http://www.voanews.com/english/news/africa/UN-Chief-Rejects-African-Criticism-of-International-Court-138321279.html
January 30, 2012UN Chief Rejects African Criticism of International Court
Peter Heinlein | Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon says African criticism of the
International Criminal Court is unfounded. Ban spoke to VOA's Peter
Heinlein about the court and other issues, on the sidelines of the African
Union summit in Addis Ababa.
The U.N. secretary general takes exception to suggestions that the ICC
record of prosecutions shows an anti-African bias. Critics point out that
the seven active ICC investigations are all in Africa.
In comments to VOA, however, Ban rejected the bias charge, arguing that
African governments have, in most cases, supported the ICC actions.
“On many occasions when African people were indicted, they were indicted at
the request of the African countries themselves. And, there were very few
cases that investigations were instigated by ICC itself," said Ban.
The outgoing chairman of the Africa Union, Equatorial Guinea President
Teodoro Obiang Nguema, used his farewell speech at the summit to denounce
the ICC and suggest that Africa should create its own criminal court.
Ban counters that the ICC has performed well recently in ending what he
calls the era of impunity in Ivory Coast and Libya.
“I think the examples and lessons we have seen in the case of Cote d'Ivoire
and Libya was a very positive one in that everything was moving toward the
right direction in terms of establishing international justice and putting
an end to impunity and putting all these perpetrators to justice. We're now
working very hard in these countries to establish transitional justice.
Therefore, an era of impunity has come to an end,” said Ban.
On other matters, Ban hailed as historic the recent relocation to Mogadishu
of the United Nations Political Office on Somalia. The move marks an end to
a 17-year period in which the world body had no permanent presence in the
Somali capital. He called this moment when al Shabab insurgents are on the
run a small window of opportunity for Somali’s future stability. He said he
will recommend that the Security Council approve an expansion of the
African Union's AMISOM peacekeeping force from 10,000 to 17,000 troops
before a major conference on Somalia in mid-February.
“I'm going to make a report to the Security Council very soon. I hope
Security Council will have a favorable consideration on this increase in
the strength of AMISOM before we meet in London for International
Conference on Somalia,” said Ban.
The secretary general also called Sudan President Omar al-Bashir an
obstacle to peace, and said the Sudan-South Sudan dispute about oil is a
threat to regional security. The comments come after regional leaders
failed at meetings here in Addis Ababa to agree on transit fees and sharing
oil revenues, prompting South Sudan to implement a total shutdown of oil
production.
South Sudan controls more than 70 percent of the two countries’ oil output,
but needs pipelines running through Sudan to get the oil to port.
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Received on Mon Jan 30 2012 - 11:38:31 EST
