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Cote d’Ivoire: OTP Public Notice; Background Documents and Statements

17 June 2011

Dear all,

Please find below the latest public notice issued by the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) relating to Cote d’Ivoire (I) as well as related background documents (II).

The OTP notice “informs victims of alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Côte d’Ivoire by any party following the presidential election of 28 November 2010 that he will shortly request authorization from the Pre-Trial Chamber II to open an investigation into such alleged crimes [… and] notifies victims of the post-election violence in Côte d’Ivoire that they can send their comments to the Judges of the Pre-Trial Chamber II on whether an investigation on such alleged crimes should be opened. The victims or their legal representatives have 30 days from this notice to make representations to the Pre-Trial Chamber.”

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

With regards,

CICC Secretariat
www.coalitionfortheicc.org

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I. OTP PUBLIC NOTICE

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

1. “OTP Public Notice: Victims of violence Committed since the 2010 presidential election in Cote d’Ivoire have 30 days to make representations to ICC in The Hague on the opening of an investigation by the Prosecutor”, ICC Office of the Prosecutor, 17 June 2011, http://www.icc-cpi.int/NR/exeres/EBF86FD2-CF42-400E-B47A-71FFA771AA04.htm

"The Hague, 17 June 2011

By this notice, the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court informs victims of alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Côte d’Ivoire by any party following the presidential election of 28 November 2010 that he will shortly request authorization from the Pre-Trial Chamber II to open an investigation into such alleged crimes.[1]

The Prosecutor notifies victims of the post-election violence in Côte d’Ivoire that they can send their comments to the Judges of the Pre-Trial Chamber II on whether an investigation on such alleged crimes should be opened. The victims or their legal representatives have 30 days from this notice to make representations to the Pre-Trial Chamber.

Victims can make their representations in writing to the Pre-Trial Chamber, which they should channel through the Registry to the postal address below:

International Criminal Court
Pre Trial Chamber II
Situation in Côte d’Ivoire
PO Box 19519
2500 CM, The Hague
The Netherlands

Victims may also send their representations to the Pre-Trial Chamber to the following email address:  [email protected]

The Pre-Trial Chamber may request additional information from any of the victims who have made such representations, and may hold a hearing if it considers it appropriate.

The Chamber will give notice of its decision on the Prosecutor’s request to victims who have made representations.

Should the Judges authorize the opening of the investigation; victims will also have the opportunity to participate in the proceedings and, at a later stage, to request reparations.

The present notice has been posted as of today on the website of the Court, and sent to the media of Côte d’Ivoire, to the Ivorian authorities, and to a wide range of NGOs. The Registry has been informed. ..."

