ICC prosecutor wants Ruto barred from court talks

The Hague. ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda has filed an urgent application asking the court to lift the excusal it gave Deputy President William Ruto to skip yesterday’s hearing.

Ms Bensouda said that the excusal had been granted on the grounds that he would be in Kenya when President Uhuru Kenyatta travelled to Kuwait for the third Africa-Arab Summit. The ICC allowed the cases against Mr Kenyatta and Mr Ruto to alternate after their lawyers said the Constitution does not permit their absence from the country at the same time.

However, according to Ms Bensouda, Mr Ruto may have misled the trial chamber since he is expected to lead the Kenyan delegation to the Assembly of State Parties to The Hague Thursday. 

Kenya is pushing for an amendment to the Rome Statute to stop the court from indicting sitting heads of state and government.

Ms Bensouda also submitted that Mr Ruto’s absence from Kenya could be a demonstration that his and Mr Kenyatta’s absence from the country at the same time was not anchored in the Constitution. “The Prosecution requests Trial Chamber V(A) to reconsider and vacate its decision to grant the excusal of the accused, Mr William Samoei Ruto from attending his trial on 21 November 2013,” she said in her application.

“The Prosecution has been informed that Ruto is set to lead the Kenyan delegation to the Assembly of States Parties’ (ASP) 12th session, which commences on 20 November 2013 in The Hague.

“The prosecution notes that Ruto’s excusal request was premised on the fact that he would be constitutionally required to be present in Kenya until 21 November, due to the absence of Kenya’s President, Mr Uhuru Kenyatta during that time.”

She said that considering Mr Ruto’s scheduled presence at the talks, his rationale for an excusal was no longer valid. “Either Kenyatta will return to Kenya before 20 November 2013, making Ruto available to appear at trial on 21 November, or alternatively Ruto’s presence in Kenya is not in fact indispensable, notwithstanding Kenyatta’s absence,” she said.

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