Mr. Chairman,
Your Excellencies the Heads and Members of delegations,
Your Excellencies the Representatives of international and regional organizations,
Representatives of NG0s,
Ladies and gentlemen,

At the outset, I feel honoured and delighted to express, in the name of the Government and People of Sudan, our thanks and gratitude to H.E. the President of the Republic of Italy and to the Government and People of Italy for their kind acceptance to convene this historical and important conference in this beautiful city of Rome.

I am also pleased to express, in the name of the Government and People of the Republic of the Sudan, our deep appreciation and thanks to the United Nations Secretary General, the Assistant Secretary General for Legal Affairs, the members of the Preparatory Committee which has been working from 1995 up to April 1998 in the preparation and fine-tuning of the statute of the International Criminal Court. Our thanks also go to the International Law Commission (ILK) , that prestigious body which devoted much of its precious time in preparing the draft statute in an exceptional effort wherein its distinguished members donated the cream of their knowledge. My country was, indeed, honoured to participate in that noble goal through the highly regarded contribution of one of its sons who worked actively, together with other distinguished members of the (ILK) in the process of codification and gradual development of international law. Indeed, during their devotion to fulfil that duty, the ILC members were guided and inspired by their deeply rooted belief in recognizing and establishing the principles of international law that would help the world to better deal with its ever evolving needs while engaged in exchanging interests or solving conflicts.

Mr Chairman,

I am pleased to reiterate that my country has spared no effort in contributing constructively in all the stages that ultimately led to the convening of this historical conference. This contribution reflects our commitment to the idea of establishing a permanent International Criminal Court and our strong support to this principle. We do believe that the creation of such a court will make it impossible for criminals to escape punishment. This strong commitment finds its origin in a deeply rooted belief in our civilizational march that reserves such a high esteem for justice and its application. The punishment of criminals who dare to commit monstrous crimes that go against the human nature and hurt peace and security, should not limit itself in imposing the penalty that matches the crime, it should, rather, be extended to guarantee a tranquil and quiet life that protects Man's dignity and guarantees the avoidance of humiliation and insult.

A sacred duty is enshrined upon us to keep this noble goal away from narrow-minded motivations and to work, together, in realizing justice.

Mr. Chairman,

It is our belief that this conference acknowledges the role of national judicial systems in deciding the punishment of the culprits convicted of committing crimes that fall under the mandate of the forthcoming International Criminal Court. As stipulated in the preamble and the articles of the draft statute, the role of the International Criminal Court is complementary to that of the national criminal courts. Based on this fact, the International Criminal Court does not have a parallel role to that of national criminal courts and the former is neither regarded as a watch dog to the latters, nor is it a replacement to them. it is also our right to explore ways and means that guarantee the effectiveness of the court.

The effectiveness and power of the Court, Mr. Chairman, are inseparable.

It is a requirement that the member states should, in their endeavours to reassure the effectiveness of the court, refrain from interfering in the activities of the court, and to consolidate international judicial cooperation. It is equally important to protect the Court from the interference of international political organs. In this respect, the International Court of Justice serves as a model in that the U.N. charter and the ICJ statute distinguish its powers and mandate as an international judicial and legal body that functions in complete impartiality and independence.

Mr. Chairman,

Our collective endeavours to reach the statute of the International Criminal Court are aimed at enabling the Court to contribute constructively in realizing peace and security. Thus the International Criminal court, empowered by its statute, will consolidate the customary legal principles and will not contradict them. On top of these principles comes that of national sovereignty of states.

While conscious of the realities of time and the advent of globalization, what we are looking forward to is not to sacrifice these principles, but rather to consolidate international cooperation and to give way to cultures and civilizations to enteract. It is our belief that this can only be achieved in a healthy atmosphere full of respect for the cultural characteristics of each nation. In this connection, and as an example, article (3) of the second annex of Geneva Conventions that prohibits endangering the principle of national sovereignty and the direct and indirect interference in the internal affairs of states, reaffirms unmistakably that the national judicial organs and law empowerment authorities are solely responsible for the enforcement of the principles stipulated in the second annex and punishing those who infringe them. This can only be guaranteed if the Prosecutor General is not to transcend the elements of sovereignty and not to interfere in the affairs of states.

Mr. Chairman,

Our efforts are not only limited to effectively participating in the long march to consolidate the idea of establishing the International Criminal Court in the ILC and the U.N. fora, but we have also contributed by encouraging national mobilization and co-ordinating regional efforts to reach a model statute for the International Criminal Court in line with the highly appreciated efforts exerted by the U.N. in this respect. In this connection, we would like to reiterate our commitment to the declaration adopted by Their Excellencies African Permanent Representatives to U.N. in New York as well as the declaration of the Ministerial Conference of NAM held in Columbia and the consensus reached by the Arab group in their meeting held in Cairo in May this year on the establishment of the International Criminal Court.

In conclusion, I would like to reassure you that my delegation will spare no effort in the forthcoming negotiations aimed at adopting the statute of the International Criminal Court and its establishment.

I thank you.