BRUSSELS, April 16 (KUNA) -- The International Criminal Court (ICC) held a ceremony Tuesday to mark the beginning of construction work on the Court's permanent premises in The Hague, The Netherlands.
Construction will be completed towards the end of 2015, when the premises will be ready for use, said the court in a statement.
"An institution of global significance deserves a world class premises. That, I am pleased to say, is what we are building here," stated ICC President Judge Sang-Hyun Song.
"The new ICC-building will become a landmark in the Netherlands and we are proud to have it on our territory," commented the Secretary General of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Jones-Bos.
The Netherlands made the site available free of charge. The project is funded by the 122 States Parties that have ratified the Rome Statute which is the founding treaty of the court.
The ICC is the first permanent, treaty-based, international criminal court established to help end impunity for the perpetrators of the most serious crimes of concern to the international community, namely war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. (end) nk.bs KUNA 162249 Apr 13NNNN