• Burundi has become the first country to withdraw its membership from the International Criminal Court (ICC).
• It accused the ICC of deliberately targeting Africans for prosecution.
• However, in theory its withdrawal from the ICC has no effect on the court’s ongoing investigations on the country.
• The government of Burundi is accused of committing crimes against humanity, including execution and torture.

Location:

International Criminal Court (ICC):

• The ICC, set up in July 2002, is an intergovernmental organization and international tribunal that sits in The Hague in the Netherlands.
• The ICC has the jurisdiction to prosecute individuals for the international crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes.
• Rome Statute, also called the ICC charter, is the treaty that established the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The Rome Statute:

• The Rome Statute is a founding document that establishes the rules of criminal proceedings in relation to matters that fall under the ICC’s competence.
• The Rome Statute established four core international crimes:

1. Genocide,
2. Crimes against humanity,
3. War crimes, and
4. The crime of aggression.

• Under the Rome Statute, the ICC can only investigate and prosecute the four core international crimes in situations where states are “unable” or “unwilling” to do so themselves.
• The court has jurisdiction over crimes only if they are committed in the territory of a state party or if they are committed by a national of a state party; an exception to this rule is that the ICC may also have jurisdiction over crimes if its jurisdiction is authorized by the United Nations Security Council.

Source:TH & Wiki