Delegates cast their ballots during elections held at the 12th session of the Assembly of States Parties. © CICC
ICC member states will elect the six new judges at the 13th Assembly of States Parties (ASP)—the Court’s governing body—when it meets this coming December. As part of our campaign to promote the election of the highest qualified candidates, we’re asking all nominees about their motivations and experience.
The nomination period ran from 28 April to 20 July, but was extended by two weeks to allow the Asia-Pacific region to fulfill its minimum voting requirement (MVR) of two candidates.
Each judicial election has minimum voting requirements so ensure that the bench remains representative of the principal legal systems of the world, has equitable geographical representation and a fair representation of female and male judges.
At the 2014 elections, the following MVRs are in place:
- Two candidates from the Eastern European group must be elected;
- One from the Asia and Pacific states group;
- One must be male;
- And two must come from List B.
Meanwhile, the issue of replacing Judge Miriam Defensor of the Philippines has not yet been resolved. She resigned from her position on the bench earlier this year due to health problems. The Bureau of the ASP is still considering whether this position will be part of the regular election or whether a separate procedure will be held.
The candidates nominated for the 2014 election so far are:
- ALAPINI-GANSOU, Reine Adelaide Sophie (Benin) – List B
- BAHLOUL, Abdelkader Ben Ali (Tunisia) – List A
- BENNEH, Emmanuel Yaw (Ghana) – List B
- BIRMONTIENĖ, Toma (Lithuania) – List B
- BRANT, Leonardo Nemer Caldeira (Brazil) – List B
- CHUNG, Chang-ho (Republic of Korea) – List A
- ĐURĐEVIĆ, Zlata (Croatia) – List B
- HOFMAŃSKI, Piotr (Poland) – List A
- GONTŠAROV, Pavel (Estonia) – List A
- KOVÁCS, Péter (Hungary) – List B
- MINDUA, Antoine Kesia-Mbe (Democratic Republic of the Congo) – List B
- PEREIRA, Maria Natércia GUSMÃO (Timor-Leste) – List A
- PERRIN DE BRICHAMBAUT,
Marc Pierre (France) – List B - RATIARAISOA, Harimahefa (Madagascar) – List B
- SCHMITT, Bertram (Germany) – List A
- THELIN, Krister Hans (Sweden) – List A
- UGREKHELIDZE, Mindia (Georgia) – List A
Article 36 of the Rome Statute requires that candidates have established competence in criminal law and procedure and the necessary relevant experience in criminal proceedings (List A candidates) or in relevant areas of international law and extensive experience in a professional legal capacity (List B candidates).
As part of our Campaign on ICC/ASP Elections, we help publicize and raise awareness of the elections and the nominated candidates by requesting all candidates to complete questionnaires that provide additional information about their qualifications.
Sixteen judicial elections candidates have so far completed the questionnaire sent by the Coalition:
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- Marc Perrin de Brichambaut (France)
- Peter Kovács (Hungary)
- Krister Thelin (Sweden)
- Piotr Hofmański (Poland)
- Chang-ho Chung (Republic of Korea)
- Pavel Gontsarov (Estonia)
- Mindia Ugrekhelizde (Georgia)
- Toma Birmontiene (Lithuania)
- Zlata Durdevic (Croatia)
- Ratiaraisoa Harimahefa (Madagascar)(in french)
- Bertram Schmitt (Germany)
- Alapini Gansou (Benin) in French
- Abdelkader Ben Ali Bahloul (Tunisia) in French
- Maria Natércia Gusmao Pereira (Timor-Leste)
- Emmanuel Yaw Benneh (Ghana)
- Leonardo Nemer C. Brant (Brazil)
All questionnaires completed by judicial candidates, and other documentation, will be available on our 2014 ICC Judicial Elections webpage.
On 11-12 September, we are hosting panel discussions with all of the ICC judicial candidates at United Nations headquarters in New York.
The Coalition as a whole does not endorse or oppose individual candidates but advocates for the integrity of the nomination and election procedures. Individual member organizations of the Coalition may take positions on particular candidates which represent their respective organizations but are not taken in the name of the Coalition.
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