[RwandaLibre] IPPmedia - 10 hours ago: African Union not capable of forming competent court to try presidents
African Union not capable of forming competent court to try presidents
IPPmedia - 10 hours ago
BY EDITOR
6th July 2014  Email Print
Editorial Cartoon
Reports from Addis Ababa say that the African Union towards the end of
the week approved a draft decision to grant leaders immunity in a
continental court that either is being formed or already exists,
namely the African Court on Human and People's Rights, despite that it
is not expected to be operational for several years.
If the court is now formally restricted from trying leaders when they
are still holding office, and is left to pick up leaders who have seen
been deposed, is it going to be useful for revenge purposes, or as
deterrence against mass murder and irresponsibility that amounts to
culpability for genocide? Without being able to indict leaders, what
is its power?
While African leaders are asking themselves endless questions as to
whether the court they are expecting will start five years or so from
now if all countries will pay their dues and if all parliaments will
ratify them, and if countries will sign agreements of releasing their
top officials part from the president in case claims are brought to
it, the International Criminal Court continues with its work unabated.
Here there is no issue of immunity for sitting Heads of State as in
the final analysis it is criminality, not low level of public
responsibilities, which takes someone to court.
Nor indeed is it true that a sitting president is hugely important to
the country that he cannot leave office for court wok and the country
remains property governed. The trouble is that this could ignite an
actual civil war.
In other words when it comes to standards of governance and observance
of human rights, it is a pointless effort on the part of lawyers in
various capitals to try and localize issues of justice when human
rights abuses occur, so that Africans become their own judges if human
rights are breached.
All these activities, responding to routine pressures from grassroots
activists, are double edged, as first they are imbued with the
nationalistic spirit that we as Africans should resolve our own
problems, and then face the uphill reality that we as Africans are
firstly loyal to our leaders and political parties, their place and
dignity.
Breaches of human rights are secondary considerations, and when it
comes to such issues, we privilege the benefit of doubt in their
regard, circumstances, not probity.
So it must be admitted that good governance and human rights
observance is another White Man's Burden where African leaders are
forced to toe the line, lest they are confined to their countries,
unable to travel and their foreign bank accounts frozen.
That is the lot of all who have fallen out flatly with the West, and
as many of them dread such prospect, they hurry to form governments of
national unity instead of dealing with opposition groups the way they
usually do, with a heavy hand.
In that case Africa's salvation does not lie in its own intentions to
observe human rights, as we are not yet there unless we first abandon
our cultural prerogatives of firstly seeking to distinguish ourselves
with the West, at an economic and cultural level, then we shall
partake of their standards.
That is why political observers in Africa have to keep focused on
international instruments against genocide or torture, that only at
the global level do these instruments mean anything, despite global
radicalism being frustrated with the way the United States supervises
these standards, that they are not applied to Israel.
Whether one thinks that Israel can reach peace with Hamas and there
are two states living happily together or not is one thing, but it is
evident that unless pressure is brought to bear on African leaders,
they would do the worst without the least compunction.
African countries need the push to form governments of national unity
after a civil war has taken place, while in actual fact a civil war
is just another form of political repression but it is harder to
prosecute.
SOURCE: GUARDIAN ON SUNDAY
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--
SIBOMANA Jean Bosco
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