International Justice (UK Support and Funding)
(Limited Text - Ministerial Extracts only)
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The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr William Hague)
I am pleased to provide Parliament with an account of Her Majesty’s Government’s support for the principles and institutions of international justice in 2012-13, and our plans for funding them in the year ahead.
International justice is central to foreign policy. It is essential for securing the rights of individuals and states, and for securing peace and reconciliation. Through the International Criminal Court (ICC), and the other international courts and tribunals, we are working to make it clear that those responsible for the worst crimes will be held to account and that perpetrators, including political leaders, will not enjoy impunity, and providing a fair hearing for both victims and accused. Our support to these institutions is an important element in our strategy to reduce conflict, promote stability and strengthen the rules-based international system.
For calendar year 2012 we provided assessed contributions of £9.2 million to the International Criminal Court, £5.9 million to the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia, £3.8 million to the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, and £1.1 million to the Residual Mechanism which will take on the essential functions of the tribunals when they close. In addition, for the financial year 2012-13 we made voluntary contributions of £2 million to the international component of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, £1 million to the Special Court for Sierra Leone, £2 million to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, and £1 million in total to the International Criminal Court Trust Fund for Victims, with £500,000 of this earmarked for work on sexual violence and made as part of the preventing sexual violence initiative. Our contributions helped these institutions to deliver justice for victims of some of the worst atrocities of the last century and send the message that there will be no impunity for the most serious international crimes.
As a state party to the ICC, a member of the United Nations Security Council which oversees the Rwanda and Yugoslavia Tribunals, and a member of the management bodies for the Sierra Leone and Cambodia Courts and the Lebanon Tribunal we engaged actively throughout the year to ensure these institutions were run effectively and efficiently.
The coming year will be important for international justice. At the ICC the case against Laurent Gbagbo the former President of Côte d’Ivoire is proceeding and the Court is now dealing with the case against Bosco Ntaganda a former militia group commander in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The investigations into the situation in Mali are under way. The trials of three Kenyan nationals are due to begin this year. The International Criminal Tribunals for Rwanda and Yugoslavia will both close with their remaining functions transferring to the Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals. The Special Court for Sierra Leone is scheduled to complete its work with a verdict in the appeal of Charles Taylor due in September, after which its remaining essential functions will be taken up by the Residual Court. And the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia will finish hearing evidence in the trial of the most senior responsible and surviving members of the Khmer Rouge.
We will continue to support these institutions through our assessed and voluntary contributions made through the new international justice fund. We will encourage other states to support the voluntary-funded courts and tribunals and the International Criminal Court Trust Fund for Victims to help ensure their financial security. And we will work to ensure these institutions achieve value for money by actively scrutinising budget proposals and pressing for efficiency.
I will provide an update on our progress this time next year and from this point forward I will make one annual statement detailing our financial support to international justice.