ICC sets trial dates for Kenya's cases
Four Kenyans accused of masterminding the 2008 post-election violence will start their trial at The Hague a month after the next polls.
However, two of the accused who are preparing to contest in the elections may have to skip the run-off which may fall during the period.
This is because they will be required to be present in person once the cases start.
The International Criminal Court Monday evening announced that the trial in the case against Eldoret North MP William Ruto and radio presenter Joshua Sang will kick off on April 10, 2013.
The case against Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta and former head of civil service Francis Muthaura will start the day after.
The decision by the judges falls in favour of Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda who said that her prosecution would only be ready to proceed with the case after March.
Mr Ruto, Mr Kenyatta and Mr Sang also asked for a date after the elections with only Mr Muthaura asking for an earlier date.
According to the schedules released on Monday, the four suspects will have to wait until march to know the identity of witnesses who are not under ICC protection.
However, by February, the prosecution has been ordered to have disclosed the identity of the witnesses under the court’s protection.
“The prosecution is to provide its witness list, which should include a bullet-pointed summary of the main facts on which each witness is expected to testify, an indication of the estimated length of time required for each witness and the total time for the presentation of the prosecution case, in hours. The prosecution is also to file its list of evidence to be relied on at trial. Both the witness list and the list of evidence are to be submitted by 9 January 2013,” the judges said in their order.
The judges have also asked the prosecution and the defence to make a joint filing on non-contentious issues where there is an agreement by September.
The prosecution has been instructed to disclosure to the defence of all incriminatory material in the form of witness statements and any other material to be relied on at trial by January 9, 2013.
On the same day the prosecution is required to file the pre-trial brief explaining its case with reference to the evidence it intends to rely on at trial.
“The pre-trial brief should contain, for each count, a summary of the relevant evidence of each witness to be relied on at trial and all other evidence upon which the prosecution intends to rely, and shall dearly explain how the evidence relates to the charges,” the judges said.
The prosecution has been asked to file a provisional list of witnesses to be relied on at trial and list of evidence only to be accessed by the judges and the Victims and Witnesses Unit by mid-October.
This list will include a bullet-pointed summary of the main facts on which each witness is expected to testify.
“Additionally, the prosecution should indicate the estimated length of time required for each witness and the total time for the presentation of the prosecution case, in hours. The prosecution is also to provide a provisional list of the material it intends to rely on at trial,” the judges said.
The prosecution has also been asked to disclose the reports of any expert witness who will be called during the case mid-February.
The judges also said that the prosecution and the defence teams are to liaise with a view to reaching agreement on facts as well as the authenticity of evidence.
Any party which is unable to agree to a proposed stipulation shall reflect the reasons and indicate the factual basis for this disagreement in an annex to the joint filing to be filed by March 8.
