Summary: February 6, 2002: Portugal ratifies the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court
The Portuguese Minister of State and Foreign Affairs, His Excellency Mr. Jaime Gama, deposited on February 5th at the United Nations the instrument of ratification of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
With this ratification, Portugal becomes the 51st State Party to that Statute and the 13th EU member to have completed the validation process. The Rome Statute will enter into force upon ratification by 60 States. With this ratification by Portugal, the day the International Criminal Court will be a reality is now even closer.
The establishment of the International Criminal Court is an important landmark in the process of building the international legal system, in particular in regard to human rights and international humanitarian law, and constitutes a fundamental tool against impunity of those responsible for the most serious crimes.
The International Criminal Court will have permanent and universal jurisdiction over these crimes, namely genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. The tribunal will be complementary to national jurisdictions and will act only when national systems are unable or unwilling to carry out investigations or prosecutions of such crimes.
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