Part 2 Jurisdiction, Admissibility, and Applicable Law: Compétence, Recevabilité, Et Droit Applicable, Art.16 Deferral of investigation or prosecution/Sursis à enquêter ou à poursuivre

Subject(s):

Elements of crimes — International criminal law, conduct of proceedings — Evidence

This chapter comments on Article 16 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. Article 16 addresses the tension that may exist between the Court and the Security Council, where the latter is of the view that a prosecution should not proceed. The Security Council can also refer a situation to the Court, but the Prosecutor is under no obligation to proceed. Finally, the relationship between the Court and the Security Council may arise should the Court be empowered to exercise jurisdiction over the crime of aggression. As the travaux préparatoires indicate, the relationship between the Court and the Security Council was extremely contentious. Article 16 represents a compromise but one with which many States were not pleased. Moreover, international human rights non-governmental organizations opposed article 16, viewing it as an unacceptable encroachment upon the independence of the Court.