Kenyan rights groups have joined the growing protest against President William Ruto’s move to ratify the Malabo protocol to establish the African Court of Justice and Human Rights. In a joint statement, The Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) and Muslims for Human Rights (MUHURI) say the decision offers Ruto and other state officials immunity against potential international crimes that may be committed while in office.
“Ruto and his senior state officials will not be prosecuted until they leave office,” the groups said.
KHRC and MUHURI said that victims and survivors will not be able to pursue justice and reparations at the International Criminal Court (ICC) after the formation of the African Court.
Pressure building
“This is unmistakably aimed at undermining the fundamental right to seek redress and reparations of victims,” the statement says.
Rights defenders urge that the immunity clause in the Malabo Protocol violates international consensus and practice by providing immunities to heads of state and senior state officials.
“No charges shall be initiated or continued before the court against any serving AU head of state or government, or anybody acting or entitled to act in such capacity, or other senior state officials based on their functions, during their tenure of office,” Article 46 A of the protocol states.
The ICC case has pushed him to be a Pan-African enthusiast
Pressure against Ruto comes as the Raila Odinga opposition coalition Azimio la Umoja is collecting evidence to file a case at the ICC against Ruto’s government for using the police to kill supporters during anti-government protests in the past weeks.
Azimio criticises Ruto for signing the protocol to escape international justice.
“Even if you have signed the Malabo protocol, we shall take you to the ICC,” Millie Odhiambo, one of the opposition lawmakers and an international lawyer, told Ruto last week during the burial of three supporters allegedly killed by police during protests.
Kenya becomes the 16th Africa State to sign the protocol ahead of its ratification in September.
Cancel the ICC
In May, while addressing the Pan-African parliament in South Africa, Ruto promised to sign the protocol, a decision he described as strengthening AU institutions to work for Africans.
“These institutions will help develop African solutions to Africa’s problems,” he said.
Political analyst Brian Wanyama tells The Africa Report that Ruto’s experience at the ICC has greatly influenced his decision.
“The ICC case has pushed him to be a Pan-African enthusiast,” he says, adding that many African leaders want to abolish the ICC.
In 2012, Ruto and former president Uhuru Kenyatta were charged by the Hague-based court for orchestrating crimes against humanity during the 2007-2008 post-election violence. The charges against them were later dropped due to lack of evidence.
What is the Malabo protocol?
In June 2014, African heads of state met in Equatorial Guinea’s capital Malabo and adopted the amendments to the protocol that established the African Court of Justice and Human Rights.
They established the African Court of Justice and Human Rights (ACJHR) with Arusha, Tanzania’s northern city, proposed as the capital of the court.
It was agreed that the court will have jurisdiction to try 14 crimes, including genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
The court will have more than 200 staff, consisting of 16 judges drawn from AU states, and will work with an annual budget of $4.4m.
Critics of the protocol, including Amnesty International, are doubtful whether the court will have the capacity to effectively and efficiently deliver on its mandate.
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