Bulgaria makes first voluntary contribution to the Trust Fund for Victims
The Trust Fund for Victims (TFV) at the International Criminal Court (ICC) takes great pleasure in announcing that the Government of Bulgaria made its first ever voluntary contribution of €20,000 to the TFV.
Bulgaria’s recognition of the TFV’s mandate and activities demonstrates its support and commitment to making reparative justice a significant reality for survivors of crimes under the jurisdiction of the ICC.
Speaking on Bulgaria’s contribution to the Trust Fund, H.E. Mr Konstantin Dimitrov, Bulgaria’s Ambassador to the Kingdom of the Netherlands said: “Bulgaria’s contribution serves to underpin our continuous support for the work of the Trust Fund for Victims and our commitment to a truly restorative vision of justice that has been embodied in the Rome Statute. We remain committed to further support the activities of the Trust Fund for Victims as an important element of the architecture of the Rome Statute in the fulfilment of its important mandate by ensuring assistance and reparations to the victims and their families to provide justice for all.“
Welcoming the donation, the TFV Acting Executive Director Franziska Eckelmans thanked the Government of Bulgaria saying “The TFV highly welcomes Bulgaria’s first time direct financial support; an important signal that further strengthens the Rome Statute’s reparative justice system. Armed conflict, as that in Eastern DRC, leads to children becoming victims of Rome Statute crimes, who often suffer long-term consequence psychologically and socially. We will use these funds to repair the harm suffered by children in Eastern DRC.” Mrs Eckelmans emphasized the pivotal importance of voluntary contributions, and of new donors coming on board, to enable the Trust Fund to implement its mandates.
The TFV intends to allocate this contribution to programmes in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The TFV is conducting three Court-ordered reparation programmes in Ituri Province relevant to the cases Lubanga, Katanga and Ntaganda (an initial programme). The Lubanga programme addresses the harm suffered by former child soldiers. In addition, the TFV conducts a country programme that allows in particular victims of conflict-related sexual violence to receive medical treatment, individual trauma counselling and group therapy, education, and socio-economic support.
Voluntary contributions, such as this from Bulgaria, enable the Trust Fund for Victims to make reparative justice for victims of the gravest crimes to the international community a reality.
For more information about the Trust Fund for Victims, please contact: trustfundforvictims@icc-cpi.int or visit: www.trustfundforvictims.org.