Part 1
Requests by International Criminal Court

Section 4.—(1) In relation to any request by the International Criminal Court for the arrest and surrender, or the provisional arrest, of a person or for assistance under Article 93 (other forms of cooperation) the Minister may presume, unless he or she has any information to the contrary, that the request— Requests by International Criminal Court.

(a) has been duly made and transmitted in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Statute, and
(b) is being made in connection with the investigation or prosecution of offences within the jurisdiction of the Court.

(2) (a) Where a request by the Court involves the disclosure of information and such a disclosure would in the Minister’s opinion be prejudicial to the interests of the security of the State, he or she shall—

(i) in accordance with Article 93.5, consider whether the information can be provided subject to specified conditions or whether the assistance concerned can be provided at a later date or in an alternative manner, and
(ii) if of opinion that the information cannot be so provided, act in conjunction with the Prosecutor, the defendant’s legal advisers or the Pre-Trial Chamber or Trial Chamber of the Court to seek to resolve the issue in accordance with paragraph 5 of Article 72.

(b) Where the Minister becomes aware that such information is, or is likely to be, disclosed in an investigation or proceedings instituted by the Court, he or she shall, in accordance with paragraph 4 of that Article, intervene in order to obtain a resolution of the issue.

(c) If—

(i) the issue remains unresolved, and
(ii) the Minister is of opinion that there are no means by which, or conditions under which, the information could be disclosed without prejudicing the interests of the security of the State,
the Minister shall—

(I) notify the Prosecutor or the Court of that opinion and of the specific reasons for it unless to do so would itself necessarily result in prejudicing those interests, and
(II) participate in any consultations requested by the Court under Article 72.7(a)(i) in relation to the issue.

(d) For the purposes of this subsection Article 72 and paragraphs 4 and 5 of Article 93 shall have effect with any necessary modifications.

(e) In any proceedings a document purporting to be signed by the Minister and to certify that in his or her opinion—

(i) disclosure of information in compliance with a request from the Court, or
(ii) as the case may be, any further such disclosure,

would be prejudicial to the interests of the security of the State shall be admissible in evidence, without further proof, of that opinion.

(f) In this subsection references to the disclosure of information include references to the provision of documents, and cognate words shall be construed accordingly.

(3) Where compliance with a request by the Court is prohibited under the law of the State on the basis of a fundamental legal principle of general application, the Minister shall, in accordance with Article 93.3, consult with the Court to try to resolve the matter.

(4) If a request for assistance is refused, the Minister shall inform the Court or the Prosecutor of the reasons for the refusal.

(5) In accordance with Article 93.8 the Minister—

(a) may, when necessary, transmit information or documents to the Prosecutor on a confidential basis for use by him or her solely for the purpose of generating new evidence, and
(b) may subsequently consent to their disclosure.

(6) Any request mentioned in subsection (1) and any supporting or related documents shall constitute official information within the meaning of the Official Secrets Act 1963.

(7) Competing requests for assistance from the Court and from another state pursuant to an international obligation of the State, other than requests for surrender or extradition, shall be dealt with by the Minister in accordance with Article 93.9.