What is surprising is the recent assault on the ICC from within the African Union, despite, as outlined in a recent communiqué of its Peace and Security Council, its "unflinching commitment to combating impunity." Several of the AU's North African members - who are not, incidentally, parties to the ICC - are trying to undercut its support on the continent.
The former Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano will give his final briefing to the United Nations Security Council on July 15 in his role as the secretary-general's special envoy for the areas of east and central Africa affected by the Lord's Resistance Army and their two-decade campaign of violence. Although Chissano's mandate was suspended as of June 30, abuses by the LRA - ruthless rebels whose actions have had a devastating effect on civilians in four countries - continue.
In recent weeks, the Ugandan press has been awash with reporting and analysis about an alleged new rebel group operating in the north. If true, it would certainly be a matter for concern, but the government's response also bears serious reflection.
The Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) commanders, wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, have killed numerous civilians and abducted thousands of children across four countries over the last two decades. Uganda’s "Operation Lightning Thunder," with limited US support, failed to root out the LRA from its Congolese bases. US - not Ugandan - leadership is a key component in any multilateral strategy to protect civilians from ongoing LRA attacks and to apprehend the groups’ commanders.
The overwhelming evidence of illegal detention and torture by Joint Anti-terrorism Task Force (JATT) in Kololo, Kampala, has been met with official denials, excuses and contradictions.
Ugandan authorities unlawfully detain and torture alleged rebels and terrorists. Most of the mistreatment occurs at an illegal detention facility run by the government's Joint Anti-Terrorism Task Force.
The pace of proceedings is quickening at the International Criminal Court. On July 3, Jean-Pierre Bemba, the former vice president of Congo charged with war crimes, arrived in custody in The Hague. And today, July 14, the ICC prosecutor is expected to request new arrest warrants based on alleged crimes in Darfur against senior Sudanese officials, reportedly including the Sudanese president. Those are real accomplishments for a judicial institution whose underlying statute is now seeing only its 10th birthday.
Diplomats, judges, lawyers, human rights activists and members of nongovernmental organizations are currently marking the 10th anniversary of the completion of the treaty that established the International Criminal Court. The court's creation was an extraordinary step in extending the reach of law to those responsible for the mass slaughter of civilians and the use of rape as a weapon of war.
The resumption of the Juba talks on April 26 renews the chance for an end to the horrific 20 year conflict in the north. But to achieve this much needed peace, the warring parties and the mediators cannot bargain away prosecution of the LRA leaders who have been charged with grave crimes. Simply put, a solution that avoids meaningful justice will undercut the prospects for a durable peace.
In 2001, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni returned from the UN General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on HIV/AIDS with an ambitious task: to launch Uganda’s first nationwide school-based HIV-prevention curriculum.
What is surprising is the recent assault on the ICC from within the African Union, despite, as outlined in a recent communiqué of its Peace and Security Council, its "unflinching commitment to combating impunity." Several of the AU's North African members - who are not, incidentally, parties to the ICC - are trying to undercut its support on the continent.
The former Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano will give his final briefing to the United Nations Security Council on July 15 in his role as the secretary-general's special envoy for the areas of east and central Africa affected by the Lord's Resistance Army and their two-decade campaign of violence. Although Chissano's mandate was suspended as of June 30, abuses by the LRA - ruthless rebels whose actions have had a devastating effect on civilians in four countries - continue.
In recent weeks, the Ugandan press has been awash with reporting and analysis about an alleged new rebel group operating in the north. If true, it would certainly be a matter for concern, but the government's response also bears serious reflection.
The Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) commanders, wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, have killed numerous civilians and abducted thousands of children across four countries over the last two decades. Uganda’s "Operation Lightning Thunder," with limited US support, failed to root out the LRA from its Congolese bases. US - not Ugandan - leadership is a key component in any multilateral strategy to protect civilians from ongoing LRA attacks and to apprehend the groups’ commanders.
The overwhelming evidence of illegal detention and torture by Joint Anti-terrorism Task Force (JATT) in Kololo, Kampala, has been met with official denials, excuses and contradictions.
Ugandan authorities unlawfully detain and torture alleged rebels and terrorists. Most of the mistreatment occurs at an illegal detention facility run by the government's Joint Anti-Terrorism Task Force.
The pace of proceedings is quickening at the International Criminal Court. On July 3, Jean-Pierre Bemba, the former vice president of Congo charged with war crimes, arrived in custody in The Hague. And today, July 14, the ICC prosecutor is expected to request new arrest warrants based on alleged crimes in Darfur against senior Sudanese officials, reportedly including the Sudanese president. Those are real accomplishments for a judicial institution whose underlying statute is now seeing only its 10th birthday.
Diplomats, judges, lawyers, human rights activists and members of nongovernmental organizations are currently marking the 10th anniversary of the completion of the treaty that established the International Criminal Court. The court's creation was an extraordinary step in extending the reach of law to those responsible for the mass slaughter of civilians and the use of rape as a weapon of war.
The resumption of the Juba talks on April 26 renews the chance for an end to the horrific 20 year conflict in the north. But to achieve this much needed peace, the warring parties and the mediators cannot bargain away prosecution of the LRA leaders who have been charged with grave crimes. Simply put, a solution that avoids meaningful justice will undercut the prospects for a durable peace.
In 2001, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni returned from the UN General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on HIV/AIDS with an ambitious task: to launch Uganda’s first nationwide school-based HIV-prevention curriculum.