Statement by H.E. Mr. Gábor Bródi Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Hungary to the United Nations delivered at the Sixth Session of the Assembly of the States Parties to the International Criminal Court December 4, 2007

Mr. President,

First of all, I would like to express my sincere congratulations to the newly elected judges of the Court. We welcome the new States which have become parties to the Rome Statute since our last Assembly and note with great satisfaction that many States - including non-State parties to the Statute - have become parties to the Agreement on the Privileges and Immunities of the Court. We also congratulate the Working Groups in The Hague and New York for preparing a set of high-quality documents that will enable the Assembly to engage in rich discussion and take informed decisions. Finally, we cannot forget the valuable contribution of the non-governmental organisations and their members to the everyday operation of the Court and the background work of the Member States.

Mr. President,

The Republic of Hungary fully aligns itself with the statement delivered yesterday by Portugal on behalf of the European Union. The Republic of Hungary notes with satisfaction that the membership of the ICC is continuously growing, and up to this date, 105 State have become Parties to the Rome Statute. We reiterate our strong support for the work of the Court and we remained convinced that international peace and security cannot be achieved without proper international criminal justice system. Within the international criminal justice system, the ICC is a fundamental tool to combat impunity and it also has an essential role in the prevention of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, and at the same time it has been the most effective deterrent for potential perpetrators. Therefore we will maintain our strong support to the Court to uphold its commitment in the fight against impunity for the most serious crimes under international law.

Mr. President,

The ICC has no law enforcement capabilities therefore it has to rely completely on the assistance of States and international organizations for the arrest of fugitives, the provision of evidence, the protection and relocation of witnesses and victims and the enforcement of sentences. We think that the most important challenge in the operation of the Court is to achieve more effective cooperation of States and international organizations with the ICC in carrying out warrants of arrest. We, the States Parties should continue to search for better ways, perhaps through fresh ideas, to provide the timely execution of arrest warrants. The sooner the arrest follows the commission of the crime, the greater preventive effect the judicial process will have in the affected communities.The Republic of Hungary shares the Court’s concerns respectively about the outstanding arrest warrants in Darfur and Uganda and urges all parties to ensure that those indicted are brought to justice immediately.

The Government of Hungary shares the assessment of the Court that the institution is still in the process of reaching its full capacity and needs a budget that permits a substantial growth therefore we fully support the draft budget for 2008, with the modifications proposed by the CBF. We also agree that if we want to have spending as close to the budget as possible, we need to make sure that all contributions arrive to the Court in time.

The Government of Hungary supports the draft resolution on the permanent premises of the Court. We believe that the Hague Working Group carried out an excellent work on identifying the conditions for the architectural design competition and clearing all obstacles out of the way of the commencement of construction work. We believe that the Alexanderkazerne in The Hague is excellent choice for the permanent premises of the ICC.

Like previous speakers we thank Liechtenstein for organising the Intersessional Meetings of the Special Working Group on the Crime of Aggression at Princeton. These meetings have proved to be really useful for the preparation of provisions relating to the crime of aggression. The ground work has been done, and we are ready to finalize the work on the crime of aggression, and we will support solutions that are consistent with the United Nations Charter and the Rome Statute. We strongly urge all States to participate in this Special Working Group.

We hope that the Assembly will be able to decide on the date and the duration of the Review Conference and consider exact criteria for selection of a venue. Although New York and Hague have proven already their capabilities to host such an event, we are not against considering other venues in countries that support the ICC and cooperate with it.

The Republic of Hungary looks forward to a thorough consideration with all delegations of the issues before this session of the Assembly of States Parties in a fruitful and open spirit.

Mr. President,

Finally, I would like to express my delegation’s sincere appreciation to the leaders of the ICC and all its officials, for their contribution to the successful transformation of the ideas of international justice and the provisions of the Rome Statute into everyday practice. I would like to specifically recognize the contribution of those people who work at the field offices of the Court. We thank them all.

Thank you, Mr. President.