International Day of Criminal Justice: 17th July

July 17 is celebrated as the "Day of International Criminal Justice" or "World International Justice Day,"

Theme:

 Overcoming Barriers and Unleashing Opportunities for Social Justice”,

marking the anniversary of the adoption of the Rome Statute on this date in 1998.

The Rome Statute, the founding treaty of the International Criminal Court (ICC),

 aims to protect people from the most serious international crimes: genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and the crime of aggression.

What is Rome statute?

The Rome Statute is the treaty that established the International Criminal Court (ICC). It was adopted on July 17, 1998, and entered into force on July 1, 2002.

The Statute provides the ICC with jurisdiction over four main types of international crimes:

1. Genocide: Acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group.

2. Crimes against humanity: Widespread or systematic attacks directed against any civilian population, including acts such as murder, enslavement, torture, and rape.

3. War crimes: Serious violations of the laws and customs applicable in international armed conflict, including the mistreatment of prisoners of war and the targeting of civilians.

4. The crime of aggression: The planning, preparation, initiation, or execution of an act of using armed force by a State against the sovereignty, territorial integrity, or political independence of another State.

The Rome Statute outlines the ICC's functions, jurisdiction, and structure, including its role in prosecuting individuals rather than states, and its complementarity to national judicial systems, meaning it can only intervene when national jurisdictions are unwilling or unable to prosecute criminals.

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