Resignation of Judge Navanethem Pillay

Judge Navanethem Pillay has resigned from the International Criminal Court (ICC) effective 31 August 2008.  In her letter tendering her resignation to the President of the ICC, Judge Philippe Kirsch, Judge Pillay indicated that her appointment by the UN Secretary-General to the position of UN High Commissioner for Human Rights was endorsed and approved by the UN General Assembly on 28 July 2008.  

The Presidency congratulated Judge Pillay on her forthcoming appointment, thanked her for her contributions to the ICC and expressed the ICC’s regret at her departure.

The Presidency informed the President of the Assembly of States Parties, H.E. Mr. Bruno Stagno Ugarte, of Judge Pillay’s resignation.  Judge Pillay was elected in 2003 for a term of six years.  In accordance with article 37 of the Rome Statute, the Assembly of States Parties will elect six new judges to fill the vacancies left by judges who were initially elected for a six-year, non-renewable term, among them Judge Pillay.  The election will take place in January 2009 in New York. 

Judge Pillay has served as a Judge of the Appeals Division since 2003. Her replacement in the Appeals Division will be announced by the Presidency in due course.  

For further information please contact Ms Claudia Perdomo, Acting Head of Public Information and Documentation Section at +31 (0)70 515-8514 or +31 (0) 646448726 or at [email protected]