Tag: GreatLakesNews

The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has visited victims of the violence that followed Kenya’s 2007 election.

Fatou Bensouda says she was concerned about ICC witnesses being intimidated ahead of a criminal trial at The Hague in the Netherlands.

In her first official visit to Kenya, Bensouda sat surrounded by some of the 350,000 people displaced by the deadly violence in 2007-2008, still living in a camp of tightly packed tents known as “Pipeline Camp” in the Rift Valley, one of the hardest-hit areas.

The next general election is expected within the next six months, but Bensouda sought to distance herself from Kenya’s restive domestic political scene.

“Ours is a judicial process and what we want to do is to bring justice,” she said. “Justice for those who suffered the post-election violence. It is a separate process. It is not part of the elections. It is not part of the politics.”

The inaugural EAC Secretary General’s Private Sector Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) Forum for Burundi was held 22 October 2012 at the Hotel Club du Lac Tanganyika in Bujumbura, Burundi.

The overall objective of the SG’s CEO Forum is to provide a platform for the EAC Secretary General and CEOs of businesses in the region for continuous dialogue to ensure the integration process works for business and trade, EAC competitiveness, and ultimately economic growth.

Addressing the CEOs, the Secretary General Amb. Dr. Richard Sezibera disclosed that in 2011, EAC Partner States sustained an average of 5% GDP growth against the global average of 3%. All performance indicators depicted significant growth trends, including Foreign Direct Investment inflows, which increased from USD 683 million in 2005 to USD 1.7 billion in 2011.

Amb.Sezibera informed the CEOs that the State of East Africa Report 2012 shows the value of EAC’s total trade with the world doubled from $17.5 billion in 2005 to $37 billion in 2010.

“I launched the Doing Business 2012 Report here in Bujumbura, Burundi in mid-April this year, and the Report features Burundi among the top 10 economies that improved the most on the ease of doing business, moving up 8 places in the global ranking (from 177 to 169),” said Amb. Sezibera.

He noted that according to the 2011 Doing Business indicators, it still takes an average of 47 days for people in Burundi to export a product; as a compared to the Dominican Republic, which takes 8 days for a person to export a product.

The EAC official reiterated that the problem can’t be accredited to Burundi being a landlocked country. He said an exporter in Vienna, a landlocked city in Europe for example, takes 2 days to arrange for and complete the transportation of cargo to the port of Hamburg some 900 kilometers away.

“This is almost the same distance from Burundi to the port in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania but that that trip here in East Africa can take one week or longer mainly due to inadequate infrastructure, as well as additional controls and waiting time at our border posts,” said Amb. Sezibera.

The Secretary General stated that EAC Secretariat is working fulltime to implement policies which have the potential to increase investment and growth, and which also address directly issues of poverty and inequality.

“I would like to mention one special set of policies which has the potential to increase investment and growth, and which also address directly issues of poverty and inequality. By promoting free trade and movement of labor, the EAC as a region can deploy to the maximum extent possible the law of comparative advantage, leading to higher incomes for their citizens. By lowering barriers to entry into business and improving regulatory frameworks, we would both promote investment and stimulate growth,” he added.

At the same occasion, Amb Laurent Kavakure, the Minister of External Relations and International Cooperation of the Republic of Burundi said much effort had been done by the government to make sure that the private sector become stronger. He noted that the progressive liberalization of trade and banking reforms that are underway will primarily benefit the private sector.

Amb. Kavakure informed the CEO’s that progressive elimination of non-tariff barriers; the ongoing construction of one-stop order posts and the creation of the Single Customs Territory will facilitate trade and improve the living standards of the people.

The Secretary General CEOs Forum in Burundi is the fifth edition of CEOs breakfast meetings at the national level. The other four CEO’s breakfast meetings have been held in each of the Partner States’ capitals. A regional forum is expected to take place on 15 November 2012 in Nairobi, Kenya.

The SG’s CEO Forum is hosted by the East African Community Secretariat in partnership with East African Business Council (EABC) and Trade Mark East Africa (TMEA), based on the three organizations’ shared objectives of fostering the interests of the business community in the integration process.

The Forum was attended by among others the Vice Chairperson of Burundi Private Sector Mr. Antoine Ntisigana; the EABC Executive Director Mr. Andrew Luzze; Country Director, TMEA, Burundi, Anthe Vrijlandt and over 60 CEOs.

Judges from the East African Community member states are undergoing a three-day training aimed at equipping them with modern skills discharging their duties expeditiously to solve the backlog problem.

According to a statement, the East African Community secretariat, Chief Justices, Judge Presidents, Principal Judges, Heads of High Court Divisions and all judges with Administrative Responsibilities are being equipped with leadership skills advancing justice to a higher level in their respective countries.

“The aim of the training is to enhance leadership and management skills in the judiciary as well as in promoting legal and judicial knowledge and harmonization of processes in the judicial sector in the regional bloc,” the secretariat said in the statement.

Addressing participants, the EAC Deputy Secretary General in charge of Finance and Administration Mr. Jean Claude Nsengiyumva hailed the East African Judicial Education Committee for the tireless efforts in putting together the training programme for the highest cadre of the national judiciaries, with particular emphasis on leadership skills.

He said the training was a very important step in operationalizing the provision of Article 126 of the EAC Treaty which sets out the scope of co-operation in judicial and legal affairs to include approximation and harmonization of legal learning and certification; encouraging the standardization of the judgments of the Courts within the Community; promoting exchange of legal and judicial knowledge; and the revival of the East African Law Reports and journals among other wider objectives of the Community.

Nsengiyumva urged the participants to use the forum to identify modern innovations to promote efficiency and effectiveness in the judicial systems of the Partner States so as to positively impact on their mandate which is effective and timely delivery of justice to people of East Africa.

The Deputy Secretary General said the training was providing a perfect opportunity for the Members of the judiciary to learn from and to share the different leadership experiences from their respective Partner States.

He encouraged the East African states to adopt judicial practices both from the common law regime and civil law regime.

“We hope to learn from the Chief Justices lessons from the common law regime as practiced by the Republic of Kenya; Republic of Uganda and the United Republic of Tanzania as well as that of civil law regime practiced by the Republic of Rwanda and the Republic of Burundi,” Nsengiyuma said.

The programme has been attended by Chief Justices of the Supreme Courts of the EAC Partner States; the President and the Principal Judge of the East African Court of Justice; Judges of the High Court and Heads of High Court Divisions of the Partner States, Principal Judges of the Partner States, Chairmen of the National Judicial Training Committees, and the Registrar of the East African Court of Justice Prof. John Ruhangisa, among others.

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The International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor Tuesday met with Kenya’s President Mwai Kibaki following concerns that Kenya has been reluctant to surrender key evidence required in the prosecution of four Kenyans accused of crimes against humanity following the 2008 post-election violence.

During the meeting between ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda and Prime Minister Raila Odinga, Kibaki pledged that Kenya will hold peaceful elections to ensure the country does not follow the route of 2008.

“The Head of State said that the government is committed to ensuring free, fair and peaceful elections next year. President Kibaki emphasised that measures are underway to ensure that the country will be fully prepared by March next year for the polls,” a statement from the Presidential Press Service indicated.

Bensouda in her first press conference on Monday complained that the Kenyan government had delayed in submitting information the court had requested to use in the two cases against four Kenyans.

She also raised concerns over the continuing harassment and intimidation of victims and witnesses of the post election violence saying that the court was interested to tighten talks with the government to ensure their protection is assured.

Bensouda reiterated to the government officials that the court was independent and its main interest is to pursue justice for the victims of the 2008 violence.

She further clarified that the court will not bend its operations to fit in Kenya’s politics but will follow its judicial calendar irrespective of the country’s political process.

“She stressed that she is not against the Kenya government or any ethnic community, adding that the ICC will not interfere with the ongoing political processes in the country,” the statement indicated.

The meeting held at the Office of the President for the better part of Tuesday morning was also attended by Internal Security Minister Katoo ole

Metito, Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister Eugene Wamalwa and Attorney-General Githu Muigai.

