GOOD WILL MESSAGE OF THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL BAR ASSOCIATION TO THE AFRICAN BAR ASSOCIATION ON THE OCCASION OF ANNUAL CONFERENCE TAKING PLACE IN NAIROBLE KENYA ON THE 23-27 JULY 2018 BY CHIEF CHARLES TAKU, PRESIDENT OF THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT BAR ASSOCIATION.

The President of African Bar Association,

Mr. Hannibal Uwaifo,

The International Court Bar Association is please to send its goodwill message to the African Bar Association on this historic Conference taking place in Nairobi Kenya. The International Criminal Court Bar Association is the recognized independent voice of the victims’ counsels, defense counsels and their support staff appearing before the International Criminal Court. This critical institutional recognition was given by the Assembly of State Parties of the Rome Statute two years ago.

A unique perspective of the ICCBA is its diverse membership. It represents all the major legal cultures of the world with its membership and associate or affiliate membership opened to lawyers and legal scholars from all parts of the world. The ICCBA provides a platform and a voice for the world far beyond the ICC institutional framework to contribute to the administration of a free fair dispassionate international criminal justice that meets the standards and thresholds established by the original objectives of the Rome Statute. Coming in the threshold of the 20th anniversary of the Rome Statute, I will dedicate my mandate as the President of the ICCBA in promoting and protecting these universal values.

Pursuant to this objective the ICCBA signed a historic cooperation agreement, with the African Bar Association that was witnessed by five Judges of the ICC, a representative of the Prosecutor, the Registrar of the Court, the Registrars of the Residual Mechanisms for the Special Court for Sierra Leone, the Residual Mechanism for the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and the Former Yugoslavia and the Deputy Registrar of the International Court of Justice. AfBA was represented by its President Mr. Hannibal Uwaifo and the Vice President Mr. Ibrahim Max. That cooperation agreement, the first of its kind was well received and celebrated in judicial circles world-wide. It opened the door for the signing of similar agreements with other International Bar Associations, the latest being that with the Federation of European Bar Associations.

In a notable address to the Assembly of State Parties to the Rome Statute in New York late last year, my distinguished predecessor Karim Khan QC underscored the significance of the cooperation agreement between the ICCBA and AfBA in the promotion of the universality goals of the Rome Statute. It is in the recognition of the significance of this agreement and the profound respect for the remarkable record of achievements of AfBA in promoting and protecting our shared values and objectives, that the Executive Committee of the ICCBA has delegated me and the Vice President for Defence Dr. Caroline Buisman to attend this historic Conference, to present this goodwill message and to participate in its proceedings.

African Bar Association is Africa at its best. It is the face of a united Africa that was envisaged by the visionary pathfinders and fathers of Africa freedom and independence. It is a monument of hope for a continent of Africa that is incessantly laying justified claims to the universal respect of the rule of law, genuine independence, economic sovereignty over its natural resources, balanced international trade policies, equitable solutions to the dangers of climate change, a fair credible international justice regime and a just violence free world. As the genuine face of the great continent of Africa, your association is best placed to summon and lead the rest of the continent and much of the free world to attain these lofty objectives. Your partner association the ICCBA will support you in the realization of these universal goals.

There is a rule of law deficit in Africa and many parts of the world. As first responders to this rule of law deficit AfBA has taught the rest of the world that only prompt intervention can bring about reconciliation and abate the senseless wars and the resultant culture of impunity that has claimed thousands of victims and plundered the economy of many countries. The avoidable human and material loss has brought so much pain and shame to the collective conscience of humanity in our time and on our watch.

In conclusion, I must emphasize the fact that AfBA and ICCBA are strongly united in their resolve to bring the rule of law to all governments, and to ensure that all multilateral treaty regimes established to promote and protect the enthronement of the rule of law are fair, credible and do not entrench the injustices they were established to redress. To attain this goal, all qualified lawyers must register to become members of the ICCBA and AfBA without further delay in other to use the independent platforms that our associations offer to bring accountability and reforms to the international courts that were establish by the international community to bring justice to victims of international crimes through genuinely independent, fair and credible trial processes.

ICCBA wishes AfBA successful deliberations.

Thanks so much for your kind attention.