Trinidad and Tobago abstains on UN resolution backing International Criminal Court
It is the first time the country has not voted in favour of a major ICC measure, despite former president Arthur Robinson's central role in the court's creation.
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad and Tobago. Trinidad and Tobago has abstained on a United Nations resolution supporting the work of the International Criminal Court (ICC), the first time the country has not voted in favour of a major action concerning the court, Caribbean Life reports.
The vote came less than two weeks after Trinidad voted with the United States and others against lifting the decades-old economic embargo on Cuba.
The resolution dealt with the annual report on the work of the ICC, which handles war crimes and related offences around the world. A total of 93 countries voted in favour, 13 against and 36 abstained. Russia, Argentina, Israel and the US voted against.
A break with history
The abstention is significant because the court's establishment owed much to sustained global lobbying by Arthur Robinson, a former president and prime minister of Trinidad and Tobago. Robinson, who died more than a decade ago, was one of the court's early judges and was widely credited for the advocacy that led to its creation more than 20 years ago.
Until this week, the country's support for anything to do with the ICC had been considered a foregone conclusion.
Split across Caricom
Guyana and Barbados were among Caribbean Community members that voted for the resolution. Jamaica, Antigua and Dominica ensured their delegates were not in the room when the roll was called.
According to the report, Antigua and Dominica have faced unrelenting pressure from Washington to comply with political demands, including requests to accept large numbers of non-national deportees. The State Department has imposed severe restrictions on tourist visas for their nationals, and recent reports indicated that no such visa had been issued to applicants from the two countries up to earlier this year.
US campaign against the court
The Trump administration has led a campaign to undermine the ICC, which the report attributes to fears that senior US defence officials and soldiers could face war crimes trials over military action overseas.
The US has sanctioned nearly 20 ICC judges and argues that the court lacks authority to charge American military and other personnel.
