Conflicts can be prevented by developing laws that establish responsibility for act of aggression
Ambassador Marja Lehto currently represents Finland's highest know-how in international law as an expert. She is a member of the United Nations International Law Commission (ILC) for the period 2017-2021. Lehto was elected to the Commission with the highest number of votes cast and is also the third Finnish ILC-member of all time.
In October, Lehto participated in the the United Nations annual International Justice Week in New York. During a week-long series of events, current issues of international law were discussed and an annual report of the International Commission of Justice was examined.
Lehto revisited New York again in December, for the International Criminal Court (ICC) annual meeting of the Assembly of States Parties and for the Justice Rapid Response (JRR) Network’s Executive Committee meeting. Lehto has been chair of the JRR Steering Group since 2014. The main discussion of the meeting concerned the Statute of the Court and more specifically the definition of Crime of Aggression.
Working in the International Law Commission requires a huge amount of expertise concerning international law. When asked about her own career, Lehto praises that her long service in the Foreign Ministry has been an opportunity, to combine both a diplomatic career and an international law advisory career.
Lehto worked as a Legal Advisor in the Finnish UN Mission in 1995-2000. That time was, in her view, very intense. There were a lot of post-Cold War optimisms in the air and commitment to forge decisions and agreements. She continues to remind that despite the historically favorable conditions, it was then, and still is important to maintain patience and the ability to compromise in international negotiations.
Last time in New York, Lehto participated as a speaker at the Justice Rapid Responses’ public event in the UN Headquarters. The theme of the event was how to develop international crime investigations into a more professional direction. Lehto was able to tell a full hall of people about JRR's activities concerning the investigation of the most serious international crimes and blatant human rights violations.
"JRR makes important practical work to combat impunity as well as the ICC's subsidiarity principle. Among other things, during the JRR's Board meeting, we went through the priorities for the coming year, including investigating cases of sexual and gender-based violence in conflict situations, mentoring of humanitarian workers and subsidiarity programs", Lehto explains.
The culmination of the week was the activation of the International Criminal Court ICC’s Jurisdiction over the Crime of Aggression. This means that political or military leaders who are found guilty of armed aggression and conflicts may be held responsible for these acts. The punishability of these international crimes, will likely act as a deterrent to the conflict. Decision came after lengthy political process and negotiations.
“The preconditions for the resolutions are not ideal, and it’s no secret that they do not fully meet the objectives that Finland had concerning the negotiations. Still, it is significant that the decision was made by consensus”, Lehto says.
When asked, where Lehto personally would want to see Finland’s foreign policy heading, she replied:
"Finland is doing a good job in many sectors in the United Nations, from sustainable development to security issues. Issues closest to me are of course the development and implementation of international law. I also hope that we will quickly return to the former growth path of improving the resources for development policy."
Henri Salonen