Mr. President,
Honorable Ministers,
Distinguished delegates.

At the outset, permit me to congratulate you Mr. President, on your election to chair this important Conference. We are confident that under your skilful guidance this meeting will meet with success. Also allow me to join previous speakers in congratulating Ambassador Philippe Kirsch,  of Canada on being elected as Chairman of the Committee of the Whole, Ambassador Cherri Bassoon of Egypt being elected as Chairman of the Drafting Committee and also to express appreciation to Mr. Adrian Boss for his tireless efforts and hope for his early recovery.

Permit me also to thank the Government of Italy for having hosted this meeting which will remain as a landmark in human history.

Distinguished participants,

Bangladesh regards the holding of this Diplomatic Conference for the establishment of the ICC as a rare opportunity for the international community to put in place a system of justice which can suitably redress unspeakable crimes of great enormity. This year is particularly important for it marks the 50th anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and also the conclusion of the Genocide Convention: the first international agreement to refer to an international penal tribunal.

We have before us a historic task: completion of the process of negotiation that will enable us to finalize a Statute for a permanent International Criminal Court. We believe that time has come for us to overcome differences so that we can act forcefully and effectively to take necessary steps to stop crimes whose effects have haunted and continue to haunt this century. This remarkable surge of aspiration which characterize this Conference must be harnessed to avert future crimes that might affect future generations in the next century. At the same time, while doing so, we should recognise that this Court must serve to reinforce the system of world peace and security and not to weaken it. We believe that these aims can best be served by an ICC, independent in character .and free from possible interference in its judicial process. It should not only have inherent jurisdiction over core crimes but also enjoy a wide measure of acceptance and support.

Bangladesh approaches this Conference with an unique background since it has on its Statue books vide its Act No. XIX of 1973. a comprehensive law for the trial and punishment of crimes against humanity, genocide , war crimes and violations of the humanitarian rules contained in the Geneva conventions of 1949 as well as any other crime with international legal implications.

It is our understanding that certain positive trends have emerged through the PrepCom which approximate closely to the underlying philosophy of Bangladesh law. Some of them are of especial significance. These are the expansion of the list of war crimes and of crimes against humanity. In the first. Bangladesh strongly supports giving full effect to the common Article 3.of the Geneva Conventions of 1949. In our view, the distinction between international and non-international conflicts is increasingly becoming irrelevant viewed in terms of the structure of universal peace and security. It would only be pertinent at this point to also request that we focus our attention on the possible inclusion of attacks on humanitarian workers and international peace keeping personnel as being within the jurisdiction of the ICC.

The second trend is the particularisation of systematic sexual violence and gender crimes during periods of conflict in explicit terms as crime against humanity as well as war crimes.

Finally, we believe that the list of war crimes needs to be expanded to cover the use and threat of use of nuclear weapons. My delegation strongly supports the Nonaligned position on the dangers of nuclear proliferation. We believe that this aspect not only needs to be considered and discussed very carefully but also examined as to whether this should be brought within the purview of the Statute.

We reiterate that the high standard of international criminal law and justice demand that the crimes to be included in the Statute should be defined with clarity and precision for the sake of deterrence and the integrity of this new process. When the Father of our Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman first gave his historic commitment to try and punish the core crimes on the soil of Bangladesh on January 10, 1972, he viewed the emerging regime of law as part of the very fabric of a new World Dispensation, where individuals would not be able to shelter behind the fecund fictions of theories of the State. It is our hope and belief that this Conference will find fruition of that promise.

Mr. President,

Before I conclude, I take this opportunity to also point out that Bangladesh supports the moderate position that the Court should be financed in the initial stages from within the regular UN budget i.e. out of the assessed contributions of UN Members. This will ensure global participation.

I also take this opportunity to urge all participants to overcome the mental block of one thousand brackets and cooperate seriously so that an International Statute can be adopted to ensure principles of justice which is so necessary for lasting peace. We are at a defining moment and we must not let it pass. We must garner political will and close the gap between rhetoric and action. We must understand that the issue before us today is about something more important than protecting narrow definitions of national interest.

I thank you.