ICC should change it’s name to International Criminal Court for African Leaders(ICCAL)
Posted by African Press International on October 4, 2011
By API
It is astounding to note that the trials at the ICC, be it confirmation of charges hearings or trials, it is only African leaders that are facing the charges at the moment. This may qualify for a change of name from International Criminal Court (ICC), to the International Criminal Court for African Leaders (ICCAL).
The ICC prosecutors are seemingly interested in punishing African leaders even when there is no evidence to indict some of them. API is not saying there are no crimes committed in African countries. The way forward is to get the right people who commit crimes to stand trial, not to victimize leaders just because they are popular with their people and unpopular with their political rivals.
We have seen what is happening in the case of Kenya case 1 of William Ruto, Henry Kosgey and Joshua Sang, followed by Uhuru Kenyatta, Francis Muthaura and Hussein Ali cases.
The prosecution has been having a hard time to convince any thinking persons that they have investigated these cases. Instead, it has come out into the open during the proceedings that they have relied on reports produced by activists and anonymous witnesses who have manufactured statements. The same witnesses have not been produced for cross-examination in order to test their credibility.
Analysts say many witnesses seems to have come forward offering their services to the prosecution in exchange for luxurious lifestyles in Kenya or relocation abroad.
These kind of witnesses relied upon by the prosecution sets to undermine the international justice and making it impossible to trust the International Criminal Court when it is clear that the prosecution is turning it into a tool to punish political opponents in Africa, and especially in the case of Kenya
In case 1 and case 2 of Kenya, those who have taken the stand accuse the Chief Prosecutor Mr Moreno-Ocampo of politicising the case. They tend to think that Ocampo is being used by other Kenyan leaders for the sake of their own gain politically, especially now that Kenya will have Presidential and Parliamentary elections next year.
After all the presentations that has now been done by both parties, the Kenya case will now be determined by the three Judges who will have to study the presentations by both parties carefully and hopefully make a justified decision on whether to confirm or not confirm the charges that the six suspects are facing.
If the Judges stick to their program issued earlier by the ICC, the Kenyan people will have to be patient for a little over two months to know the fate of the six.
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william ruto, luxurious lifestyles, uhuru kenyatta, international criminal court, and political rivals.
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African Press International (API) 
Mohan Mathew said
Yes, most of the defendants at the ICC happen to be African. Let’s briefly examine why.
Take the case of Ivory Coast. After an election certified fairly conducted, by the international observers, the incumbent refuses to vacate the chair. He then goes ahead to suppress the protesting public with brutal force. At last he is led out of an underground hide-out ignominiously before his self preserving megalomania destroyed the country completely. It’s all the more surprising that he s a professor of History. I( see that he taught History but never learnt it himself. I mean, he must be in the dark about where Napoleon, Hitler, Mussolini and the like ended up.
We did have Tylor of Liberia who liked human ears as a delicacy. He dealt in blood diamonds. He was brutal to perfection. Who can say that the ICC targeted him just because he is an African?
There are other examples from the length and breadth of Africa who defied the laws of their countries, some of which were enacted by themselves. There was no hope of trying them in local courts or the govts were too weak or unwilling to carry it out. Hence the ICC.
Can we say Joseph Kony is a gentleman who is desperately looking for a chance to be tried in Ugandan courts to prove his innocence? What about the mega goons purporting to lead ‘liberation movements’ in the DRC, but are trading in precious metals illegally?
Will you clap for me if I said, were Idi Amin alive today, he shouldn’t face the ICC? You will stone me to death, I’m sure.
A lot of Africans will agree with me Robert Mugabe deserves to appear in an ICC dock one day. Gaddafi is going to face the ICC. The other rulers who are/will be victims of the Arab Spring will face the ICC sooner or later, with the exception of Mubarak who shuttles between a hospital prison room and a cage in the court in Cairo.
ICC has brought some cases of the former Yugoslavia to successful completion.Those who doubt this may search them on the ICC website.
It should be noted that if a govt, whether African or any other, is genuinely interested in trying their nationals for gross human right violations, the ICC keeps away. Indonesia, Pakistan, Argentina, Peru are examples. No self respecting nation will allow its citizens tried out side its jurisdiction under any circumstance, as it would degrade and demean itself in the eyes of the fellow nations.
What is happening to Kenya in the international arena is a national shame, especially after the shuttle diplomacy it put in place to scuttle the ICC process. This was after the princes of Impunity thwarted all attempts led by President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila to constitute a local tribunal to try the 2007/89 Kenya PEV cases, hoping that the ICC process to start the trials a life time. Unfortunately their hopes were misplaced.
Now they accuse western nations and a prospective presidential candidate of having colluded with Justice Waki and Kofi Annan to influence the 2012 elections by arranging with the ICC to tie them down there for a long time.
The accused may be absolved of the crimes the ICC prosecutor insists they committed, but he is not targeting them because they are Africans. He says he has unexposed bundles of evidence known only to the judges. He can’t reveal any more than what he has divulged taking into consideration of the personal security of the witnesses who might be mostly defected participants of the 2007/89 orgy of violence, he claims. As I know what can happen to witnesses in sensitive cases in Kenya, I tend to believe him.
I do expect a more mature view of the ICC involvement in the Kenya PEV cases. from the API.
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HARUN OTWOMA said
THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER
Evidence Chief Prosecutor Moreno Ocampo, presented before the court is linked to the
former US amassador Micheal Ranneberger article of Daily Nation of January 29, 2011. According to their stataments they are pushing justice to what they want Kenyans to believe.
If there is any transperacy can President Obama’s administration show Kenyans how $ 45 million 3.6 billion shillions budgeted for youths in Kenya was spent, where and from which account?
Kenya Human Rights Commission, the Civil Agencies , individuals who are not serving the intended puporse for needy people has leaders,the experts, NGO’S, IMF, WORLD BANK, Micheal Ranneberger, Chief Prosecutor Moreno Ocampo.etc work for their own ends. They will NOT spare our youths,senions, people living with disabilities for years,widows,widowers.etc. They negative altitude about our guarant of Rigths and Freedom,Fundamental Freedoms, Democratic Rights,Equality.is forcing us into slavery again is their mission.
We want them to respect our laws , we want them to respect our culture and we want our youths to understand where we went wrong we want to move forward with our country without pointing fingers to ourselves and working together we will achieve our goals together. Without Micheal Ranneberger or Chief Prosecutor Moreno Ocampo.
HARUN OTWOMA
PATRON -PEOPLE LIVING WITH DIABILITIES
DISASTER EMEGERNCY RESPONSE TEAM AND PEACE KEEPER.
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