VIII. PARTICIPATION OF THE REPUBLIC OF CROATIA IN THE WORK OF THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT
ELECTIONS AND APPOINTMENTS IN THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT
Article 45
(1) In the procedure for the election or appointment of judges or other officials or staff of the Court, the Government shall publish an invitation to the eligible persons to apply within a defined period, if the election or appointment is carried out at the proposal of the States Parties and if the Government deems appropriate that the Republic of Croatia should propose a candidate.
(2) If it finds appropriate, the Government will also publish the information on the upcoming election or appointment in the International Criminal Court in case when the candidates are expected to apply to the International Criminal Court directly.
(3) In the case referred to in paragraph 1 above the Government shall conduct the procedure in such a manner so as to secure its transparency, the possibility for governmental and non-governmental professional and humanitarian bodies and organizations, and the application of the highest professional and moral criteria.
(4) In the case when the Statue or other document of the Court prescribes a special procedure for the election or appointment, the Government shall conduct the procedure in this manner, applying the appropriate provisions of the domestic law analogously.

Article 42
The Office of the Prosecutor
1. The Office of the Prosecutor shall act independently as a separate organ of the Court. It shall be responsible for receiving referrals and any substantiated information on crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court, for examining them and for conducting investigations and prosecutions before the Court. A member of the Office shall not seek or act on instructions from any external source.

2. The Office shall be headed by the Prosecutor. The Prosecutor shall have full authority over the management and administration of the Office, including the staff, facilities and other resources thereof. The Prosecutor shall be assisted by one or more Deputy Prosecutors, who shall be entitled to carry out any of the acts required of the Prosecutor under this Statute. The Prosecutor and the Deputy Prosecutors shall be of different nationalities. They shall serve on a full-time basis.

3. The Prosecutor and the Deputy Prosecutors shall be persons of high moral character, be highly competent in and have extensive practical experience in the prosecution or trial of criminal cases. They shall have an excellent knowledge of and be fluent in at least one of the working languages of the Court.

4. The Prosecutor shall be elected by secret ballot by an absolute majority of the members of the Assembly of States Parties. The Deputy Prosecutors shall be elected in the same way from a list of candidates provided by the Prosecutor. The Prosecutor shall nominate three candidates for each position of Deputy Prosecutor to be filled. Unless a shorter term is decided upon at the time of their election, the Prosecutor and the Deputy Prosecutors shall hold office for a term of nine years and shall not be eligible for re-election.

5. Neither the Prosecutor nor a Deputy Prosecutor shall engage in any activity which is likely to interfere with his or her prosecutorial functions or to affect confidence in his or her independence. They shall not engage in any other occupation of a professional nature.

6. The Presidency may excuse the Prosecutor or a Deputy Prosecutor, at his or her request, from acting in a particular case.

7. Neither the Prosecutor nor a Deputy Prosecutor shall participate in any matter in which their impartiality might reasonably be doubted on any ground. They shall be disqualified from a case in accordance with this paragraph if, inter alia, they have previously been involved in any capacity in
that case before the Court or in a related criminal case at the national level involving the person being investigated or prosecuted.

8. Any question as to the disqualification of the Prosecutor or a Deputy Prosecutor shall be decided by the Appeals Chamber.
(a) The person being investigated or prosecuted may at any time request the disqualification of the Prosecutor or a Deputy Prosecutor on the grounds set out in this article;
(b) The Prosecutor or the Deputy Prosecutor, as appropriate, shall be entitled to present his or her comments on the matter;

9. The Prosecutor shall appoint advisers with legal expertise on specific issues, including, but not limited to, sexual and gender violence and violence against children.