No Peace Without Justice (NPWJ) welcomes the public consultation undertaken by the Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on its new policy initiative to advance accountability for environmental crimes under the Rome Statute, especially at this very early stage of the policy’s development, and thanks the OTP for the opportunity to provide written comments. We have participated in numerous consultations relating to different OTP policies and believe they are important not just in terms of the content of submissions the OTP may receive, but also in terms of a concrete expression of the OTP’s commitment to transparency and cooperation, including with civil society.
This submission sets out some general considerations in relation to the investigation and prosecution of environmental crimes within the Rome Statute before examining the specific issues on which thoughts have been solicited, namely what specific crimes within the Court’s jurisdiction should be included in the policy paper; how to understand and apply the applicable modes of participation in those crimes; best practices for investigating and prosecuting crimes that can be committed by means of or that result in environmental damage; and how to consider environmental crimes when putting into practice the principle of complementarity and engaging in international cooperation.
- Download the NPWJ Submission toi the ICC OTP (pdf format)
For further information, please contact Alison Smith, International Justice Director, on asmith@npwj.org
