18 Jan 2013

UN / SYRIA

Five members of the Security Council today called for the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate possible crimes against humanity in Syria. But British Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant said that at the moment the council did not have the votes necessary to make that happen. UNTV

Posted at: January 18, 2013 6:16 pm

Duration: 04:06

Available in: SD

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STORY: UN / SYRIA
TRT: 4.06
SOURCE: UNTV
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE 18 JANUARY 2013, NEW YORK

SHOTLIST:

1. Wide shot, Permanent Representatives of the United Kingdom, France approach the microphone
2. Cutaway, cameramen 
3. Wide shot, Permanent Representatives of the United Kingdom, France, Luxembourg, Republic of  Korea and Australia approach the microphone
4. Cutaway, journalist taking notes
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant, permanent Representative of the United Kingdom to the United Nations:
"In the face of such a dramatic death toll and the silence of the Security Council we felt that we must speak out on the absolute need for accountability and to send a clear message that the international community is not turning a blind eye to the atrocities being committed in Syria. Without accountability there will be no sustainable peace. The Syrian government has not responded to repeated calls from the international community to ensure accountability through a national procedure. We therefore believe that the ICC has a role to play. Equally in case of a referral the Council should play a role in supporting the action of the ICC."
6. Cutaway, journalist taking notes
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant, permanent Representative of the United Kingdom to the United Nations:
"The Security Council is not united on a referral to the ICC today, at least one member of the Council made clear that they would not support such a referral. There were others who said that they would support such a referral. But there is not plan B in terms of the ICC, we will continue to make efforts to encourage everyone on the Security Council to take their responsibilities and use the international accountability that the ICC represents to tackle the human rights violations and abuses in Syria."
8. Cutaway, journalist taking notes
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant, permanent Representative of the United Kingdom to the United Nations:
"Clearly now it is for the Security Council to take up its responsibilities. We as the five members of the Security Council are willing to do so. We heard today that others would support that, but clearly there are divisions and such a resolution would not be adopted today, but that des not that we will give up because we believe that international justice is important, that accountability is important."
10. Cutaway, journalist taking notes
11. Wide shot, High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay approaches microphone
12. Cutaway, journalist taking notes
13. SOUNDBITE (English) Navi Pillay, High Commissioner for Human Rights, United Nations:
"I have informed the Security Council that as High commissioner for Human Rights part of may mandate is to bring to their attention how victims see the situation and certainly they see the situation as United Nations is not carrying out its responsibility to protect victims. I will continue to make the call for referral to the International Criminal Court because the United Nations does not support impunity for serious violations of human rights and for the commission of serious crimes such as crimes against humanity."
14. Cutaway, journalists taking notes
15. Med shot, Navi Pillay leaves microphone behind and Valerie Amos approaches it
16. Cutaway, journalist taking notes
17. SOUNDBITE (English) Valerie Amos, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, United Nations:
"We are very keen to scale up our efforts but we can only do this if we are able to access government and opposition-controlled areas. There has been a huge amount of concern that we are not able to reach a lot of people. If you look at the food distribution, it's clear that about 49 per cent of the help has gone into those in opposition or disputed areas and about 51 per cent into people in Government-controlled areas. But the security situation is volatile, it changes all the time."
18. Cutaway, journalist taking notes
19. SOUNDBITE (English) Valerie Amos, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, United Nations:
"We have just urgent needs inside Syria which we need to meet and I would say that there is no area where we have been able to meet the range of needs that have been identified."
20. Cutaway, journalist taking notes
21. Med shot, Valerie Amos leaves microphone behind

STORYLINE:

Five members of the Security Council today called for the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate possible crimes against humanity in Syria.  But British Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant said that at the moment the council did not have the votes necessary to make that happen.

The Ambassadors of Australia, France, Luxembourg, the Republic of Korea and the United Kingdom made a joint statement following a briefing from Navi Pillay, the High Commissioner of Human Rights and Valerie Amos, the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator.

Noting the "dramatic" rise in the death toll in Syria and the "silence of the Security Council" British Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant said, "We felt that we must speak out on the absolute need for accountability and to send a clear message that the international community is not turning a blind eye to the atrocities being committed in Syria".

While sharing the group's belief that the ICC had a role to play in this issue, Grant said that in the case of a referral the Council "should play a role in supporting the action of the ICC".

Grant said that while the Security Council was not united due to one member's disagreement with such referral to the ICC, there were others did support it, but he also said that there was no plan B in terms of the ICC,

Grant also said, "Clearly now it is for the Security Council to take up its responsibilities. We as the five members of the Security Council are willing to do so."

Earlier and following her briefing to the council members Navi Pillay said that her mandate as High commissioner was to bring to the council members attention how victims saw the situation and, she said "certainly they see the situation as United Nations is not carrying out its responsibility to protect victims". She added that she would continue to make the call for referral to the International Criminal Court.

Valerie Amos, the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator who also briefed the council told reporters that although she was keen to scaling up the humanitarian efforts in Syria she could only do that if there were access to government and opposition-controlled areas.

She also pointed out that there was "no area where we have been able to meet the range of needs that have been identified".