On 6 June 2025, Darleen Seda, Senior Officer for Training and Capacity Strengthening, attended the final edition of a series of conferences on the review of the Statute of the International Criminal Court in Berlin. The conference entitled "Reviewing the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court: Strengthening the Court’s Jurisdction over the Crime of Agression" was organised by the German Federal Foreign Office. The conference provided a platform for African States Parties to the Rome Statute to express their positions and perspectives in the reform process.
Ms. Seda moderated a high-level panel of experts namely: Gregor Schusterschitz, Legal Advisor of Austria, Michael Kanu, Ambassador of Sierra Leone to the United Nations in New York, Professor Claus Kress, Universität zu Köln, Dieudonné Kamuleta, President of the Constitutional Court of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Santiago Ripol, Legal Advisor of Spain and Professor Charles Jalloh, ILC, University of Miami.
Ms. Seda highlighted the relevance of the review process in light of the Nuremberg trials and the Nuremberg Principles and drew from the expertise of the Nuremberg Academy on the crime of agression. The ensuing panel discussions offered critical reflection on the role and stance of African Rome Statute members within the broader reform dialogue. The panellists explored topics such as double standards in international criminal justice, the role of the United Nations Security Council and regional organisations in the prosecution of the crime of agression as well as the practical enforecement strategies once amendments are adopted.
The conference agreed on the need to harmonise the Rome Statute’s jurisdictional regime and called on Africa and the Global South to take ownership during the upcoming special review process in New York, in July 2025.
For more information on the previous editions, see “The crime of aggression at the ICC”, on 27 March 2025, and “Review conference on the ICC’s Rome Statute in South Korea” on 9 April 2025. (ds)