Dear Aunt Sylvia, I am a 51-year old lady married to an educated man with three adorable children. Both my husband and I are working and I would say, we are financially ok. Some years ago, my husband became sick and he was advised by the doctor to work less. That drastically changed our income situation and made me earn more than my husband. Recently, I noticed that he is not the same man he used to be. He…
The Congolese people will be going to the polls to partake in the presidential, legislative and provincial elections. As they do, I am concerned by the growing tensions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (“DRC”) and the risk of escalating violence that could lead to the commission of grave crimes under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (the “ICC” or the “Court”). The DRC is a State Party to the ICC. This Court was created to prosecute…
On Wednesday, 12 December, I welcomed the arrest of the second suspect resulting from our investigation in the Central African Republic (“CAR”) since August 2012. Mr Patrice-Edouard Ngaissona’s arrest follows Mr Alfred Yekatom’s arrest and surrender to the International Criminal Court (the “Court” or “ICC”) in November of this year. I welcomed these arrests as important steps towards the fulfillment of my prosecutorial mandate to hold accountable those responsible for the gravest crimes in CAR no matter what side…
While our present social advancement has yielded democratic dividends, amongst them, freedom, human rights, including gender rights, ironically, the same positive social development has put a strong challenge to the culture. Instead of taking the cultural realities as a binding force, which creates some degree of coherency in the society, literacy has questioned the relevance of certain cultural entities. Yet, some have stubbornly and jealously held and looked up to the culture as an important shining light that can…
Have you ever asked yourself why you are willing and ready to insult, fight, die or kill others for the sake of religion, while you have no problems to worship or praise criminals who have stolen – and still steal – your billions of dollars from the government with a gun or a pen and effectively put your life and indeed that of your children and future generation in a miserable, dangerous, hopeless and precarious position? Why would you…
Discusses amongst other issues:The President Omar al-Bashir of Sudan case, refusal of South Africa to hand over President Omar al-Bashir, steps the Security Council must take in cases where the ICC member states fail to abide by its own resolutions, the alleged use of so-called “enhanced investigation tactics” or torture by the USA military in Afghanistan, prosecution of individuals from big and powerful countries like the USA, China, and Russia. Etc Kata Kata: Some years ago, President Omar al-Bashir of Sudan, a…
African champions Nigeria have been drawn in Group A of the 2019 Women’s World Cup where they will face the hosts France. The draw for the 8th women’s event was held in Paris Saturday. The Super Falcons won a ninth African title out of 11 editions last weekend in Accra, beating South Africa on penalties in the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations final. The champions will also face South Korea and Norway in the Group A setting. The Falcons…
Congo Brazzaville has emerged as a strong contender to host next year’s rearranged Africa Cup of Nations, according to a senior official in the Confederation of African Football. Constant Omari, a vice-president of CAF, also said that the dossier of Guinea, hosts-designate of the 2023 edition, does not exist, according to AFP report. “Congo Brazzaville has written to organise (2019),” Omari told Radio France International. “Our (CAF) secretary-general, Anthony Baffoe, told me that he was going to tell me…
It is said that having children could be the easiest adventure, but taking care of them is indeed a challenging and demanding role. In other words, it is very easy to be a parent, but a huge responsibility to be a dad or mum. Recent statistics have shown that the world population is dangerously exploding to the extent that in the year 2050, the world population will have recorded about 2.2 billion more people. That would mean about 9.8…
Discusses amongst other issues, the President Uhuru Kenyatta saga, ICC alleged minimal accomplishments, intentional frustrations of the ICC’s investigations, protection of the ICC potential witnesses, ICC as a partner/victimizer, Is fear of the ICC indictment discouraging dictators from leaving power? Etc …….. Kata Kata: The withdrawal of the case against President Kenyatta of Kenya, must have been a big setback for you and your organsation as a whole. How do you feel about this setback? Bensouda: On 5 December 2014, I withdrew charges…
The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (“ICC” or the “Court”), Mrs. Fatou Bensouda, published her annual Report on Preliminary Examination Activities (2018). The report provides an overview of her Office’s preliminary examination activities conducted between 1 December 2017 and 30 November 2018 in relation to ten situations under consideration for possible investigation. During the reporting period, the Office of the Prosecutor (“OTP” or “Office”) opened three new preliminary examinations relating to, respectively, the situation in the Philippines, the…
Recently, our research has shown that the International Criminal Court (ICC) is perceived negatively in many quarters. More worrisome still, almost 80% of our respondents do, in fact, not know clearly what the organization stands for or its legal boundary. It is a common belief amongst many that the ICC is not only an aggressor, but it is also equally regarded as the imperialistic tool of the West. That is not all. The International Criminal Court hinders political and…