Uganda Lobby Day - Delaying International Justice for Peace?
Published by Renee |
10 October 06
11:45:27 am Categories: News, Africa, United Nations, Human Rights, United States
Today, human rights activists will meet with representatives on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. to bring attention to the Juba peace talks between the Ugandan government and the insurgent Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) rebels. The activists seek additional humanitarian aid and high-level U.S. support for the peace talks, which are being mediated by the government of Southern Sudan. Peace negotiator Betty Bigombe considers the United States' political involvement as vital to maintaining the ceasefire and to ensuring continued progress of the peace talks. Uganda President Yoweri Museveni has warned that "this is the last chance for these terrorists" because his administration will not negotiate if these talks fail. Complicating the negotiations, four rebel leaders are unable to attend the talks in person for fear of arrests for war crimes indictments issued by the International Criminal Court at The Hague. The Ugandan crisis highlights the tension between the mandate of the ICC to prosecute egregious war crimes and the pragmatic need by governments to grant amnesty in order to achieve peace. One proposed solution would delay the imposition of the retributive approach by the ICC until after domestic approaches to conflict resolution are exhausted. The United States, a vocal critic of the ICC, may support this solution. However, will the broader international community be willing to accept a solution that would grant broad amnesty to human rights violators and that potentially could weaken the authority of the ICC?
ICC Landmark Case - First Arrest Warrants Issued by the ICCOn 8 July 2005, the International Criminal Court issued its first arrest warrants against five perpetrators of war crimes in northern Uganda. The warrants came in response to a request in 2003 by Ugandan President Museveni for the ICC to investigate the rebel's war crimes. The ICC has jurisdiction to adjudicate war crimes committed after 1 July 2002, when the court was created upon ratification and entry into force of the Rome Statute. The court does not have jurisdiction to prosecute crimes committed prior to that date. The court has jurisdiction over four types of crimes: genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and aggression. The Rome Statute currently does not define the term "aggression," leaving it open for definition at the first review conference of the Statute. Uganda, as a party to the Rome Statute, must comply with orders of the court and must cooperate with the ICC Prosecutor.All five arrest warrants targeted the LRA rebel leaders, with no warrants issued against government leaders. The court issued arrest warrants against the LRA's "Control Altar," the five leaders responsible for creating and implementing the war strategy: Joseph Kony, Vincent Otti, Okot Odhiambo, Dominic Ongwen, and Raska Lukwiya. The court charged the primary leader, Joseph Kony, with thirty-three crimes. Recent DNA tests confirmed the death of Raska Lukwiya.
Joseph Kony's Arrest Warrant - Issued on 8 July 2005 as amended on 27 September 2005 [T]he LRA has engaged in a cycle of violence and established a pattern of "brutalization of civilians" by acts including murder, abduction, sexual enslavement, mutilation, as well as mass burnings of houses and looting of camp settlements; that abducted civilians, including children, are said to have been forcibly "recruited" as fighters, porters and sex slaves to serve the LRA and to contribute to attacks against the Ugandan army and civilian communities; On Monday, October 9, 2006, the court announced it lacks the power to enforce the arrest warrants. In his statement to the UN General Assembly, Judge Philippe Kirsch, the president of the court, recognized that enforcement of the warrants remains with the state and other international actors. He called upon states to cooperate and to fulfill their international commitments under the Rome Statute.
Excerpts- Judge Philippe Kirsch's Statement to the UN
Second Annual Report of the ICC, October 9, 2006 • Our experience over the past year has reinforced the importance of cooperation to the Court . . . the Court has arrest warrants outstanding The Court does not have the power to arrest these persons. That is the responsibility of States and other actors. Without arrests, there can be no trials. • This emerging system of international justice extends beyond cooperation with the ICC to embrace other institutions involved in putting an end to impunity. • We must remember that the primary responsibility for investigating and prosecuting international crimes – like all crimes – belongs to national courts. The ICC only comes into the picture when national courts are unwilling or unable genuinely to investigate or prosecute crimes. Putting an end to impunity and preventing future crimes may require the strengthening of national capacities to deal with crimes. • The ICC has done and will continue to do its part in putting an end to impunity by fulfilling its mandate as provided by the Rome Statute. For its part, the international community must see that its fundamental commitment to ending impunity is upheld and ensure the support and cooperation needed. Resources
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