Mr. Chairman,

I would like to start by congratulating you and the other members of the bureau for your election to lead this Conference. 1 also wish to thank the Italian government for its offer to host this Conference and for the strong support it has shown towards the fulfilment of its objectives.

Brazil is committed to the creation of an effective international criminal court. We believe that an universal, impartial and independent ICC will be a major achievement for the international community in fostering respect of international humanitarian and human rights law, the rule of law and bringing about improved peace and security for mankind. Such a judicial body will greatly contribute to attain the objective of fighting impunity and bringing to justice the perpetrators of the most heinous crimes such as the ones which have offended the conscience of mankind during this century.

Brazil was a member of the Security Council when that organ established the ad-hoc tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda. As we stated at the time, our preferred method for the creation of an international criminal tribunal was the conclusion of a convention by the international community c[early setting up its jurisdiction and terms of reference. We voted for the creation of those courts because of the exceptionally serious circumstances of the situation and as a political expression of our condemnation of the atrocities being committed in those regions.

The Brazilian Government conceives the establishment of an international criminal court as a significant contribution to the maintenance of international peace and security through the promotion of diplomatic and judicial cooperation to enhance the effective prosecution and suppression of crimes of international concern. The establishment of an ICC represents not only a milestone in the development of international criminal law but also a powerful instrument of preventive diplomacy.

The consolidated draft statute we have before us represents a challenge to the delegations present in this Conference. The great number of undefined provisions and four or five main political issues will demand the best of our efforts in order to achieve an effective, coherent and acceptable result. We share the view already expressed that the minimum common denominator is not an acceptable solution. If the decision is to create a Court, States should give that Court the powers and the means to play a significant role in international life. In particular, it is essential that, in establishing the Court we do not, in any way, weaken or jeopardize existing conventional or customary rules of international law.

While having this in mind,. it is also necessary to encourage universal participation. In that sense, we should aim for achieving a proper balance among different national positions as regards certain key provisions of the statute.

I would like to comment very briefly on some of the most important issues from my government's point of view.

As regards the initiation of proceedings before the ICC, Brazil considers that, in addition to the right of states parties and of the Security Council to trigger the Court's jurisdiction, the prosecutor should have the authority to initiate investigations ex officio, or on the basis of information received from various sources. While stressing the need for an independent prosecutor, we believe that in order to avoid frivolous, politically motivated complaints, the statute should provide adequa:te safeguards and checks on prosecutorial discretion.

The jurisdiction of the Court should be limited to the most serious crimes of concern to the international community as a whole. Brazil favors inherent jurisdiction for the crime of genocide. We believe, however, that there are convincing arguments in favor of retaining some kind of "opt-in" mechanism for the other core crimes. We are of the opinion that the distinction between acceptance of the ICC's statute and that of its jurisdiction will help signatories to expedite ratification procedures and promote universality.

The Court's future relationship with the Security Council remains a matter of concern to many delegations. For our part we believe that it is necessary to eliminate the justification for the creation of new ad hoc tribunals by the Security Council and this requires a provision such as that of draft article 10(1). The Court should not, however, act as a subsidiary organ of the Security Council and must aim for the highest level of judicial independence. The Court should not be prevented from investigating or prosecuting cases by the Security Council, except in exceptional circumstances, when that organ, acting under Charter VII of the Charter of the United Nations takes a formal decision to that effect. Even in those cases the Court should not be prevented from exercising its jurisdiction for more than a limited period of time.

Mr. Chairman,
At the end of a century which has been marked by some of the most brutal episodes of violence in the History of mankind, it shouldn't be necessary to defend the merits of a project such as the creation of the ICC for the promotion of a stable international environment founded upon justice.

Recent events have contributed to the political will that presently exists for the establishment of an international criminal court. There seems to be a shared feeling that we cannot go on the basis of improvisation. We should not miss this opportunity to develop norms that can contribute to a better world and to create an independent, effective and impartial court.

Thank you.