In response to the Trump administration’s new sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC), the following quote is attributable to Sam Zarifi, JD, executive director of PHR:
“The Trump administration’s new sanctions on the ICC are an attack on children who survived conflict-related sexual violence in Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The sanctions are an assault on victims of Russia’s relentless bombing of hospitals and energy grids in Ukraine. The sanctions compound suffering faced by Gazan civilians under brutal siege by Israel. In conflict zones across the globe, survivors of atrocities often have few or no pathways to justice, accountability, and healing other than at the International Criminal Court. The world’s perpetrators of genocide, crimes against humanity, and other grave crimes will only be emboldened by the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle the ICC.
“At exactly the time when the Nobel Committee honored Navi Pillay for her lifetime of defending justice and giving voice to those who have suffered the most, the U.S. administration has decided to attack international justice and stand alongside perpetrators – and stand against those who demand and deserve justice. International actors, including the European Union, must act to ensure the ICC remains an avenue to end impunity for international crimes.
“With today’s punitive and regressive sanctions, the Trump administration sabotages a key pathway to justice for victims and survivors from Myanmar to Venezuela to Afghanistan and beyond. A world without the foundational rules, norms, and institutions that curb the horrors of war and deter future violations – including the ICC – makes all of us less safe, including Americans. PHR has worked extensively with survivors around the world where the ICC has active investigations. We see clearly that this policy betrays the tireless staff and partners of the ICC; it will lead to further violations of victims’ and survivors’ rights.”
Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) is a New York-based advocacy organization that uses science and medicine to prevent mass atrocities and severe human rights violations. Learn more here.