CHAPTER 2
BREACHES OF CONVENTIONS
Breach of Conventions and penalties
5. (1) Any person who, whether within or outside the Republic, commits a grave 35 breach of the Conventions, is guilty of an offence.
(2) For the purposes of subsection (1), "a grave breach" means—
(a) a grave breach referred to in Article 50 of the First Convention ;
(b) a grave breach referred to in Article 51 of the Second Convention ;
(c) a grave breach referred to in Article 130 of the Third Convention ;
(d) a grave breach referred to in Article 147 of the Fourth Convention ; or
(e) a grave breach referred to in Article 11 or 85 of Protocol I.
(3) Any person who within the Republic contravenes or fails to comply with a provision of the Conventions not covered by subsection (2), is guilty of an offence.
(4) Any citizen of the Republic who outside the Republic contravenes or fails to comply with a provision of the Conventions not covered by subsection (2), is guilty of an offence.
(5) A person convicted of an offence contemplated in subsection (1), (3) or (4) is liable to a fine or to imprisonment, including imprisonment for life, or to such imprisonment without the option of a fine or to both a fine and such imprisonment.
CHAPTER 3
JURISDICTION AND STATUS
Jurisdiction
7. (1) Any court in the Republic may try a person for any offence under this Act in the same manner as if the offence had been committed in the area of jurisdiction of that court, notwithstanding that the act or omission to which the charge relates was committed outside the Republic.
(2) The Cabinet member responsible for the administration of justice must, in consultation with the Chief Justice of South Africa and after consultation with the National Director of Public Prosecutions, in writing designate an appropriate Court to try a person contemplated in subsection (1).
(3) Whenever this Act is enforced outside the Republic, any finding, sentence, penalty, fine or order made, pronounced or imposed in terms of its provisions is as valid and effectual, and must be carried into effect, as if it had been made, pronounced or imposed in the Republic.
(4) Nothing in this Act must be construed as precluding the prosecution of any person 5 accused of having committed a breach under customary international law before this Act took effect.
Chapter 1
Definitions, Objects and Interpretation of an Act (ss 1-3)
3 Objects of Act
The objects of this Act are:
(d) to enable, as far as possible and in accordance with the principle of complementarity as referred to in Article 1 of the Statute, the national prosecuting authority of the Republic to prosecute and the High Courts of the Republic to adjudicate in cases brought against any person accused of having committed a crime in the Republic and beyond the borders of the Republic in certain circumstances.
CHAPTER 2
JURISDICTION OF SOUTH AFRICAN COURTS AND INSTITUTION OF PROSECUTIONS IN SOUTH AFRICAN COURTS IN RESPECT OF CRIMES (ss 4-5)
[a27y2002s4]4 Jurisdiction of South African courts in respect of crimes
(3) In order to secure the jurisdiction of a South African court for purposes of this Chapter, any person who commits a crime contemplated in subsection (1) outside the territory of the Republic, is deemed to have committed that crime in the territory of the Republic if-
(a) that person is a South African citizen; or
(b) that person is not a South African citizen but is ordinarily resident in the Republic; or
(c) that person, after the commission of the crime, is present in the territory of the Republic; or
(d) that person has committed the said crime against a South African citizen or against a person who is ordinarily resident in the Republic.
CHAPTER 5
MISCELLANEOUS (ss 33-40)
37 Offences against administration of justice in terms of Statute
(1) Any person who-
(a) in the Republic; or
(b) outside the territory of the Republic and who-
(i) is a South African citizen;
(ii) is not a South African citizen but who is ordinarily resident in the Republic;
(iii) after the commission of the offence, is present in the territory of the Republic;
1. The Court has jurisdiction only with respect to crimes committed after the entry into force of this Statute.
2. If a State becomes a Party to this Statute after its entry into force, the Court may exercise its jurisdiction only with respect to crimes committed after the entry into force of this Statute for that State, unless that State has made a declaration under article 12, paragraph 3.
1. A State which becomes a Party to this Statute thereby accepts the jurisdiction of the Court with respect to the crimes referred to in article 5.
2. In the case of article 13, paragraph (a) or (c), the Court may exercise its jurisdiction if one or more of the following States are Parties to this Statute or have accepted the jurisdiction of the Court in accordance with paragraph 3:
(a) The State on the territory of which the conduct in question occurred or, if the crime was committed on board a vessel or aircraft, the State of registration of that vessel or aircraft;
(b) The State of which the person accused of the crime is a national.
3. If the acceptance of a State which is not a Party to this Statute is required under paragraph 2, that State may, by declaration lodged with the Registrar, accept the exercise of jurisdiction by the Court with respect to the crime in question. The accepting State shall cooperate with the Court without any delay or exception in accordance with Part 9.
The Court may exercise its jurisdiction with respect to a crime referred to in article 5 in accordance with the provisions of this Statute if:
(a) A situation in which one or more of such crimes appears to have been committed is referred to the Prosecutor by a State Party in accordance with article 14;
(b) A situation in which one or more of such crimes appears to have been committed is referred to the Prosecutor by the Security Council acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations; or
(c) The Prosecutor has initiated an investigation in respect of such a crime in accordance with article 15.