We, the participants of the African Conference in Dakar,

Considering:

That, since World War II over 250 conflicts, have resulted in more than 170 million victims and entire populations have gross violations of international law such as genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes;

That, in general, national legal systems have failed to hold perpetrators accountable for these offences, thus engendering impunity and preventing all dissuasion and prevention action of conflicts and the crimes which follow;

That the United Nations General Assembly, recognising the need for the creation of an international jurisdiction which may sanction the most heinous crimes, has called for a Diplomatic Conference for the adoption of the Statute of the International Criminal Court, which will take place in Rome, from 15 June to 17 July 1998;

Affirming:

We affirm our commitment to the establishment of the International Criminal Court and underline the importance that the accomplishment of this Court implies for Africa and the world community as a whole.

That even though the principle of establishing the International Criminal Court has been widely accepted, it is essential that the Convention and the Statute of the Court be adopted at the Diplomatic Conference in Rome;

That the Court shall be independent, permanent, impartial, just and effective;

That a complementarity exists between the International Criminal Court and national and regional tribunals, when these are ineffective and where political will is manifestly absent;

That the role of national tribunals in the prosecution of these crimes is primordial, nevertheless allowing the International Criminal Court the possibility of determining with respect to genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes whether these national tribunals are unwilling or unable to carry out legal actions, creating the risk of allowing these crimes to go unpunished;

That the International Criminal Court shall be the judge of its own jurisdiction.

That the International Criminal Court shall operate without being prejudiced by actions of the Security Council,

That the independence of the Prosecutor and his functions must be guaranteed;

That the cooperation of all States is crucial in order to ensure the effectiveness of the International Criminal Court;

That the Statute of the Court must ensure respect for Human Rights in all phases of the procedure, namely the rights of the suspects, the accused, the victims and the witnesses, and consequently that the Preparatory Committee should intensify its efforts to establish a consensus on the question of victim compensation.

That the effectiveness of the International Criminal Court requires on a regular and permanent basis, financial, human and technical resources for its functioning.

That the independence and impartiality of the International Criminal Court must not be affected by the method of financing.

Thanks:

The President of the Republic of Senegalese, His Excellency Mr. Abdou DIOUF and his Government, as well as No Peace Without Justice, for having taken the initiative of organising an African Conference in favour of the establishment of the International Criminal Court;

Salutes the commitment of the Italian government which has offered to hold the Diplomatic Conference.

Encourages the action taken by all those, starting with the representatives of civil society, in particular NGOs, who have worked to ensure the success of the Diplomatic Conference.

Dakar, 6 February, 1998