Kenyan President-elect Uhuru Kenyatta won the elections with just over 50 percent of the national vote. With over 50 percent there will not be a run-off., a photo by Pan-African News Wire File Photos on Flickr.
Scrap ICC charges, Kenya urges UN
Friday, 10 May 2013 00:00
NAIROBI. — Kenya has written to the UN Security Council seeking to scrap the international crimes against humanity trials for President Uhuru Kenyatta and his Vice President William Ruto, according to a letter seen yesterday.
Kenyatta (51), voted into power in March elections, is to go on trial in July at the International Criminal Court in The Hague for crimes against humanity relating to post-election violence in 2007-08.
Ruto (46), faces three counts of crimes against humanity for his role in deadly violence.
“What this delegation is asking for is not deferral,” Kenya’s ambassador to the UN, Macharia Kamau, wrote in a letter to the Council seen by AFP.
“What this delegation is asking for is for the immediate termination of the case at The Hague.”
The letter, dated May 2 and stamped confidential, is the first such official request for the cases to be dropped.
However, while the Security Council can ask for a case to be deferred for a year, it does not have the authority to order the ICC to drop a case comple- tely.
Kenya however, appealed to “friendly nations to use their good offices and prevail upon the International Criminal Court to reconsider the continued process”.
The letter warned that continuing with the trials would risk destabilising Kenya.
“Kenyans . . . spoke with a loud, clear, concise voice when they overwhelmingly elected Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto as president and deputy president,” it said.
“It is obvious that their absence from the country may undermine the prevailing peace and any resultant insecurity may spill over to neighbouring countries.”
Meanwhile, President Uhuru Kenyatta was expected to leave the country for South Africa yesterday.
In a brief statement, the Presidential Press Service said President Kenyatta will be on a four-day official visit.
During the visit, Kenyatta will attend the World Economic Forum on Africa and hold a bilateral meeting with South Africa President Jacob Zuma.
Earlier yesterday, Kenyatta arrived from a London trip where he attended a conference on Somalia accompanied by his wife Margaret.
— AFP/Daily Nation.
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