Posted by: Erna Paris - Author of The Sun Climbs Slow

The strong response to The Sun Climbs Slow has truly surprised me. Like every author I hoped there would be interest in my book, but I hadn’t anticipated the Macleans bestseller list, especially a week in the top spot. Much of this is due to the topicality of my subject. The new International Criminal Court, which will open its doors for the first time this year, is a break-through for justice and the rule of law in a world made weary by war and the machinations of power politics. Imagine that the powerful of the world might be brought to account for their major crimes, such as fomenting genocide and crimes against humanity? This would never have happened in the past. Now, almost by chance, there is an independent tribunal to do this work.

That such a court came to be at the end of the violent 20th century was pretty much a fluke, since the world’s most powerful countries didn’t want it, for obvious reasons. (To learn more about this intriguing story you’ll need to read the book!) Like it or not, the ICC, as it is called, is now a reality. It is the newest institution in the international galaxy—and what it offers is cautious hope.

Canada has played a prominent role in bringing international criminal justice to the world stage. We have a right to be proud.