United Nations Security Council Resolution 1487
Encyclopedia
United Nations
Security Council Resolution
1487, adopted on June 12, 2003, after noting the recent entry into force of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court
, the Council granted a one-year extension for immunity
from prosecution by the International Criminal Court
(ICC) to United Nations peacekeeping
personnel from countries that were not party to the ICC, beginning on July 1, 2003.
The resolution was passed at the insistence of the United States
and came into effect on July 1, 2003 for a period of one year. France
, Germany
and Syria
abstained
from voting, arguing there was no justification to renew the measures. The Security Council refused to renew the exemption again in 2004 after pictures emerged of U.S. troops abusing Iraqi prisoners in Abu Ghraib
, and the U.S. withdrew its demand.
, and would continue to fulfil their responsibilities within their national jurisdictions with regard to international crimes.
, the Security Council requested that the ICC, for a twelve month period beginning on July 1, 2003, refrain from commencing or continuing investigations into personnel or officials from states not a party to the ICC Statute. It expressed its intention to renew the measure within twelve months for as long as necessary. Furthermore, the resolution asked that states were to take no actions contrary to the measure and their international obligations.
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
Security Council Resolution
United Nations Security Council Resolution
A United Nations Security Council resolution is a UN resolution adopted by the fifteen members of the Security Council; the UN body charged with "primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security"....
1487, adopted on June 12, 2003, after noting the recent entry into force of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court
Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court
The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court is the treaty that established the International Criminal Court . It was adopted at a diplomatic conference in Rome on 17 July 1998 and it entered into force on 1 July 2002. As of 13 October 2011, 119 states are party to the statute...
, the Council granted a one-year extension for immunity
Immunity from prosecution (international law)
Immunity from prosecution is a doctrine of international law that allows an accused to avoid prosecution for criminal offences. Immunities are of two types. The first is functional immunity, or immunity ratione materiae. This is an immunity granted to people who perform certain functions of...
from prosecution by the International Criminal Court
International Criminal Court
The International Criminal Court is a permanent tribunal to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression .It came into being on 1 July 2002—the date its founding treaty, the Rome Statute of the...
(ICC) to United Nations peacekeeping
Peacekeeping
Peacekeeping is an activity that aims to create the conditions for lasting peace. It is distinguished from both peacebuilding and peacemaking....
personnel from countries that were not party to the ICC, beginning on July 1, 2003.
The resolution was passed at the insistence of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and came into effect on July 1, 2003 for a period of one year. France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
abstained
Abstention
Abstention is a term in election procedure for when a participant in a vote either does not go to vote or, in parliamentary procedure, is present during the vote, but does not cast a ballot. Abstention must be contrasted with "blank vote", in which a voter casts a ballot willfully made invalid by...
from voting, arguing there was no justification to renew the measures. The Security Council refused to renew the exemption again in 2004 after pictures emerged of U.S. troops abusing Iraqi prisoners in Abu Ghraib
Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse
Beginning in 2004, human rights violations in the form of physical, psychological, and sexual abuse, including torture, rape, sodomy, and homicide of prisoners held in the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq came to public attention...
, and the U.S. withdrew its demand.
Observations
In the preamble of the resolution, the Council noted the importance of United Nations operations in the maintenance of peace and security. It noted that not all countries were party to the ICC Statute or had chosen to accept its jurisdictionJurisdiction
Jurisdiction is the practical authority granted to a formally constituted legal body or to a political leader to deal with and make pronouncements on legal matters and, by implication, to administer justice within a defined area of responsibility...
, and would continue to fulfil their responsibilities within their national jurisdictions with regard to international crimes.
Acts
Acting under Chapter VII of the United Nations CharterChapter VII of the United Nations Charter
Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter sets out the UN Security Council's powers to maintain peace. It allows the Council to "determine the existence of any threat to the peace, breach of the peace, or act of aggression" and to take military and nonmilitary action to "restore international peace...
, the Security Council requested that the ICC, for a twelve month period beginning on July 1, 2003, refrain from commencing or continuing investigations into personnel or officials from states not a party to the ICC Statute. It expressed its intention to renew the measure within twelve months for as long as necessary. Furthermore, the resolution asked that states were to take no actions contrary to the measure and their international obligations.
See also
- History of United Nations peacekeepingHistory of United Nations PeacekeepingThe History of United Nations Peacekeeping began in 1948. Its first mission was to the Middle East to observe and maintain the ceasefire during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. Since then, United Nations peacekeepers have taken part in a total of 63 missions across the globe, 17 of which continue today...
- List of United Nations peacekeeping operations
- List of United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1401 to 1500 (2002 – 2003)
- United Nations Security Council Resolution 1422United Nations Security Council Resolution 1422United Nations Security Council Resolution 1422, adopted unanimously on July 12, 2002, after noting the recent entry into force of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, the Council granted immunity from prosecution by the International Criminal Court to United Nations peacekeeping...
- United States and the International Criminal CourtUnited States and the International Criminal CourtThe United States is not a member of the International Criminal Court . The ICC is a permanent international criminal court, founded in 2002 by the Rome Statute to "bring to justice the perpetrators of the worst crimes known to humankind - war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide",...
External links
- Text of Resolution at UNHCR.org
- Coalition for the ICC — collection of documents critical of Resolutions 1422 and 1487