Photo: Eskinder Debebe/UN FORMER Prime Minister Raila Odinga has dismissed accusations of racism levelled against the International Criminal Court by the African Union. Raila described as "hogwash" claims that The Hague court is unfairly targeting African leaders while ignoring war crimes suspects in other parts of the world.
"Members of the ICC joined freely, signed the Rome Statute independently which was ratified by their national Parliaments. None was forced to join," he said.
The AU on Monday accused the ICC of targeting Africans on the basis of race and called for the termination of criminal proceedings against President Uhuru and Deputy President William Ruto.
The two are accused of crimes against humanity during the 2007-08 post-election violence. The ICC has denied that it is targeting Africa, saying four out of eight situations under investigation in Africa were referred to the court by the countries themselves.
Yesterday Raila told a group of youth from the main political parties in Zimbabwe, who are on a visit in Kenya, that the AU resolution "missed the point" in its accusations.
He said it was wrong for the African leaders to introduce the element of racism in the matter because others leaders like Jorge Rafael Videla of Argentina and Slobodan Milosevic had been punished through the same system.
Raila challenged African Presidents to take full responsibility for those facing trials at the court. "All the cases currently pending at the ICC have been taken there by African leaders and their government, not the ICC," he said.
"Africa has taken itself to the ICC." Apart from the Kenyan cases, other trials pending at the court are those of Laurent Gbagbo of Ivory Coast, Pierre Bemba of DR Congo and Bosco Ntaganda of Rwanda.
Former Liberia President Charles Taylor has been convicted, even though his trial was conducted by a Special Tribunal for the Sierra Leone situation. Raila said Taylor was arrested by the Nigerian government and taken to The Hague.
He said Gbagbo was handed over to the ICC by Alasanne Ouattara, while Bemba was shipped to the ICC by Joseph Kabila's regime. "Just recently Paul Kagame placed Ntaganda in the plane and delivered him to the ICC. President Museveni asked the CIA and FBI's assistance in the search for Joseph Kony for possible prosecution at the ICC," Raila said.
In the case of Kenya, Raila said "we took ourselves to the ICC" after MPs refused to pass the necessary laws that would have led to a special tribunal established in accordance with the Waki recommendations.
Later in an interview with journalists he refused to be drawn on the merits of the AU resolution or whether the Kenyan courts had the capacity to deal with the cases should ICC allow for a referral. Raila added that the AU has all the right to lobby for the termination of the cases
Comments Post a comment
Well, I fully agreed with the former prime minister of Kenya Raila Odinga. Africa needs to take full responsibility for the level of involvement of the ICC on the African continent; the ICC does not have its own police arresting suspects but rather, we ourselves arrest and refer our own leaders there. This reminds me of slavery days. Again, some slaves were given out to slaves' masters by their own chiefs in return of tobacco or salt. If all of the cases currently pending at the ICC were taken there by African leaders and their governments, then why is AU crying racism at this time?
I never really did understand, why the new constitution of Kenya allowed people indicted for crimes to run for office. It has brought the democratic process into a possible and dangerous conflict: If the leadership is extradicted to Hague, then it could easily be misunderstood by the many engaged voters, that the west once again try to govern an African nation. Both Uhuru and Ruto are young men, and if cleared at the ICC, they would be fit to run for the next round of the presidential election in five years. Its a mess having a fragile democracy's newly elected duo sitting handcuffed in a court room far away. On the other hand, it is probably what Uhuru and Ruto planned for. Before the election, they guaranteed to the world, that they would attend all proceedings in the Hague. Now, elected, they work hard to get the case back to Kenya, where it will slowly vanish into thin air - leaving all the IDPs to rotten in the camps. To proceed in a Kenyan court, Parliament must strip the leaders of their political immunity - and that will never happen. Pay raise or not!
SELLOUTS AND UNPATRIOTIC PEOPLE LIKE YOU ARE THE CAUSES OF AFRICA BACKWARDNESS. WHY WON'T THE ICC FOLLOW THOSE WHO HAVE MURDER THOUSANDS OF INNOCENT CIVILIANS IN PLACES LIKE IRAQ, AFGHANISTAN, BEIRUT, PALESTINE, etc, etc. WHY WON'T THE ICC DO THAT?? THE ICC IS SCARE BECAUSE IF THE EVER DO SUCH TRAILING, THE ORGANIZATION WILL STOP BREATHING IN A SECONDS - ISN'T THAT THE PROBLEM. THAT'S WHY AFRICA ABSOLUTELY NEED TO UNITE, AND SAY NO TO ALL THESE NONSENSES THAT HAVE AND ARE BEING COMING FROM THESE DESTRUCTIVE EXTERNAL INFLUENCES.