Rome, 16 January 2003_ Yesterday Emma Bonino sent a letter to Afghan Foreign Minister, HE Abdullah Abdullah, after having heard of his government's decision to accede to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

In congratulating the Minister, Emma Bonino has, among other things, affirmed the following: "your decision to bring Afghanistan to the highest standards of international law is an encouragement for us to continue our campaign to put and end to impunity and to assist countries like yours that are in the process to reconstruct themselves and become full-fledged democracies".