Focus Media (Kigali)
Abraham Rumanzi
18 November 2009
At the end of the 5th colloquium of prosecutors from various international criminal tribunals, held in Kigali last week, participants called for more cooperation from governments to arrest suspects against whom international arrest warrants have been issued, in order to fight impunity.
Hassan Bubacar Jallow, chief prosecutor at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda in Arusha (ICTR), challenged countries that were giving asylum to genocide fugitives despite having full knowledge of their crimes.
The ICTR prosecutor explained that impunity had hindered the execution of the court's mandate since out of the indicted 93 leading genocide suspects, 11 still have managed to evade arrest.
Rwanda's judiciary for its part has been requesting the transfer of the remaining cases to the country, but the ICTR has so far refused claiming that it still lacks capacity in the judiciary. Yet Jallow remarked that this doesn't mean that the prosecution might not make fresh applications, given reforms made in Rwanda considering treatment of suspects and prisoners.
He noted, however, that Rwanda ought to improve its witness protection program to convince the ICTR to transfer any cases.
But the ICTR prosecutor commended Rwanda for abolishing the death penalty and the construction of a jail in Muhanga which has been approved by the UN as meeting international standards. As a result, the International Tribunal for Sierra Leone sent eight convicts to serve their sentences in Muhanga prison.
Moreover, according to prosecutor Joseph Kamara of the Sierra Leone court there had been several consultations with the country's judicial officials on matters related to jail conditions before the decision to send the convicts was taken.
He also refrained from pressuring the ICTR to follow suit, saying it was up to the Arusha court to make its own investigations and see whether their requirements were met. "We sent our convicts here because we are comfortable with the conditions," Kamara remarked.
Fatou Bensouda, deputy prosecutor at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Netherlands, urged governments to put more efforts in maintaining peace, since conflict hindered the court's investigation process because of the lack of witness protection.
Helping victims
She pointed out that the ICC itself has established a trust fund to help victims improve their livelihoods until they are fully compensated by the perpetrators, which can only be done after the trials are over.
So far, out the 13 ICC arrest warrants 8 remain outstanding, including those against Bosco Ntanganda and Joseph Kony.
According to ICC prosecutor general Louis Moreno-Ocampo, the ICC is often faced with a lack of cooperation from governments, both in countries that have or have not ratified the Rome statutes (which established the ICC).
Due to such challenges related to impunity of indicted people who enjoy protection from their respective governments, the judicial process has been slowed down, he said.
His deputy Bensouda added that countries that have ratified to the Rome statutes should ensure that indicted persons step down from leadership positions so as to facilitate speedy and transparent investigations. "Some of the indicted leaders have taken advantage of their position to hide evidence," she remarked, highlighting the case of Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir who she said has ignored the arrest warrant charging him with war crimes in Darfur.
Yet international justice is still evolving, and as Moreno-Ocampo pointed out, lessons should be learnt from past and present trials to improve those of the future. "People should ensure that same mistakes are not repeated," he said.
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