NOMINATIONS FOR INTERNATIONAL COURT INSUFFICIENT AS 30 NOVEMBER DEADLINE APPROACHES

                                                            L/3017                                                                        29 November 2002

NOMINATIONS FOR INTERNATIONAL COURT INSUFFICIENT

AS 30 NOVEMBER DEADLINE APPROACHES

Deadline May Be Extended to 8 December

The number of nominations for female judges, as well as for Prosecutor and Deputy Prosecutor, by States Parties to the Statute of the International Criminal Court was insufficient as of 29 November.

If at the end of the nomination period there are fewer than 10 candidates from each gender, the deadline may be extended to 8 December, pursuant to resolution ICC-ASP/1/Res.2, adopted on 9 September by the Assembly of States Parties.

States parties have submitted 40 nominations for judges of the Court to the United Nations as at midday of 29 November, against the deadline of Saturday,

30 November at midnight.

As decided by the Assembly of States Parties on 9 September, the nomination period runs from 9 September to 30 November.  The first election for judges and Prosecutors is scheduled for the first resumed session of the Assembly of States Parties, to be held from 3 to 7 February 2003 at United Nations Headquarters.

Nominations for judges must fulfil gender criteria, with no fewer than

10 male and 10 female candidates, as well as regional criteria.  As at midday of 29 November, States parties had submitted the names of 32 male candidates and

8 female candidates.  The female candidates were nominated by Costa Rica, Ghana, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Mali, Poland and Switzerland.

As for regional criteria, 10 nominations have been submitted by the Group of African States, six by the Group of Asian States, seven by the Group of Eastern European States, seven by the Group of Latin American and Caribbean States, and

10 by the Group of Western European and other States.  The number of nominations satisfies the minimum requirements for each group.  

The nomination period was opened on 9 September, in accordance with article 36 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and the resolutions on the procedure for the nomination and election of judges, the Prosecutor and Deputy Prosecutors and on the procedure for the election of the judges, adopted on

9 September by the Assembly of States Parties.

                                    - 2 -                   Press Release L/3017                                                          29 November 2002

Nominations for judges have been received from Argentina, Belgium, Benin, Bolivia, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus,

Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gambia, Fiji, Finland, France, Germany, Ghana, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Mali, Mongolia, Niger, Nigeria, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Romania, Samoa, Senegal, Slovenia, Switzerland, Trinidad and Tobago, United Kingdom, United Republic of Tanzania, Uganda and Venezuela.

As of 29 November, 84 States were parties and 139 were signatories of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

The New York office of the United Nations will be closed on Saturday,

30 November.  Nominations submitted on that date should accordingly be transmitted by fax (+1 212 963-1963) before midnight New York time.

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