Derecho

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Programa de Estudios: Derecho Internacional
Subprograma: Derecho Internacional Público
Coordinador del Programa: Abogado Leonardo Granato

Working Paper N° 07 Título: “International Criminal Court: Declarations amounting to prohibited reservations to the Rome Statute ” Autor: Hugo Relva (Amnesty International) Tipo de Publicación: PaperEl CAEI (Centro Argentino de Estudios Internacionales) es una asociación civil cuya tarea es incrementar el estudio y análisis sobre los tópicos internacionales. El CAEI no comparte necesariamente las opiniones manifestadas en los documentos firmados por sus miembros y difundidos en su página web o en cualquier otra publicación.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION ...................................................................... 1 I. RESERVATIONS AND DECLARATIONS ..................................... 1 II. BACKGROUND TO THE PROHIBITION OF RESERVATIONS IN THE ROME STATUTE ...................................................................... 4 III. RESERVATIONS AND DECLARATIONS IN THE ROME STATUTE.. 6 IV.OBJECTIONS TO RESERVATIONS.......................................... 8 A. The legal effects of the lack of objections to a declaration amounting to a reservation to human rights treaties and the Rome Statute ...................................................................... 9 B. Objections to declarations which amount to reservations to the Rome Statute.................................................................... 10 IV. DECLARATIONS CONCERNING AMNESTIES, PARDONS AND OTHER SIMILAR MEASURES OF IMPUNITY ................................ 12 A. The declarations made by Colombia .................................. 12 B. The declaration made by Malta ......................................... 16 V. DECLARATIONS WHICH MAY UNDERMINE COOPERATION WITH THE COURT.......................................................................... 18 VI. DECLARATIONS WHICH ATTEMPT TO LIMIT OR ALTER THE DEFINITION OF CRIMES......................................................... 22 A. Declaration made by France............................................. 22 B. Declaration made by the United Kingdom........................... 26 VI. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL TO STATESPARTIES, THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT AND THE ASSEMBLY OF STATES PARTIES ....... 27 A. Conclusion..................................................................... 27 B. Recommendations .......................................................... 29

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Amnesty International November 2005

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INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT:Declarations amounting to prohibited reservations to the Rome Statute
INTRODUCTION Although Article 120 of the Rome Statute provides that no reservations may be made to the Statute, unilateral declarations which specify or clarify the meaning Amnesty International is seriously of certain provisions are not prohibited. 1 concerned that some declarations made upon ratification by some states amountto disguised reservations. In this report Amnesty International examines declarations made by six states parties and concludes that a number of them amount to reservations. The legal analysis sets out in detail the organization’s concerns and calls on all states, in becoming party to the Rome Statue, not to make any kind of unilateral statement which could defeat the object and purpose of theStatute or in any way undermine its text. In addition, states parties which have made declarations inconsistent with the Rome Statute should withdraw them. The International Criminal Court (Court) should not be limited in the exercise of its competence by the declarations made by states parties and should give its own interpretation of the Rome Statute in full independence.

I. RESERVATIONS AND...