Next week states gather for the annual meeting of the Assembly of States Parties of the International Criminal Court. This year, rather than the usual push and pull over the budget, efficiency and whether the court is achieving much, the focus will be on United States sanctions against the court and whether states plan to really support the institution they created in 1998.

With six judges – a third of the roster – under personal sanction, alongside the prosecutor and two deputies, and the prospect of institutional sanctions by the Trump administration to try to stop the court from investigating its Israeli allies, the main issue is whether the court can even survive.

But also looming is the investigation into alleged sexual misconduct by the prosecutor – an accusation he denies – which rumbles on, lacking transparency and is being used as political fodder by the court’s detractors. Our last podcast on the process is here. To outline how NGOs are feeling, we chatted to Danya Chaikel, the FIDH representative to the court.

Altogether a perilous moment for the international justice and accountability crowd to gather. And we will be there to report (and give out tote bags).

This podcast has been produced as part of a partnership with JusticeInfo.net, an independent website in French and English covering justice initiatives in countries dealing with serious violence. It is a media outlet of Fondation Hirondelle, based in Lausanne, Switzerland.