Tunisian Haykel Ben Mahfoudh said he is committed, in his quality as a Tunisian and Arab judge, to upholding a legal approach based on claiming legitimate rights and their enforcement.

This was as he gave an interview to TAP following his election along with seventeen more judges from a pool of twenty candidates to the International Criminal Court (ICC).

This legal approach is likewise premised on the right to truth and the right of victims to fair and equitable compensation, he said.

Doctor in international human rights law, Mahfoudh said he had not been elected as a named individual but rather in his quality as a legal expert coming from a Tunisian, Arab-African and Mediterranean legal tradition firmly rooted in criminal justice and the protection of human rights.

With regard to the ICC mission, Haykel Ben Mahfoudh said there is need to meet the aspirations and expectations of peoples and states, particularly when delivering rulings on crimes and breaches motivated by cultural, religious or ethnic consi
derations, or in connection to environment or else war crimes.

This election is unprecedented for a Tunisian and Arab judge since the court saw light of day in 2002. His nomination was supported by the Presidency of the Relpublic and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, not to mention the efforts expended by diplomatic missions.

The aim was to harness support for his nomination as a “Tunisian” and “Arab” magistrate in a bid to “break into” the system of international criminal justice.

The election comes against the backdrop of protests across the globe to denounce atrocities in Gaza and call for a fairer and more equitable international justice.

Ben Mahfoudh said the ICC is neutral, efficient, diligent and representative of states. It enjoys trustworthiness in the interantional community and embodies the firm conviction that justice is the only way to establish security in the world.

As things stand now, Mahfoudh said, it is imperative to back this court so that it can fully and sovereignly discharge its mis
sion, nothwithdtanding criticism on all fronts of its credibility. The supremacy of law, the judge said, has always been the best guarantee of security which Humanity has amid excesses.

States Parties to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, a total of 123 countries, cast their votes in the election of judges. Effectiveness, independence, impartiality and geographical representativity are the main criteria.
Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse