Chad has formally notified the United Nations of its decision to withdraw from the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the International Criminal Court (ICC), accusing the Hague-based court of being biased against African countries and other nations in the Global South.
The Chadian government said its decision to withdraw from ICC followed a comprehensive review of the ICC’s performance, which it argued had fallen short of expectations since its establishment and had disproportionately focused its investigations and prosecutions on African states.
The government argued that the ICC’s own records showed that nine of its 13 active cases involved African countries, a pattern it said reinforced concerns that the court was being used as a tool of political manipulation.
In a statement on Monday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the government had informed the UN Secretary-General, the depositary of the Rome Statute, of its decision in line with Article 127 of the treaty.
“The Government of Chad has notified the Secretary-General of the United Nations, depositary of the Rome Statute, of its sovereign decision to withdraw from the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, in accordance with the conditions and modalities provided for in Article 127 of said Statute,” the ministry said.
It also urged the African Union and its member states to strengthen continental judicial institutions, saying Africa should develop a more balanced, credible and effective justice system that respects the sovereignty of its member states.
“The Government of Chad invites the African Union and its member states to reflect more deeply on the future of an apparently biased system and to accelerate the strengthening and implementation of African judicial mechanisms,” the statement added.