On 6 February 2018, Mr. Jens Dieckmann, ICCBA Vice President for Victims, gave a presentation at an event organized by the British Embassy on victims’ representation at the ICC. The event was attended by over 100 participants from the diplomatic community and NGO’s in The Hague.
The British Ambassador, Mr. Peter Wilson and the ICC President, Judge Silvia Fernández de Gurmendi gave introductory remarks. The first panel discussed the ‘ICC Proceedings and the Interests of Victims’ and included representatives from REDRESS and Human Rights Watch. Lorraine Smith-van Lin spoke about the general framing of the various issues surrounding victim participation. The next speaker was Elizabeth Evenson who gave a briefing on the Human Rights Watch Report on victims’ representation in the Ongwen case. Jens Dieckmann concluded the panel by speaking about the importance of ICC jurisprudence during the last 16 years to make victims participation a reality in court, highlighting landmark decisions regarding a) the various status' of victims (anonymous, dual status, protected victims), b) the definition of personal interests of victims to participate in the different stages of procedure and c) the ways in which victims can have an impact on trial, through oral and written submissions and examination of witnesses.
The second panel covered the topic of ‘Legal Representation for Victims at the ICC – What does it look like in practice?’ The first speaker was Megan Hirst who gave an overview of the issues and shared her perspectives. The next speaker was Julie Goffin who gave a view from the courtroom in relation to legal representation of victims. The final speaker of the event was Anushka Sehmi who gave a view of legal representation of victims at the ICC from her experience working in the field.