My flight to Amsterdam with the Ocampo Three

It was utterly surreal — completely beyond belief. Never in a million years would I have thought I’d be on the same flight with the Ocampo Three — Eldoret North MP William Ruto, Tinderet MP Henry Kosgey, and journalist Joshua arap Sang.

But there I was on KLM Flight 566 from Nairobi to Amsterdam on April 5 sharing the Boeing 747 aerial vehicle with suspects for crimes against humanity. As if that wasn’t enough, I was in seat 21B, right smack at the entrance to the plane.

I’d be the first passenger the Ocampo Three would see as they boarded. That’s history in the making.

Three Kenyans were “carting themselves” off to The Hague to answer for crimes against humanity.

I didn’t arrange to be on the same flight with the Ocampo Three. It was completely fortuitous. For a fleeting moment, I thought that God must work in mysterious ways. But then on sober reflection, I settled on fate as the real culprit.

Like the sombre appearance of the Ocampo Six on April 7-8 before the Pre-Trial Chamber, the flight was both poignant and historic.

That the six Kenyans are on the brink of trial by the ICC signals state failure. But our feckless political class walked into this with eyes wide open.

Fake attempts to hoodwink the ICC on judicial reforms are too little too late. That’s why Kenya’s application challenging admissibility will be denied.

But I digress. Back to KLM Flight 566. VIPs in Africa are usually the last to board planes. That’s because unlike the hoi polloi, they hobnob with each other at the VIP Lounge and board at their own leisure. As a mere mortal, I was one of the early passengers to board.

That’s how I was able to see the Ocampo Three and their retinue of MPs saunter aboard. They approached the plane’s entrance in a big pack, singing. Because of the din of the mass of humanity and the aircraft, I couldn’t make out the song.

But it sounded forlorn, like a sad hymnal. But then they quickly stopped singing as they approached the plane’s threshold.

The lead group was some MPs and the internationally renowned TV journalist Jeff Koinange. Suave and smooth as usual, he stopped to exchange pleasantries. Several of the MPs — drawn from ODM, PNU, and ODM-K — stopped to make small talk with me.

That’s Africa for you — one could be forgiven for thinking we were the best of friends. That’s because we have taken diametrically opposed positions on The Hague trials. Many of the MPs looked subdued.

Those who smiled did so nervously. You could tell that the gravity of the moment was starting to sink in. It’s as though by entering the Dutch jet — commanded by whites — they were giving up their liberty. I suppose that was metaphorically true.

Tigania East MP Peter Munya and Mutito MP Kiema Kilonzo looked the most relaxed of the lot. Nairobi Metropolitan Minister Robinson Githae was intense. Behind them came Mr Ruto.

But the usually pugnacious Mr Ruto looked like a lion in winter — his head was bowed and he barely looked up as he crossed the threshold.

He lifted his head only once to look down the aisle. He studiously avoided any eye contact. Soon after, the diminutive Mr Sang appeared. He walked briskly as if late for a meeting.

Mr Kosgey came in with a blank stare on his face. But I must say that of the Ocampo Six, Mr Kosgey — like former Police Commissioner Hussein Ali — has conducted himself with dignity.

But apparently there is no equality between Ocampo Three and their entourage. The suspects and some of their allies flew business class. But a good number of MPs travelled economy.

That little nugget was surprising and begs the question — what was the cause of the pecking order?

I suppose one explanation is that some of the MPs couldn’t afford — or didn’t want to buy — a business class ticket. Another is hierarchy.

Whatever the case, it was sobering to see a cabal of politicos that is usually boisterous, bellicose, and belligerent at public rallies walk with tails between their legs. Matters will get tougher for the Ocampo Six as we saw when they appeared before the Pre-Trial Chamber.

The trip by the Ocampo Six and their entourage to The Hague raises other eyebrows. Who is picking up the tab for all of them?

This was a very costly affair if you factor in plane tickets, many of them business class, board and room at top hotels at The Hague, and local transportation within The Netherlands.

I don’t know the answer to this, but I hope that the taxpayers are not being stuck with the bill.

To clear any doubt — and set the record straight — the government must tell us what, if any, taxpayer shillings were used to fund The Hague trip of the Ocampo Six and their hangers-on. It would be an outrage to raid public coffers.

I end where I began. KLM Flight 566 may well turn out to be the first concrete step in slaying the demons of impunity.

The images of the Ocampo Six in the dock at The Hague means the game is up.

They must take the court’s warning to stop ethnic demagoguery very seriously. Nor should they blame others for being fingered by ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo.

The ICC is not a political court. Mr. Moreno-Ocampo isn’t a Kenyan politician with a dog in the fight.

He’s just doing his job — combating impunity.

Makau Mutua is Dean and SUNY Distinguished Professor at the State University of New York at Buffalo Law School and Chair of the KHRC.