Nomination of Ms. Fumiko Saiga, Judge of the International Criminal Court (ICC), as a Candidate for the Elections of ICC Judges

May 23, 2008

At the Cabinet Meeting held on May 23, Mr. Masahiko Koumura, Minister for Foreign Affairs, stated that the Government of Japan would nominate Ms. Fumiko Saiga, an incumbent judge of the ICC, as a candidate for the elections of ICC judges to be held in January 2009. Judge Saiga, Japan’s leading expert on human rights and gender issues, had won the largest number of votes in the by-elections for ICC judges in November 2007.
The ICC, established in 2002, is a first-ever permanent international criminal court to prosecute and punish individuals, in accordance with international law, who committed “the most serious crimes of concern to the international community as a whole” such as genocide and crimes against humanity. Japan officially became a State Party to the ICC Rome Statute in October 2007. Japan intends to provide as many Japanese staff members as possible, including a judge, and proactively support ICC activities through humanitarian contributions.
The re-election of Judge Saiga, who became Japan’s first ICC judge shortly after Japan acceded to the Statute, will enable Japan to make a strong appeal concerning its active efforts for the development of international criminal law and humanitarian law in visible form and contribute to the promotion of the “Rule of Law” in the international community, on which Japan places importance.

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