Posted June. 17, 2003 21:37,
Mr. Luis Moreno Ocampo, an Argentinian human rights lawyer, was elected Chief Prosecutor to the International Criminal Court on Monday, reported The Financial Times yesterday.
After his swearing in ceremony in The Hague, The Netherlands, Mr. Moreno Ocampo promised to place himself at the service of the public around the world, and also pledged to commit himself "to serve justice to fullest extent."
Mr. Moreno Ocampo has earned a reputation around the world as a dedicated human rights lawyer. During his career, he indicted the military junta of Argentina more than 700 times, who tortured and killed numerous innocent civilians from 1980 to 1984. He also represented victims of the Nazis and the military regime in Chile, and initiated lawsuits on their behalf.
More than 400 complaints have already piled up in the new international court, whose headquarters is in The Hague. But the chief prosecutor can handle only three cases out of them by the turn of 2004.
Crimes stemming from conflicts in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Colombia and the Central African Republic could be among the first cases to be brought before the International Criminal Court. Congo and Columbia however have not endorsed the authority of the court. The ICC has jurisdiction over all crimes related to genocide. It has the power to even prosecute heads of state.
Mr. Moreno Ocampo also has to deal with sometimes severe opposition from the U.S. as well.
The Bush administration rejects its authority, and has expressed concern that U.S. citizens could be the target of politically motivated prosecution. It has pressed 38 countries that have given the court authority to accept immunity deals, promising not to hand over U.S. nationals.
The international tribunal also has the authority to bring formal charges against a national of a country that has not endorsed the court`s authority, thus, an American citizen could be brought before the court in any manner.
The U.N. Security Council, however, can intervene in the court`s business at any time, although the ICC is an independent organization. Three Security Council member countries, the United States, China and Russia, have not yet ratified the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.