FG Committed To Domestication Of Rome Statue – Malami

The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami has said that the Federal Government of Nigeria is committed to the domestication of the Rome Statute.

Malami made this known on Monday in The Netherlands while delivering Nigeria’s County Statement at the 21st session of the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, the Hague.

This was made known in a statement issued to newsmen by his spokesman, Umar Gwandu. According to the statement, Malami disclosed that the National Assembly is working assiduously with his office to achieve the domestication drive of the Rome Statute.

The minister said Nigeria firmly believes in the rule of law as a panacea to a just and equitable world, noting that the country has continued to uphold her obligations under international law.

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Malami pointed out that the Federal Government has not reneged on its pledge to extend maximum cooperation to the Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) of the Court in addressing the allegation of crimes against humanity committed within its territory.

“There has been increased exchange of communications between the Federal Government of Nigeria and the OTP, and Nigeria has appointed a Focal Point specifically designated to respond to all requests bothering on criminal law and prosecution issues,” he said.

According to Malami, the development has aided the seamless interactions between Nigeria, the analysts and International Cooperation Advisers of the OTP.

He said Nigeria is working on a Memorandum of Understanding with the Office of the Prosecutor with a view to addressing the grey areas of the alleged egregious crimes committed.

“I wish to also reiterate that Nigeria will continue to demonstrate strong political will to hold perpetrators of terrorism and other heinous crimes accountable, in line with our firm belief that protection of the fundamental rights of the victims of crimes against humanity are not negotiable,” he said.

The minister commended the Assembly for the measures taken to strengthen the Court system, especially assessing the Recommendations of the Group of Independent Experts maintaining that “if we are indeed, to rid the world of impunities, a strong and stable International Criminal Court system is not negotiable”.