Manila 2011
Recognizing that, the peoples of the world continue to be confronted with serious violations of human rights and international humanitarian law in different regions of the world, as well as with the breakdown and failure of the Rule of Law within several national frameworks;
Recognizing further the overarching imperative of the need to protect people from such violations of basic human rights norms, to seek justice and reparations for the victims and to put an end to impunity as essential prerequisites for the establishment of lasting peace and the resolution of the root causes of conflicts;
Acknowledging the vital role that can be played by Liberals worldwide to promote the rule of law, fight impunity and seek justice;
Observing that impunity for perpetrators of atrocities only serves to increase the likelihood of the commission of new, equally horrific crimes and may indeed lead to the re-escalation of violence resulting in the recurrence of internal or international armed conflicts;
Recognizing the vital deterrent effect that the International Criminal Court has, by virtue of its jurisdiction and very existence, on war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide;
Noting the growing prominence and entrenchment of the International Criminal Court in global affairs, most notably when the UN Security Council unanimously referred the Libya situation to the ICC;
Applauding the fact that 114 States have, to date, ratified, or acceded to, the Rome Statute and others have expressed their intent to do so, welcoming in particular the recent decision by the government of Malaysia to accede, the signature of the instrument of ratification by Philippine President Benigno Aquino, and the declared intent of the interim government of Tunisia to accede;
Urging other States, which are not yet parties to the Rome Statute, to ratify or accede to it as early as possible, including States from under-represented regions within the ICC system — Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and North Africa, and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS);
Recalling the principle of complementarity, which puts the primary obligation to investigate crimes with countries themselves, leaving the ICC as a court of last resort;
and, reaffirming the need to implement legislation to enable national judicial systems to try perpetrators of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide; Calls on liberal parties and politicians, individually and collectively, to:
