Experts deliberate on ICC in Accra
A team of experts, scholars and practitioners have gathered in Accra for a two-day conference that will deliberate on and clarify issues that have promoted suspicion and scepticism about the International Criminal Court (ICC) and its work.
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The conference is expected to focus on the controversies surrounding the international criminal justice regime and explore, as well as promote, better dialoguing and engagement between critics and supporters of the ICC and its work.
The conference, on the theme: “The International Criminal Court & Africa: A Discussion on Legitimacy, Impunity, Selectivity, Fairness and Accountability”, is being organised by the Faculty of Law of the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA).
Selective justice
The conference has been necessitated by what has been said to be the ICC’s seeming focus on Africa which has led many to believe that the court engages in selective justice and, therefore, disregards serious crimes taking place in other regions of the world.
Twenty-three cases in 10 situations have been brought before the ICC and nine out of them relate to events that occurred in Africa.
Delivering the keynote address to open the conference, the Prosecutor of the ICC, Mrs Fatou Bensouda, debunked the assertion that the court was engaging in selective justice, stressing that it had at all times been guided by nothing but the law and evidence.
“We will continue to be independent, impartial and fair,” she said.
ICC, treaty-based organisation
Mrs Bensouda said justice for victims of heinous crimes should not be sacrificed on the altar of political expediency, contending that a few selfish politicians had taken to castigating the ICC without any basis.
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She pointed out that the ICC was a treaty-based organisation and that the 124 countries, including 34 in Africa, which had ratified the treaty, did so based on their conviction that victims of violent crimes needed access to quality justice.
She said holding those responsible for the commission of heinous crimes accountable was the surest way of deterring would-be violators and securing the future and development of the African continent.
The fight against injustice, she stressed, would persevere and flourish, adding that in the absence of that Africa would regress into a worse situation.
For Mrs Bensouda, African countries, therefore, owed it to themselves and posterity to nurture the ICC to fight against impunity and violence against humanity and that even though much had been achieved, there was more to be done.
Build confidence in your processes
The Chairperson of the GIMPA Council, Dr Christine Amoako-Nuama, charged the ICC to build confidence in its processes in a manner that would not create the perception of selectivity.
The ICC, she said, ought not to be resistant to criticism but endeavour to build bridges to partner state parties.
The Deputy Attorney-General, Dr Dominic Ayine, said Africa was at the crossroads whether to sever itself from the ICC or continue to dialogue, such that concerns raised would be incorporated into the system of the court in order to nurture it to the level expected.
He, however, opined that there was the need for the continent to embrace “the functional necessities of the court”.
The Dean of the GIMPA Law Faculty, Mr Kofi Abotsi, stressed the need for frank discussions and a harmonisation of ideas in order to enhance the delivery of international criminal justice.