{{Kenya’s Deputy president William Ruto and Sang ICC trial is scheduled to commence on September 10, 2013.}}
The International Criminal Court ( ICC) judges on decided the trial against William Ruto and Joshua Sang will take place at the seat of the Court in The Hague, Netherlands and not in Kenya or, Arusha, Tanzania as requested by joint defence teams of the accused.
This is after the judges failed to reach the required two-thirds majority necessary for a decision to change the seat of the Court.
The defence teams of Ruto and Sang on January 24, 2013 had requested the Court to change hearings for the trial in Kenya or in Arusha (Tanzania).
“After carefully considering the arguments both in favour of and against holding the opening statements in the case in Nairobi or Arusha, the judges did not reach the required two-thirds majority necessary for a decision to change the seat of the Court. The opening statements of the trial will therefore be held in The Hague,” said ICC Prsident Judge Sang-Hyun Song.
The Trial Chamber having received observations of the other parties and participants and the ICC Registry’s remarks on the feasibility of place of hearings, it recommended that it may be desirable to hold the commencement of trial and other portions in Kenya or in Tanzania but concluded that the proceedings shall be held at the ICC’s headquarters after taking into consideration numerous factors, such as security, the cost of holding proceedings outside The Hague.
The Trial Chamber also took into considerartion the potential impact on the perception of the Court and the impact on the Court’s ability to conduct and support other proceedings that are taking place simultaneously at the seat of the Court.
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