Tribunal: Kenya to beg Ocampo for more time

• We’ll tell him sorry, says Mutula, but ICC has already indicated it will take a hard line

The government on Monday admitted that it would not keep the promise it made to the International Criminal Court to set up a local tribunal by September 30.

Instead, it will write to the ICC asking for more time to pass the law which will set up the tribunal.

This is the third time the government is failing to honour deadlines in bringing to justice those who masterminded the violence that erupted after the 2007 presidential election.

‘We have failed’

“Let us face the facts as they are; we cannot beat the deadline set by the ICC during our July 3 meeting. We have failed,” admitted Justice, National Cohesion and Constitutional Affairs minister Mutula Kilonzo.

At that meeting, the government committed to setting up the tribunal and provide information on witness protection and progress in investigations.

“On the other two, we have already achieved. But we have failed to convince the country to accept a credible judicial mechanism for trying the post-election violence perpetrators,” Mr Kilonzo said.

Parliament went on recess without discussing the Imanyara Bill, which proposes the establishment of such a tribunal. The Cabinet rejected a similar proposal by Mr Kilonzo.

Mr Kilonzo said although the Bill had received the Speaker’s consent, it was still not tabled. “Therefore, we haven’t fulfilled our obligation,” he said, adding that he would either write or call ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo to brief him on the new development.

“We will tell him sorry,” he said.

The minister did not seem too sure how he was going to get in touch with Mr Moreno-Ocampo, saying he had not decided whether to write or call him.

Closed chapter

He also seemed to have given up on a local tribunal, at one time saying he considered it a “closed chapter” and that the sooner Mr Moreno-Ocampo comes to Kenya, the better for the country.

Kenya has ratified and domesticated the Rome Statutes and the ICC prosecutor was free to come into the country. The Internal Security ministry had the power to extend such as invitation, said Mr Kilonzo.

A request for an extension of time is unlikely to be received warmly at The Hague.