'Bias against African nations'

2008-07-16 20:06

Dakar - The International Criminal Court should be fairer in its investigations, African human rights watchdog Raddho said on Wednesday, warning of a perceived bias against African nations.

On Monday, ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo accused Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes and asked the court to issue an arrest warrant for him.

While African human rights organisation Raddho praised the request to indict al-Bashir, it also criticised the ICC for focusing too much on Africa while leaving other world leaders untouched.

"Raddho calls on the judges of the ICC to show their fairness so as not to give the impression of an international justice system at two speeds," the organisation said in a statement.

"Underdeveloped countries with no real power, African states are the weakest link in the international community and the easiest targets for the ICC," the Dakar-based NGO said.

Immunity from prosecution

"Everything leads us to believe that certain world leaders seem to have immunity from prosecution by the ICC," Raddho said.

Al-Bashir is the second African head of state who could be charged by an international court, following the indictment of former Liberian president Charles Taylor by the Special Court for Sierra Leone.

Raddho called for Africa to set up its own independent court to try genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity committed on the continent.

The ICC, the world's first permanent war crimes court, can only prosecute crimes committed by nationals of states party to the court or committed on the territory of state parties.

In rare instances cases involving non-state parties can also be referred to the court by the UN Security Council, as was the case with the Darfur investigation.

- AFP