ICC, Georgia Seal Agreement on Enforcement of Sentences

The International Criminal Court (ICC) and the Government of Georgia have sealed an agreement on allowing the persons convicted by ICC to serve their sentence of imprisonment in Georgia.

First Vice-President of International Criminal Court (ICC) Judge Robert Fremr and Georgia’s Justice Minister Tea Tsulukiani signed an Agreement on Enforcement of Sentences in The Hague on January 24.

According to ICC, the Rome Statute provides that its sentences of imprisonment “shall be served in a State designated by the Court from a list of States which have indicated to the Court their willingness to accept sentenced persons.”

“The active support of the States Parties is a fundamental precondition for the Court’s ability to carry out its mandate,” Judge Fremr said, noting that “in addition to obligatory cooperation under the Rome Statute, it is essential that all States Parties consider which forms of voluntary cooperation they may be able to offer to the Court”.

Minister Tsulukiani underscored that signing of the agreement is “clear manifestation of Georgia’s commitment to strengthen the ICC as a legal institution, by contributing to enforcing international justice.”

She said this agreement “creates necessary legal infrastructure to place the ICC sentenced persons in the Georgian prisons and the Georgian penitentiary system would join the limited number of those designated by ICC for enforcing sentences as being of high standards.”

Georgia is the eleventh country to have signed such an agreement with ICC, following Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Mali, Norway, Serbia, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

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