Statement by Mr. Tomohiro Mikanagi
Director of International Legal Affairs Division,
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan
On Agenda Item 72: Report of the International Criminal Court
31 October 2016

 

 

Mr. President of the General Assembly,
Madame President of the International Criminal Court,
Distinguished Delegates,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

 

          I would like to begin by thanking President Silvia Fernandez De Gurmendi for her dedication and leadership, as well as for the comprehensive report on the work of the International Criminal Court.

 

          Japan’s core policy towards the Court is to enable it to function effectively and sustainably with the support of the international community. Japan is proud to be the largest financial contributor to the Court. We are also dedicated to supporting the Court through capable human resources, including judges, and became the first country to participate in the ICC Junior Professional Officers programme this year. We hope that this programme will enable many junior officers to gain experience and knowledge at the ICC while also contributing to its work.

Mr. President,

 

          Japan believes that the ICC has made steady progress in the judicial field. The Court has been exercising its jurisdiction over 10 situations, and 10 preliminary examinations are ongoing. Nevertheless, we are cognizant that financial and human resources are limited and believe that they should be used efficiently. With this in mind, the Japanese Ambassador to the Netherlands, Hiroshi Inomata, has been working with Chile to co-chair the Study Group on Governance to enhance the efficiency of the Court. We believe that exercises like this by States Parties can help mitigate the Court’s unprecedented workload.

 

Mr. President,

 

          It is vital for the Court to have the cooperation of the States Parties. This is clearly one of the biggest challenges that the Court is currently facing. This year, Japan, together with Australia, the Czech Republic, Peru and Senegal, and in close consultation with interested parties, prepared a toolkit to assist States Parties by providing possible actions that can be taken when they foresee possible incidents of non-cooperation. We hope this will be beneficial for everyone and that this toolkit will prevent future non-cooperation issues.

 

          Cooperation is also crucial when the Security Council refers situations to the Court. The ICC can function more effectively when the Security Council follows up on these situations in close cooperation with the Court and States concerned. While there is no clear-cut answer for this issue, my delegation is happy to contribute to further dialogue on this matter.

 

Mr. President,

 

          To ensure that the ICC effectively promotes the rule of law over the world, Japan strongly believes that more and more countries should join the ICC. In the long run, the ICC should aim at becoming a truly universal criminal court so that it can gain strong support for its work. In this regard, we are worried about recent decisions taken by some African States to withdraw from the ICC. In order to gain support and cooperation from a greater number of States towards its activities, the ICC and its States Parties should listen to the concerns expressed by wider audience and make efforts to enhance its universality.

 

          In closing, I wish to express Japan’s sincere appreciation for the work that the ICC has accomplished to date. We hope that the ICC will continue to work diligently in the fight against impunity, while consolidating its credibility both inside and outside the Rome Statute system. Japan pledges to strengthen its contributions to the ICC and to continue to enhance respect for the rule of law.

 

I thank you, Mr. President.