Members of the Asian Society of International Law, International Environmental Law Interest Group (IELIG) submitted their Early Comments to the International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor’s Policy Paper on Environmental Crimes.

The International Criminal Court’s Prosecutor, Mr. Karim A.A. Khan KC, has launched a new policy initiative to address environmental crimes. The aim is to create a systematic approach to dealing with crimes under the Court’s jurisdiction that involve environmental damage. The announcement of this initiative was followed by an invitation for comments and input from stakeholders on the following issues:

• What specific crimes within the Court’s jurisdiction should be included in the policy paper?
• How should the Court understand and apply the applicable modes of participation in those crimes?
• What are the best practices for investigating and prosecuting crimes that can be committed by means of or that result in environmental damage?
• How should the Court consider environmental crimes when putting into practice the principle of complementarity and engaging in international cooperation?

Recognising the significance of the issue at hand, it was resolved by the IELIG during its meeting on 5 March 2024 that Early Comments shall be submitted for the consideration of the Office of the Prosecutor of the ICC. This document will address the issues outlined by the Prosecutor as listed above.

The full copy of the AsianSIL IELIG Early Comments can be accessed here: https://www.asiansil.org/asiansil-ielig-members-submitted-their-early-comments-to-the-icc-prosecutors-policy-paper-on-environmental-crimes/

Author:
Subash Jai Devaraj

Contributors:
Mostafa Naser
Amiel Ian Valdez
Jin Gu
Luciana Maulida
Stellina Jolly
SeungPyo (Espée) Hong
Tetsuya Toyoda
Zhang Qiyue