Gambia to leave International Criminal Court in Nov 2017
What you need to know:
- Gambian Information Minister Sheriff Bojang announced last that the court had been used "for the persecution of Africans and especially their leaders" while ignoring crimes committed by the West.
- He singled out the case of former British prime minister Tony Blair, who the ICC decided not to indict over the Iraq war.
- Gambia's withdrawal will take effect one year after the letter was received on November 4.
UNITED NATIONS
The Gambia has notified the United Nations that it is withdrawing from the International Criminal Court, the third African country to give formal notice of a pullout, a UN spokesman said Monday.
South Africa and Burundi also ignored appeals from UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to reverse their decisions and have sent letters confirming that they are quitting the ICC.
"We have received the official, formal notification, which has now been processed," UN spokesman Farhan Haq said.
Banjul's decision to pull out of the court struck a personal blow against the tribunal's chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda, a Gambian lawyer and former justice minister.
Gambian Information Minister Sheriff Bojang charged that the ICC had been used "for the persecution of Africans and especially their leaders" while ignoring crimes committed by the West.
Gambia's withdrawal will take effect one year after the letter was received on November 4.
Kenya, Namibia and Uganda are among other African countries that have indicated they, too, are considering pulling out of the Rome statute, the ICC's founding treaty.
