I cannot help but question the existence of the ICC upon the principle of promoting world peace. The role of ICC is not to advance world peace; just as in the state parties powerful legal institutions do not and should not guarantee peaceful communities (i.e. the U.S.), ICC cannot and should not promise the global peace. Following a set of legal codes titled the Rome Statue, ICC should make any arduous efforts to persecute its indictee, and this should be the only principle of the international institution. This does not mean that ICC has no influence in the world peace; however, it can only function so when it actually fulfills its duty, which is to have the accused enter the courtroom. Unfortunately, the records of 1 acquittal and 1 acquisition in the last decade severe the court’s efficacy and efficiency, and of course, the court’s much debated influences of deterrence and the world peace. The so-called symbolic effects of the existence of the ICC will wither gradually unless any significant additions to the records are made, the situation of which may end up exacerbating the world peace due to its politicized nature.
William R. Pace
Convenor; Coalition for the ICC (CICC)
Comment on the Peace Lecture Question: “To what extent can the ICC advance peace around the world?”
I cannot help but question the existence of the ICC upon the principle of promoting world peace. The role of ICC is not to advance world peace; just as in the state parties powerful legal institutions do not and should not guarantee peaceful communities (i.e. the U.S.), ICC cannot and should not promise the global peace. Following a set of legal codes titled the Rome Statue, ICC should make any arduous efforts to persecute its indictee, and this should be the only principle of the international institution. This does not mean that ICC has no influence in the world peace; however, it can only function so when it actually fulfills its duty, which is to have the accused enter the courtroom. Unfortunately, the records of 1 acquittal and 1 acquisition in the last decade severe the court’s efficacy and efficiency, and of course, the court’s much debated influences of deterrence and the world peace. The so-called symbolic effects of the existence of the ICC will wither gradually unless any significant additions to the records are made, the situation of which may end up exacerbating the world peace due to its politicized nature.