All African countries should pull out from ICC

Mukachana Hanyani
THE proposal by South Africa`s ruling party, the African National Congress (ANC) on Sunday, October 11, 2015 that the country should pull out of the International Criminal Court (ICC) should be a welcome development to the African Union whose Chairman, President Mugabe, has been urging Africa to shun the ICC.

Actually all African countries should take that route because the ICC has not been doing any good for the African countries since it was formed.

Pulling out of the ICC by the South African government to pursue its international relations as an independent state would be a good move by that country as it would open doors for other African countries to follow suit.

Instead of the ICC to carry its operations fairly in the world without discrimination, the ICC has been imposing the West’s will on African countries thereby acting as a policing agent. The ICC is always quick to investigate crimes against humanity allegedly committed by African leaders and sometimes subpoenaing them to appear before it pretending that it cares for the African people.

Interestingly, the same ICC seems to be always reluctant to investigate crimes against humanity committed by European and American soldiers in Iraq when they invaded that country in 2003. The combined armies of those two powerful nations overthrew the government of Saddam Hussein after leaving a lot of innocent people dead. Surprisingly the same ICC only rushes into subpoenaing African leaders to appear before it whenever there is suspicion that such leaders have committed either war crimes or crimes against humanity. As such there is no reason for African countries to remain having their membership in such a international court.

It is known that throughout its history, the ICC has never summoned any British or American leader to answer any crimes against humanity that they would have committed around the world. During the Cold War era, the Americans and the British sponsored proxy wars that were fought in developing countries, causing deaths of innocent people, especially vulnerable women and children but no leader from those countries ever appeared before this court. For that reason it is necessary for all African states to take the route which the South African government is about to take, that of pulling out of the ICC.

While the ICC in 2003 found it not possible to investigate crimes against humanity allegedly committed by then the USA President, George W Bush and the British Premier, Tony Blair in Iraq, the same court saw it necessary to try and convict Charles Taylor, the former president of Liberia now serving 50 years in jail in a British jail. Taylor was alleged to have committed crimes against humanity in which he was said to have sponsored rebels that destabilized Sierra Leorne using diamonds looted from that country.

As if the Taylor case was not enough, the same court bundled into its cells Laurent Bgabgo, the former President of Ivory Coast, whom the court accused of committing war crimes after the Ivorian presidential elections some few years ago. Since then, Bgabgo is still to be tried and is in remand prison under the auspices of the ICC.

While African leaders were arrested, developed countries’ leaders were let to go scot-free even after committing terrible crimes against humanity; hence, there is no need for any African country to keep on embracing this ICC thing. Actually the African Union (AU) should pull out from the ICC now.

What benefits does Africa get from the ICC if this court is failing charge leaders, who are worse than vampires, from elsewhere? Since the turn of the 21st century many African leaders have been made to appear before this court charged with various cases linked to war crimes but leaders from the developed countries are let to go scot-free despite committing crimes that are worse than those said to have been committed by African leaders.

Currently, the Kenyan Vice President, William Ruto, is undergoing trial in the same court as he is being accused of having incited people to kill others after the disputed Kenyan elections of 2007.

On a related note, the Kenyan President, Uhuru Kenyatta was subpoenaed to appear before the same court before his charges were dropped because of lack of evidence incriminating him over what happened after the 2007 Kenyan elections.

With the wars in the Middle East killing innocent people, one would expect that the ICC would take action by subpoenaing to appear before it those involved in the unleashing of bombs there. In Syria the so called allied forces, led by the United States of America (USA), have been bombing that country in an effort to remove the Syrian President, Bashir Al Assad from power. Since the war started in Syria the ICC has done nothing to make sure that those committing crimes against humanity there are brought to book.

So the ICC should be abolished as it is failing to carry out its operations on powerful nations; only rushing to deal with developing world countries, especially those from the African continent.

Since the ICC has shown that it has no power to investigate leaders from developed countries, even if the need is there to do so. Actually they should pull off enmass as a protest over how the ICC has been handling issues involving African leaders.

African countries could also look at means to make sure that their concerns are heard by the United Nations Security Council. They need to fight for the UNSC to be reformed in order to accommodate interests of African countries.

Actually all the leaders in Africa should take the road that have been championed by the current chairman of the AU and former SADC chairman, President Mugabe, that reforms in the UN should be made as to accommodate African interests. That call should be the voice of all African leaders in order to force the UN to be accommodative of all countries’ interests regardless of geographical and economic standing of a particular country.

It is now refreshing that the AU has of late chosen 10 countries (the Committee of 10 ) to champion the negotiations with the super powers so that they allow an African country to have a permanent seat in the UN Security Council.

The committee of 10, which has already started the ball rolling is currently having meetings with various countries which are in the UNSC as a way of making sure that they accept the continent`s plea.

The UNSC which comprises of Britain, China, France, Russia and United States of America (USA) has been comprised by those countries since the formation of the UN in 1945 making it impossible for other countries to get their voices heard.

So the C10 which comprises of Algeria, Congo DR, Equatorial Guinea, Kenya, Libya, Namibia, Senegal, Sierra Leorne and Zambia, should be commended for such a good work which they are doing in confronting the UNSC so that it is reformed.

It would be refreshing to hear that African countries are urging each other to pull out from the ICC so that African problems are solved internally.