Thursday, November 14, 2013
Kenya waits with abated breath for the UN Security Council decision on
request to defer ICC cases against President Uhuru Kenyatta and his
deputy William Ruto.
Amnesty International (AI) has however urged the Council not to give
in to political pressure to defer the International Criminal Court cases
for a year.“Deferring the trial sets a dangerous precedent for
international justice – paving the way for future trials to be derailed
for political interests. It would be a shame if Security Council members
prioritized the personal interests of political leaders over those of
victims of crimes against humanity,” said Tawanda Hondora, Deputy
Director of Law and Policy at Amnesty International.
The council is due to make the vital decision of Friday.
Kenya
asked the UN Security Council to defer the cases against the president
and his deputy Ruto in May 2013, and the African Union filed a new
request on 12 October 2013.
Earlier this month, Rwanda, a Security
Council member, circulated a draft resolution seeking the deferral. It
is due to be put to a vote on Friday.
AI argues that ICC has been
handling the two cases accordingly, even granting the accused time off
to address national matters (including Westgate attack) and that the UN
Security Council should not interfere with the process of law.
“Clearly,
the ICC has been properly adjudicating over and managing the trials as
provided for under the Rome Statute. There is no reason, therefore, for
the Security Council to interfere and politicise ICC trials,” said
Tawanda Hondora.
The Court has also said it will allow both
accused to be absent from Court in exceptional circumstances. President
Uhuru’s trial, which was due to take place on 12 November 2013, has been
postponed until 5 February 2014.
“In these circumstances, a Security Council resolution would be precipitous and ill-advised,” said Tawanda Hondora.
He
also said that compromises or political trade-offs will seriously
undermine the international justice system and entrench impunity for
heads of state accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
“The Security Council turned down a previous deferral request by
Kenya in 2011 and rejected a request in May this year. We expect them to
do the same now, in the interests of the victims of crimes under
international law committed in Kenya and around the world” said Tawanda
Hondora.The UN Security Council is able to defer International
Criminal Court proceedings for one year under Article 16 of the Rome
Statute which governs the Court.