Mr. President,

It is a great pleasure for me and my delegation to see you presiding over our deliberations. My delegation is convinced that under your wise and able guidance, our work will be brought to a successful conclusion. My delegation assures you of its full support in the discharge of your duties.

Let me also convey our sincere appreciation to the Government and people of Italy for the offer to host such an Important conference the same also goes to the City of Rome for the warm welcome and hospitality accorded to us since our arrival in this beautiful city.

Mr. President,

My delegation fully associates Itself with the statement presented earlier on by Dr. A.M. Omar, Minister of Justice of the Republic of South Africa. on behalf of Member States of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), I nonetheless wish to comment on the following:

The question of the establishment of an International Criminal Court (ICC) has been under consideration by the international community for quite some time. The resurgence of crimes against humanity has once again underscored the need to establish an effective judicial mechanism to end Impunity and bring perpetrators of heinous crimes to justice. Against this backdrop, the General Assembly in Its resolution 47133 of 1992, mandated the International Law Commission to prepare a draft statute on the establishment of the ICC as a matter of priority. Our deliberations in the Ad Hoe Committee and the Preparatory Committee since 1995 have now brought us to the threshold of the Diplomatic Conference on the Establishment of an
International Criminal Court.

Mr. President,

My delegation attaches great importance to this Conference and most importantly, the positive results that the deliberations that lie ahead will yield as we continue throughout the duration of the Conference. Mr. President, I wish to point out that the establishment of the Court has been held in abeyance for too long. The question that we need to address now is, with the exhorting developments and the momentum already created, should we continue to delay the setting up of. the Court to the further detriment of the unsuspecting, innocent and helpless people of the world who are, even as we speak, in a position of imminent danger from the perpetrators of the "core crime". Mr. President, the world has waited long enough. The course we will take during this Conference should not send wrong signals to the peoples of the world. Those who sow seeds of destruction must reap their punishment. We must be seen to do our part in keeping the principle immutable and in creating a world in which peace and justice reigns supreme.:

Following the foot steps of the Nuremberg and Tokyo Tribunals in the wake of World War 119 the two International Criminal Tribunals set up by the United Nations in 1993 and 1994, demonstrate that international repression of serious violations of humanitarian law by individuals is no longer a purely theoretical concept. Considering the difficulties inherent with such Tribunals, It is worth noting that considerable challenge awaits the international community as we enter this new phase In legal jurisprudence and the history of mankind.

Mr. President,

In accordance with the principle of sovereignty of states, the principle of complementarity is of great importance in the establishment of the Court. In this connection the jurisdiction, of the ICC should not be seen to replace national jurisdiction, but rather, should be applicable only in respect of the core crimes" where national judicial systems have collapsed or unable to operate.

Mr. President,

It is unquestionable that every one of us has the desire to see a truly effective system that can be relied upon to render justice when needed. It is therefore in this regard that my delegation shares the view that the ICC should have inherent jurisdiction over all the "core crimes". We feel the idea of "consent of states" will render the Court ineffective as states wilI no doubt in most cases than not be reluctant to cooperate.

There is also a great need for the Court to be devoid of political motivations. This will, in the view of my delegation5 guarantee the Court's universality, impartiality and independence. In this regard, the relationship between the Security Council and the ICC is of particular importance. We do thrust that this Conference will be able to come out with an acceptable solution to the question of the role of the Security Council in its discharge of the Charter obligations as laid down in Article VII.

Furthermore, it is worth mentioning that the independence and effectiveness of the ICC will heavily depend on its ability to exercise jurisdiction when a national criminal justice system has failed. In this regard, my delegation fully supports the view that the Prosecutor should be able to initiate proceedings on his or her own motion (ex offlcio) and must not only rely on a third party in order to proceed. Information obtained from a source: considered reliable by the Prosecutor should be enough to enable him or her to initiate proceedings.

We also wish to emphasize that, in order to enhance the Court's permanence, legitimacy and authority, the ICC should be established by a multilateral treaty as opposed to creation as a subsidiary organ of the Security Council or the General, Assembly. As a resolve by the international community over the concern about and desire to suppress crimes of the nature covered by the statute, it will be logical that the Court be organically linked with the UN, as an expression of the international community's manifestation over such crimes.

Mr. President,

Let me end by stating that the establishment of the ICC could not have come at a better time, and as we celebrate fifty years of the entry into force of the Human Rights Declaration, we need to show the world that we do care. As pointed out by the secretary-general Mr. Kofi Annan, when officially opening the conference on Monday, "the global culture of impunity must end." We therefore need to act expeditiously. Those issues that remain unresolved should not lead us to a state of paralysis and inaction. The experiences of Rwanda and Yugoslavia should serve as a lesson to the international community. Violations of human rights will continue to mushroom if we as the United Nations, do not act swiftly and decisively to protect the dignity of mankind.

Thank you.