Five working groups are meeting and nine informals are scheduled today. The main attention at the Conference today is however a discussion paper that the bureau of the Committee of the Whole is submitting to delegations. The document, which was available at 3 p.m., local time, contains proposals on the main issues before the Conference: contentious definition of crimes, jurisdiction, applicable law. The Chairman of the Committee of the Whole, Philippe Kirsch of Canada, said the document would be tabled today, Tuesday, so delegations would have time to consider it before a meeting of the Committee of the Whole tomorrow, when they would be able to react to those proposals. Some are saying the texts in the discussion paper are elements of a possible package deal on the Court. With the discussion paper becoming the "talk of the Conference" this morning, it is clear that the event is entering into a new phase: the phase of political decisions. The bureau paper has 11 pages of proposals on crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court (article 5), texts on exercise of jurisdiction (article 6), acceptance of jurisdiction (article 7) and temporal jurisdiction and non-retroactivity (article8), on the role of the Security Council (article 10) and on the role of the Prosecutor (article 12). There are also proposals relating to the question of complementarity, technically referred to as "admissibility": issues of admissibility (article 15), preliminary rulings regarding admissibility (article 16) and ne bis in idem (article 18), on the issue of double jeopardy. There is also a proposal on applicable law (article 20), a key article because it will define the meaning of the word "law" throughout the Statute.

Among the reports the Committee heard in its meeting yesterday, was one of the Working Group on Penalties, which submitted, among others, article 79, which would allow the Assembly of States Parties to establish a trust fund for the benefit of victims of crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court and their families. On composition and administration of the Court there were strong views expressed in favour and against the use of gratis personnel by the Court. Another paragraph that needs additional negotiations was one concerning the question of quorum in the Assembly of States Parties.

This morning, in the working group on procedural matters, during a discussion on who should be permitted to request the Court to revise its judgement, a majority of views was expressed in favour of "parents, spouses and children" of the individual. Some delegations wanted to add also "close relatives". This discussion reflects an important issue regarding the rights of the accused.