The Hague: Europe and Arabs
The European Justice Agency, Eurojust, and the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) today published practical guidelines for civil society organizations on documenting core international crimes, such as war crimes and crimes against humanity.
A statement issued by the court's headquarters in The Hague said, "This will enable and support civil society organizations that seek to collect and preserve information to contribute to investigations and prosecutions at the national level or before the International Criminal Court."
The Guidelines are intended to help fight impunity and have been developed based on the experience of the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Eurojust, the Genocide Network, civil society organizations, national prosecutors, and international partners.
Eurojust President Ladislav Hamran said: “With the war in Ukraine, peace and justice are under severe pressure, and accountability for core international crimes and human rights violations is more essential than ever for international criminal justice.
"These Guidelines will be an essential building block in the efforts of authorities and civil society organizations to collect and preserve information and evidence that may become admissible in court. Through this joint effort by Eurojust and the ICC's Office of the Prosecutor, we are providing practical assistance to achieve justice."
“Civil society organizations are essential partners in our common goal of achieving accountability for international crimes,” said Karim Khan, Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court. “Now more than ever we must work together to advance our common work towards justice. Through this publication, we strive It also highlights how we can work together more effectively to protect the most vulnerable when engaging in documentation efforts. This is particularly important in cases involving crimes against children or victims of sexual abuse. I hope this document serves as a basis for deepening this dialogue together. .
This publication responds to requests from many different organizations requesting clearer guidance on effective documentation approaches that can be supportive of work before national and international courts. Most importantly, these guidelines seek to protect the most vulnerable when engaging in documentation efforts. They particularly stress the importance of ensuring that people are not interviewed multiple times. This affects not only their safety and well-being, but also their willingness to contribute to accountability processes by sharing their testimonies. In line with this goal, the guidelines contain advice on key areas, including:
- getting close to vulnerable people,
- take a person's account, photos and videos,
- Dealing with documents, digital information and physical materials,
- Storage, protection and analysis of the information collected.
To help with their use in this area, the Guidelines also contain a checklist outlining basic principles and practical steps that can be followed.
Building on comprehensive good practice tools developed by CSOs in the past, the Guidelines are intended to be a living tool for further development as the collective experience grows over time. Civil society organizations that wish to use these Guidelines as part of their documentation practices are encouraged to share further inputs and questions in order to develop an ongoing two-way dialogue that will ultimately enhance our collective action.
As an expression of this intent, an online technical briefing for civil society organizations will be held on October 6, 2022, followed by a broader dissemination campaign in the coming months. The guidelines will also serve as a framework for discussion of the sessions devoted to the upcoming first session of the thematic round table for NGOs of the ICC and the Office of the Prosecutor, which addresses the issue of crimes against children.
Eurojust and the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court have accelerated their cooperation in recent months, strengthening their joint work in analyzing and supporting investigations into core international crimes.
In March of this year, Eurojust Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine helped form a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) into core international crimes allegedly committed in Ukraine.
The Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court signed an agreement in April to participate in this joint team, making it the first time they have joined a joint investigative team supported by Eurojust.
In May, Slovakia, Estonia and Latvia joined JIT as well. In May, European lawmakers approved a fast-track procedure to adapt the Eurojust regulation, so the agency can store and share evidence of alleged core international crimes committed in Ukraine.
In May this year, Attorney General Khan announced a new initiative to further strengthen the role of civil society in the work of the Attorney General's Office. This includes a series of measures including: (i) hosting two thematic round tables with NGOs each year; (ii) develop and disseminate guidance materials for CSOs; (3) Introducing a new program for participation with national NGOs and local community-based organizations in the work of the office.