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7441st Security Council meeting on the situation in Libya
7441st Meeting (PM)
The international community must be more proactive in exploring solutions to tangibly help Libya restore stability and strengthen accountability for violations of international law, said the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court as she addressed the Security Council this afternoon.
Presenting the 15-member body with her ninth report on the situation in Libya, Fatou Bensouda said that innocent civilians continued to bear the brunt of the deteriorating security situation in the country, which was a matter of great concern “not only for my Office, but for this Council and the broader international community”. The frequency and brutality of assassinations, terrorist attacks, and threats to media workers, human rights defenders and women in particular were especially troubling. Libya continued to be split, with two governments vying for legitimacy.
Proposing the formation of an international contact group on justice issues through which material, legal and other support could be provided to Libya, she said that a “willing State”, with substantial experience in transnational justice, could consider partnering with the country to explore how such a contact group might be brought to life in the near future.
She had taken note of Security Council resolutions 2174 (2014) and 2213 (2015), which both referenced the referral of the Libya situation to the Court in Council resolution 1970 (2011). She stressed the importance of the Libyan Government’s full cooperation with the Court and with her Office.
“Like the Council, we deplore the increasing violence in Libya, and we are deeply concerned at the impact of this violence on Libya’s civilian population and institutions,” she said, adding that accountability for those responsible for violations or abuses of human rights, or violations of international law, was essential.
In addition, she had also taken note of the Council’s calls for accountability for the use of violence against civilians and civilian institutions by groups purportedly claiming allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL)/Da’esh. The Court’s jurisdiction over Libya prima facie extended to such alleged crimes.
However, she said it was States, in the first instance, which bore the primary responsibility to investigate and prosecute their nationals who had joined forces with ISIL/Da’esh and were alleged to be committing Rome Statute crimes. Her Office was considering the investigation and prosecution of further cases, and would not hesitate to take action to contribute to ending impunity in Libya or to contribute to such action by other relevant prosecutorial authorities.
There were cases where Libya was in non-compliance with Court orders, she said. In particular, it had failed to comply with the Chamber’s requests to surrender Saif al-Islam Gadhafi to the Court. The Office continued to press Libyan authorities to comply and to consult with the Court in order to resolve any problems that may impede or prevent execution of the requests. The Security Council was encouraged to do the same.
Regarding the case of Abdullah al-Senussi, she said that her Office had stated in its last report to the Council that no decision had been taken at the time to submit a request for review under article 19(10) of the Rome Statute. As indicated, the Office had requested information on the national proceedings against Mr. al-Senussi from Libya and had taken steps to access data and analysis from independent trial monitoring sources.
She said that her Office had since received information from the United Nations Support Mission in Libya on the domestic proceedings, as well as from the Libyan Prosecutor-General’s office and from independent civil society members. Based on that information, the Office continued to find the case against Mr. al-Senussi inadmissible before the Court. The Office would continue to monitor the situation in Libya and the domestic proceedings against Mr. al-Senussi.
Finally, as suggested in previous statements, she said that the Libyan authorities should facilitate a visit to New York by representatives from the local councils of Misrata and Tawergha to meet and engage with Council members. Facilitating a solution for the Tawergha issue would have a symbolic importance and resonance in Libya.
Following the presentation of the Prosecutor’s report, members of the Security Council took the floor to condemn the grave violations of human rights and international humanitarian law that were taking place in Libya. Many speakers welcomed Libya’s cooperation with the Court, but stressed that more must be done to hold those responsible for crimes accountable. In that regard, they urged Libya to deliver Saif al-Islam Gadhafi to the Court as requested, and called on the tribunal to continue to monitor the national prosecution of Abdullah al-Senussi.
The representative of Libya, who also addressed the Council, acknowledged his Government’s responsibility to fight impunity as well as the importance of working with the International Criminal Court. Insecurity in his country, he said, had led to delays in trials from the previous regime. He hoped that the State would be able to re-extend its authority to make further judicial progress and achieve criminal justice for all crimes committed since 2011.
Also speaking this afternoon were the representatives of Jordan, Angola, China, United States, United Kingdom, Spain, France, Venezuela, Russian Federation, Chile, New Zealand, Nigeria, Malaysia, Chad and Lithuania.
The meeting began at 3:03 p.m. and ended at 4:40 p.m.
