast
7. "UN slaps sanctions on Ivory Coast's Gbagbo," AFP, 31 March 2011, http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-world/un-slaps-sanctions-on-ivory-coasts-gbagbo-20110331-1cgmv.html
8. "Côte d'Ivoire : la guerre comme seule option? (Côte d'Ivoire: war as the only option?)," Le Monde, 30 March 2011, http://justice-inter.blog.lemonde.fr/2011/03/30/cote-d’ivoire-la-guerre-comme-seule-option/ (In French)
9. "Attaque militaire de ses hommes - Ouattara comme un chef de guerre (Military attack of his men - Ouattara as a warlord)," Le Nouveau Courier, 30 March 2011, http://news.abidjan.net/h/395663.html (In French)

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CICC's policy on the referral and prosecution of situations before the ICC:

The Coalition for the ICC is not an organ of the court. The CICC is an independent NGO movement dedicated to the establishment of the International Criminal Court as a fair, effective, and independent international organization. The Coalition will continue to provide the most up-to-date information about the ICC and to help coordinate global action to effectively implement the Rome Statute of the ICC. The Coalition will also endeavor to respond to basic queries and to raise awareness about the ICC's trigger mechanisms and procedures, as they develop. The Coalition as a whole, and its secretariat, do not endorse or promote specific investigations or prosecutions or take a position on situations before the ICC. However, individual CICC members may endorse referrals, provide legal and other support on investigations, or develop partnerships with local and other organizations in the course of their efforts. Communications to the ICC can be sent to: ICC P.O. box 19519 2500 CM the Hague The Netherlands