II. BACKGROUND DOCUMENTS AND STATEMENTS

A.      ICC DOCUMENTS

1.      “Decision Assigning the Situation in the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire to Pre-Trial Chamber II,” ICC  Presidency, 20 May 2011, ICC-02/11-1, http://www.icc-cpi.int/Menus/Go?id=0d16a041-c0f0-40e6-9ac6-674f5eb90783&lan=en-GB
2.      “President Ouattara confirms the importance of ICC intervention in Côte d’Ivoire”, OTP Weekly Briefing, 11-16 May 2011, http://www.icc-cpi.int/NR/rdonlyres/3836B9AF-B0DC-4F94-A4A8-4115E95AE76E/283329/OTPWeeklyBriefing_1116May201187.pdf
3.      “Letter from the President of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire Alassane Ouattara to the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court”, 3 May 2011, http://www.icc-cpi.int/NR/rdonlyres/7DA08D8E-FF5E-40C8-92D7 F058D5B032F3/283315/LetterOuattaratoOTP030512.PDF (In French)
4.      “Widespread or systematic killings in Cote d’Ivoire may trigger OTP investigation,” OTP Statement, 6 April 2011, http://www.icc-cpi.int/Menus/Go?id=f0efee52-c7aa-41ea-b58e-bd054c091f4f&lan=en-GB
5.      “Statement by ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo on the situation in Côte d’Ivoire,” 21 January 2011, http://www.icc-cpi.int/Menus/Go?id=2fd9d3e4-a7a8-4bfb-9640-4408dc114bc8&lan=en-GB
6.      "Letter from the President of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire Alassane Ouattara to the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court”, 14 December 2010, http://www.icc-cpi.int/NR/rdonlyres/7DA08D8E-FF5E-40C8-92D7-F058D5B032F3/283211/OuattaraICCConfirmationLetter141211.pdf (In French)
7.      “Statement by the Deputy Prosecutor of the ICC on thesituation in Côte d'Ivoire,” 2 December 2010, http://www.icc-cpi.int/NR/rdonlyres/DDD3FE71-F3D9-474E-8E0A-4647CDEC0D55/282750/CôtedIvoireENG.pdf
8.       Declaration from the Government of Cote d’Ivoire accepting the jurisdiction of the Court in accordance with article 12(3) of the Rome Statute, 18 April 2003, http://www.icc-cpi.int/NR/rdonlyres/7DA08D8E-FF5E-40C8-92D7-F058D5B032F3/279844/ICDEENG1.pdf

B.      COALITION MEMBERS’ STATEMENTS

1.       "Côte d'Ivoire: Both sides responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity," Press release,  Amnesty International, 25 May 2011, http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/report/côte-divoire-both-sides-responsible-war-crimes-and-crimes-against-humanity-2
2.       “Côte d’Ivoire: Impartial Justice Top Task for Ouattara: Accountability, Rebuilding Rule of Law Crucial to End Crisis”, Media Statement, Human Rights Watch, 19 May 2011, http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2011/05/19/c-te-d-ivoire-impartial-justice-top-task-ouattara
3.       “Côte d’Ivoire: the new government should bring an end to violence and ensure accountability for all crimes committed ,”  Press release, No Peace Without Justice, 13 April 2011 , http://www.npwj.org/ICC/Côte-d’Ivoire-new-government-should-bring-end-violence-and-ensure-accountability-all-crimes-comm
4.       "Reprisal attacks against Gbagbo supporters in Côte d'Ivoire must stop," Press release, Amnesty International, 12 April 2011, http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/reprisal-attacks-against-gbagbo-supporters-côte-divoire-must-stop-2011-04-12
5.       "International Community Must Pull Côte d'Ivoire from the Abyss," Media statement, International Crisis Group, 3 April 2011, http://www.crisisgroup.org/en/publication-type/media-releases/2011/international-community-must-pull-cote-divoire-from-the-abyss.aspx
6.       "Côte d'Ivoire: Ouattara Should Act to Control Troops," Press release, Human Rights Watch, 2 April 2011, http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2011/04/02/c-te-d-ivoire-ouattara-should-act-control-troops
7.       "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)," Media statement, FIDH, 2 April 2011, http://www.fidh.org/IMG/article_PDF/article_a9444.pdf (In French)
8.       "Côte d'Ivoire: West African Immigrants Massacred," Press release, Human Rights Watch, 31 March 2011, http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2011/03/31/c-te-d-ivoire-west-african-immigrants-massacred
9.       "Cote d'Ivoire: Crimes against humanity by Gbago forces; as crisis deepens, grave abuses committed by both sides", Press release, Human Rights Watch, 16 March 2011, http://www.hrw.org/node/97358
10.   “PGA Media Statement on Ivory Coast,” Parliamentarians for Global Action, December 2010, http://www.pgaction.org/uploadedfiles/Media Statement CI.pdf
11.   "Côte d'Ivoire: Pro-Gbagbo Forces Abducting Opponents", Press release, Human Rights Watch, 23 December 2010, http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2010/12/23/c-te-d-ivoire-pro-gbagbo-forces-abducting-opponents

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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