Ghana’s Attorney-General and Minister for Justice Godfred Yeboah Dame, on behalf of the Government of Ghana, executed the Ljubljana-The Hague Convention on the Investigation and Prosecution of Genocide, Crimes against Humanity, War Crimes, and Other International Crimes (The Ljubljana-The Hague Convention) at the Peace Palace in The Hague, the Netherlands, on Wednesday, February 14, 2024.
The Ljubljana-The Hague Convention is the first global treaty to fight impunity since the Rome Statutes of 1998, which established the International Criminal Court.
It marks the commitment of the world to root out genocide, crimes against humanity, and international crimes.
Present at the signing ceremony were the President of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Piotr Hofmanski; the Chief Prosecutor of the ICC, Mr. Karim A. Khan; the Minister of Justice and Security of the Netherlands, Dilan Yesilgoz; the Minister of State in the Netherlands responsible for Immigration, Eric van der Burg; the Mayor of The Hague, Jan van Zanen; the Justice Ministers of States Parties to the ICC; and some Foreign Ministers of States Parties who executed the treaty.
The Ljubljana-The Hague Convention creates an international legal framework for cooperation among states in the investigation and prosecution of crimes.
It is deemed an important milestone in international criminal law and seeks to enlist international support in prosecuting and investigating the most serious international crimes.
The Convention deals with other matters, including the transfer of prisoners, the use and protection of data, mutual legal assistance, the extradition of nationals and cross-border investigations.
Wednesday’s signing ceremony was the culmination of work on the treaty for over 12 years by a core group constituted for the exercise.
The international community recognised a gap in international law in so far as the efforts to end impunity were concerned. It thus constituted the Core Group to fashion out an international legal mechanism to bridge the gap.
The Core Group of countries that worked on the Ljubljana-The Hague Treaty included the Netherlands, Argentina, Slovenia, Mongolia, Senegal, and Belgium.
Speakers at the signing ceremony, drawn from the Core Group that worked on the treaty, hailed the Convention as a major contribution to the international fight against impunity, war crimes, and crimes of international character generally.
They indicated that the Convention was essential given the growing tendency now for states to prosecute international crimes domestically generally.
Thus, enhanced cooperation is needed to give meaning to the original Rome Statutes of 1998.
Ratifications by only three states are necessary to bring the Convention into force.
Thirty-four States Parties executed the Ljubljana-The Hague Convention on Wednesday, February 14.
