ICC pull-out to ensure Kenya deals with own conflicts- Aden Duale

The Jubilee Coalition has said the push to withdraw Kenya’s membership to the Rome Statute would ensure the country deals with its conflicts without foreign intervention.

The Leader of Majority in Parliament Aden Duale (URP) said Jubilee no longer believes in the sovereignty of the International Criminal Court (ICC) hence the urgent move to withdraw from the Statute establishing the court.

"We want Kenyans to be part of the millions of people who are not party to the court. About 80 per cent of the world’s population does not subscribe to the court. India, China, the United States are yet to ratify the statute,” Mr Duale said when he appeared on a morning talk show on Citizen TV.

He said the court was prone to manipulation. Although he was hard-pressed to explain the reasons behind the recent urgency to cut links with the ICC, Mr Duale said Jubilee would push on with its agenda.

“The reasons given by these countries were that the court was not free from political manipulation therefore also not free to make independent decisions,” the Garissa Town MP said.

GRANTED VISAS

Jubilee, with majority members in both the National Assembly and Senate, will lead the debate on the ICC motion to be brought to the House on Thursday.

Mr Duale, who will move the motion, said 84 MPs had been granted visas to accompany Deputy President William Ruto to The Hague on September 10 when his trial opens.

“They will travel in three batches and will each pay for their tickets, accommodation and upkeep,” he said.

The latest move to delink from the global court follows an African Union Heads of State resolution to pull out of the ICC during a summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.