Assembly/AU/11 (XIII)
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Technical Ad-Hoc Expert Group to clarify their respective understanding on the
African and EU side on the principle of universal jurisdiction and that a report thereto
be submitted to the next Troika meeting in April 2009, with a preliminary report being
submitted before the end of January 2009.
6.
Pursuant to this decision of the 11th AU-EU Ministerial Troika, an advisory
Technical Ad hoc Expert Group was constituted by both the African Union and the
European Union to inform discussions between the EU and the AU on the principle of
universal jurisdiction, in particular to clarify the respective understandings by the AU
and the EU of the principle of universal jurisdiction, and to report to the 12th
Ministerial EU-AU Troika.
7.
The final report adopted by the Joint Experts Group covers the following
points: (i) Definition and scope of the Principle of Universal jurisdiction; (ii)
Approaches to Universal Jurisdiction in the National Law and practice of Member
States of the AU and EU; (iii) the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court; (iv)
the key points AU-EU concern over Universal Jurisdiction; and (v)
Recommendations.
8.
According to their terms of reference, the experts were to make
recommendations with a view to fostering better mutual understanding between the
AU and EU regarding the principle of universal jurisdiction. The recommendations are
addressed to AU and EU Member States, and to the AU and EU institutions, organs
and bodies, as appropriate.
9.
The Report of the experts was submitted to the 12th Meeting of the Ministerial
Africa-EU Troika which was held in Luxemburg on 28 April 2009. Following due
consideration of the Report of the Experts, the Troika Meeting, inter alia, took note of
the report and agreed that the report should be shared with the organs of the AU and
EU as well as Member States.
10.
Accordingly, the report and an executive summary were circulated by the
Commission to all Member States and the members of the African Group in New
York, Brussels and Geneva.
b) Actions taken in respect of the United Nations
11.
Pursuant to the July 2008 Decision Assembly/AU/Dec.199 (XI), the United
Republic of Tanzania, during its tenure as the Chairperson of the African Union,
requested for the inclusion of an item in the agenda of the Sixty-third Session of the
General Assembly beginning in September 2008 entitled “abuse of the principle of
universal jurisdiction”.
12.
Before the matter could be formally placed on the agenda of the UN General
Assembly, bilateral consultations took place between the African Group and the EU
Group and other interested parties in New York. Other groups, notably the European
Union, expressed willingness to discuss the African Union’s request further so as to
come up with an agreement on the title of the request. The EU expressed the view