IJCentral: International Justice Central

Kenya formally adopted a new constitution Friday in a ceremony attended by several African leaders, including Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir, despite being indicted for genocide and warcrimes. His presence threatened to overshadow a landmark ceremony in which Kenya’s President Mwai Kibaki signed the constitution into law, watched by tens of thousands of his countrymen in Nairobi’s main park

It’s good to see and ICC rally in New York!

On July 17th, Student World Assembly, the American NGO Coalition for the ICC, and host of other organizations held a rally in Union Square, New York City, to commemorate the founding of the International Criminal Court and encourage US participation in the court.

The role of intermediaries has become a critical issue in the trial against Thomas Lubanga. For months, they have been the target of allegations made by Defence witnesses in relation to their corrupt role in this case. The judges then decided to call two individuals -intermediaries 321 and 316- to respond to the claims that they assisted Prosecution witnesses in falsifying evidence.

The Chamber also ordered the Prosecution to confidentially disclose to the Defence the identity of a third person, Intermediary 143. The disclosure became the subject of a clash between the Prosecution and the Chamber.

The intermediaries are individuals who helped prosecutors to identify potential witnesses.

The future of the ICC´s first trial is hanging by a thread. Four judges at the Appeals Chamber will decide the fate of one man, the Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga Diylo, and whether to continue a case that seeks to deliver justice for the victims of heinous crimes committed in the Ituri region between 2002 and 2003. These victims are largely children, turned into soldiers in the war that the Hema militia, the Union of Patriotic Congolese, led by Mr. Lubanga, waged against its Lendu enemy. After the Chamber hearing the case ordered the “unconditional” stay of proceedings and the Accused´s release, it is now the responsibility of the Appeals judges to avoid a startling end to this landmark trial. Mr. Lubanga is in detention pending the outcome of the Prosecution´s appeal.

Session I2 of the 2008 Blouin Creative Leadership Summit: A New Language of Foreign Policy. Keynote speech by Luis Moreno-Ocampo, Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court. PART ONE of TWO

Session I2 of the 2008 Blouin Creative Leadership Summit: A New Language of Foreign Policy. Keynote speech by Luis Moreno-Ocampo, Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court. PART TWO of TWO

Actress Mia Farrow testifies at Charles Taylor’s trial at the Hague, contradicting Naomi Campbell’s “blood diamond” testimony

Sudan’s President Omar al Bashir has warned foreign organisations to respect his government or be kicked out of the country.

Bashir, who’s wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes, has accused international peacekeepers of harbouring six Darfuris, whom he says instigated violent clashes in the Kalma refugee camp last month.

Speaking to Al Jazeera’s Mohammed Adow, Ibrahim Gambari, the head of the UN peacekeeping mission in Darfur, says stopping aid work in the region would be irresponsible.

African Union leaders consider increasing military force and discuss ICC International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir on war crime charges.

Just a few minutes away from a blast that killed 76 people in Uganda earlier this month, delegates in the African Union debate increasing the role of the organization’s military force.

The African Union (AU) will likely remove the cap on the number of troops in AMISOM, but probably will not get permission to attack al-Shabaab in Somalia, which claimed responsibility for the blast.

[Jean Ping, African Union Commission Chairman]
“We need additional equipment adapted to the new mandate into attack instead of defence. So we need this equipment and we have asked for five helicopters already for that.”

The summit also addressed the ICC International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir on war crimes charges.

President of Malawi and current chairman of the AU Bingu wa Mutharika says the warrant undermines African solidarity.

[Bingu wa Mutharika, President of Malawi and AU Chairperson]
“The issuance of a warrant of arrest for his excellency al-Bashir, a duly elected president of the Sudan, is a violation of the principles of sovereignty. To subject a sovereign head of state to a warrant of arrest is undermining African solidarity and African peace and security that we fought for, for so many years.”

African countries are divided about whether they should arrest al-Bashir.

Some African leaders say the ICC is obsessed with prosecuting Africans and ignores war criminals on other continents.