Later, Bensouda held meetings with members of the diplomatic corps.
She is later in the week expected to meet victims of the post election violence in the Rift Valley before giving a final briefing on Thursday evening following her five-day visit in the country.

In DRC, A row has erupted in the province of Katanga following the continued attack by Elephants on the population.

It was reported that on October 20, a herd of elephants ravaged ten fields before killing a woman when she was plowing her field.

Another person went missing, according to the deputy administrator of the territory.

The attack by elephants angered residents who later protested the laxity of territorial authorities…They burnt the office of police chief supervision and beat the police commander who was trying to contain the protestors.

The Elephants attacked in Mangi village, located Bukama nearly 500 kilometers from Lubumbashi. This area has experienced repeated attacks from elephants.

Protesters said they are angry because the politico-administrative authority has long remained deaf to their complaints about animal attacks.

The demonstrators attacked the police station as well as the office of police chief supervision they burned the buildings.

Contacted, the deputy administrator of the territory Bukama, Oscar Kanza said that elephants are animals under state protection.

He said that the issue of insecurity caused by elephants Mangi was treated at a Security Council meeting held in the district a few days ago.

World Vision in Uganda has said it is closing a reception center for abductees by former Lord’s Resistance Army rebels citing high operational costs.

Paddy Mugalula, the World Vision programme manager said on Tuesday that they are considering World Vision Child Reception Center in March next year.

Mugalula said that despite the fact that the reception center operates on a high budget he didn’t disclose; only a few former LRA captives are returning.

He explained that they have only received 8 former captives since the year begun, compared to 200 children they would receive each month about seven years ago.

Mr Mugalula said it is hard for World Vision to raise the money needed to run the center.

He however, said the relief agency would continue supporting the former captives whenever it is necessary adding that their focus is now on health, child protection, education and livelihood.

The International Criminal Court process against four top Kenyans will continue regardless of the outcome of March presidential elections in which two of the accused are planning to run, ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said today on a first official visit to Kenya.

“The people of Kenya will decide on the outcome of the upcoming elections and ultimately, they will shape the future of this great country.

The ICC judicial process will also take its own course irrespective of the political choices that the people of Kenya make,” she told a press conference in Nairobi.

Kenyan Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta, Member of Parliament William Ruto, former head of civil service Francis Muthaura and radio presenter Joshua Sang face crimes against humanity charges at the ICC in connection with 2007-2008 post-election violence.

Kenyatta and Ruto are presidential candidates for the March elections. ICC judges have set the start of trials for April next year.

Bensouda said her office was working “at full speed” to prepare for the start of the trials, and that the process of disclosure (of prosecution evidence) has already begun. However, she said there were also problems.

“As with any judicial process we face challenges,” said the ICC Prosecutor.“We are working hard every day to address efforts to interfere with our witnesses and our evidence.

We are also working to resolve delays in the execution of our requests by the Government of Kenya.”

Bensouda stressed that “the people of Kenya are not on trial; the Government of Kenya is not on trial and no ethnic community is on trial before the ICC.

The allegations concern individual criminal responsibility. The four accused will have a fair trial and an equal opportunity to refute the allegations.”

During her five-day visit, Bensouda said she plans to meet with key officials including President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga, as well as civil society and victims groups.

She will visit the Kenyan towns of Naivasha, Nakuru and Eldoret, which bore the brunt of 2007-2008 post-election violence that claimed more than 1,000 lives.

Uganda has requested M23 rebels in DRC not to resume fighting.

The rebels had last week threatened to resume fighting against the DRC army.

Okello Oryem, Uganda’s State minister for Foreign Affairs said, “I would urge the M23 to remain calm and collected because the peace process is still going. Let them cease fire as President Yoweri Museveni had told them.”

The rebels stopped fighting in August after President Museveni met them in Kampala and told them to talk with the Kinshasa government.

However, the leader of M23, Bishop Runiga Lugerero, told a press conference at the weeekend in Bunagana that Congolese President Joseph Kabila was not willing to talk peace.

The rebel commander said his group was also opposed to the deployment of an international neutral force proposed after a series of meetings between leaders of countries which form the International Conference for Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) chaired by President Museveni.