Justice beckons as Ocampo visits Kenya
Once ICC chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo is through with the investigations, he will present evidence to the judges and request summons or arrest warrants for the suspects. Photo/FILE
ICC chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo’s visit on Saturday marks another leg in the long journey to justice for post-election violence victims.
The prosecutor will officially launch investigations into the violence that killed 1,133 Kenyans and displaced more than 600,000 others.
ICC official Jelena Vukasinovic said Mr Moreno-Ocampo would be seeking to link the crimes that he was given authority to investigate to those who may have committed them.
Once the prosecutor is through with the investigations, he will present evidence to the judges and request summons or arrest warrants for the suspects.
The prosecutor has indicated his intention to have the suspects arrested by next year for trials in early 2012. Trials at the ICC are carried out by three judges.
During the trial, in which the prosecutor and the defence counsel are present, victims may participate through their lawyers.
“The ICC cannot impose a death penalty. The maximum sentence is 30 years. However, in extreme cases, the court may impose a term of life imprisonment,” said Ms Vukasinovic.
In a related development, Kenyan human rights activists on Thursday took the case to set up a special tribunal to try perpetrators of poll chaos to the United Nations.
The activists representing various organisations were at the Office of the United Nations High Commission for Human Rights in Geneva to lobby for the establishment of the courts.
They accused Kenyan leaders of sabotaging the plan, saying the courts were the best alternatives to complement the International Criminal Court in trying the masterminds of the post-election violence.
“We still emphasise the need for a special tribunal and other national proceedings to ensure a holistic approach to criminal accountability for these crimes,” they said in a statement.
The activists were from the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, Kenya Human Rights Commission and International Centre for Transitional Justice. They also asked the government to enact the freedom of information law.
