Tunisia First North African State to Join ICC
Tunisia’s decision to join the International Criminal Court (ICC) is a historic one as it is the first North African state, and only the fourth member of the Arab League, after Comoros, Djibouti, and Jordan, to do so.
In a statement released Friday, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said that Tunisia had shown strong leadership in the common fight to end impunity. 'This significant step is particularly important in light of the fundamental changes that have occurred in Tunisia this year,' he stated, adding that the move also brings the world closer to the goal of universal accession to the 1998 Rome Statute. 'It brings us closer to a true age of accountability,' said the Secretary-General.
With former dictator Zine Al-Abdine Ben Ali in exile in Saudi Arabia, Tunisia’s interim government has begun to make significant changes regarding human rights through its accession to the International Criminal Court. On Friday, Tunisian Ambassador to the United Nations Ghazi Jomaa met with Ban and President of the Assembly of States Parties of the ICC, Ambassador Christian Wenaweser to deposit the instrument of his country's accession to the Rome Statute.
Ambassador Jomaa told reporters : ' Our belief is that there shall be neither freedom, nor dignity in the absence of real accountability and protection of human rights. That is why at its very first cabinet meeting, the interim government took historic decisions, among which to join the Rome Statue of the ICC.'
Jomaa added that in addition to the ICC, Tunisia also intends to join other key human rights treaties, including the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and the First Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Ambassador Wenaweser expressed his hope that Tunisia’s accession will provide a spark in the region in terms of the improvement of human rights. He told reporters: 'This step is an expression of the fundamental changes that we have been witnessing over the past few months. It is my strong hope that other countries will join the very important example that Tunisia is setting today,'
Weneweser further expressed his satisfaction in seeing Tunisia become the newest member of the ICC and said that ratification of the Rome Statute has become 'symbol of the countries committed to the fight against impunity and their commitment to the rule of law around the world, and I am very pleased that the Government of Tunisia is beginning a new chapter in the history of the country which has chosen to send this strong message.'
The ICC was established on July 17, 1998 at a United Nations diplomatic conference in Rome in order to 'end impunity for the perpetrators of the most serious crimes of concern to the international community.' It currently consists of 116 members, with the most notable absence being the United States.
© Inter Press Service (2011) — All Rights Reserved. Original source: Inter Press Service