22 Jun 2016 - NPWJ News Digest on international criminal justice

Articles

Congolese Politician, Jean-Pierre Bemba, Sentenced to 18 Years for War Crimes
by the New York Times, 22 Jun 2016

A former vice president of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Jean-Pierre Bemba, was sentenced on Tuesday to 18 years in prison for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed by militiamen under his command during a four-month rampage of looting, rape and murder in the Central African Republic. The sentence, handed down by an international panel of judges in The Hague, is considered significant for a number of reasons. Notably, Mr. Bemba was convicted even though he was far away from the militia fighting under his orders and was not present during any of the war crimes; the court said he was culpable because of his command responsibility. He should have halted or prevented the crimes, the judges said. Mr. Bemba, who is now 53, was a businessman and scion of a prominent Congolese family before rising to the vice presidency — successful, rich and believed to be untouchable. In 2002, he sent an expeditionary force of his political party, the Congolese Liberation Movement, into the Central African Republic to help put down a military coup there. Though Mr. Bemba rarely visited the troops, the judges at the International Criminal Court in The Hague found that he closely monitored their activities, and convicted him in March.

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Côte d’Ivoire : Simone Gbagbo dément tout lien avec les « escadrons de la mort »
by Le Monde Afrique, 21 Jun 2016

Poursuivie pour crimes contre l’humanité, l’ancienne première dame ivoirienne Simone Gbagbo a catégoriquement nié avoir été en contact avec des escadrons de la mort pendant la crise post-électorale de 2010. Jugée par la cour d’assises d’Abidjan depuis le 31 mai, Mme Gbagbo est soupçonnée d’être impliquée dans des tirs d’obus sur le marché d’Abobo, un quartier favorable à Alassane Ouattara – le rival de son mari à la présidentielle. Elle aurait également, selon l’accusation, orchestré la répression sanglante des femmes d’Abobo et participé à une cellule de crise qui planifiait et organisait des attaques menées par des milices et des forces armées proches du régime. Au cours de l’audience de lundi, l’un des avocats de la partie civile a demandé à Simone Gbagbo si elle avait eu « connaissance d’un document qui parle d’une cellule d’éradication de la peste ». Selon l’avocat, ce document élaborait « une stratégie pour exterminer un groupe d’individus ». « Je n’ai pas connaissance d’un tel document », a répondu sèchement l’épouse de l’ex-président Laurent Gbagbo, allant jusqu’à accuser l’un des avocats d’en être « le rédacteur ».

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UN: Rohingya may be victims of crimes against humanity
by Aljazeera, 21 Jun 2016

Widespread and ongoing violations against Myanmar's Muslim Rohingya minority, including denial of citizenship, forced labour and sexual violence, could amount to "crimes against humanity", the United Nations has said. Some 125,000 Rohingya remain displaced and face severe travel restrictions in squalid camps since fighting erupted between Buddhists and Muslims in 2012. Thousands have fled persecution and poverty. In a report issued on Monday, the UN human rights office said it had found "a pattern of gross violations against the Rohingya ... [which] suggest a widespread or systematic attack ... in turn giving rise to the possible commission of crimes against humanity if established in a court of law". UN human rights chief Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said he was "encouraged" by statements by Myanmar's recently elected government in recent weeks, but added that the new leadership had "inherited a situation where laws and policies are in place that are designed to deny fundamental rights to minorities". 

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Kofi Annan defends International Criminal Court despite Africa row
by Financial Times, 16 Jun 2016

Kofi Annan, former UN secretary-general, has strongly defended the International Criminal Court, arguing that if Africans and others cannot get justice in their domestic courts they should seek it abroad. His backing of the ICC comes amid growing threats from African leaders to quit The Hague-based court and follows the collapse of its case against top Kenyan politicians. In April, the ICC dropped charges against William Ruto, Kenya’s vice-president, who was accused of helping to orchestrate deadly violence following the east African nation’s 2007 elections. The suspension of the case after several witnesses reversed their testimony, or disappeared altogether, came 16 months after the ICC dropped similar charges against Uhuru Kenyatta, Kenya’s president. In an interview, Mr Annan rejected accusations that the ICC was an anti-African institution. “I remind the Africans that it’s wrong for them to say that only African leaders are put into the dock,” he told the Financial Times. He added that Slobodan Milosevic and others convicted of war crimes in the former Yugoslavia had been tried in The Hague before the ICC was established.
 

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