On 24 May 2012, the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) decided unanimously to reject the appeals regarding the challenges to the ICC’s jurisdiction, raised by the Defence teams in the two Kenyan cases: The Prosecutor v. William Samoei Ruto and Joshua Arap Sang and The Prosecutor v. Francis Kirimi Muthaura and Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta.

The Defence teams of the accused had challenged the Court’s jurisdiction before the Pre-Trial Chamber, submitting that the Court should decline to exercise jurisdiction over their cases and contesting the interpretation of the term ‘organizational policy’ as a component of crimes against humanity under article 7 (2) (a) of the Rome Statute, which the Pre-Trial Chamber had adopted, by majority, in its decision authorising the opening of an investigation into the situation in Kenya, dated 31 March 2010. In its decisions on 23 January 2012, the Pre-Trial Chamber decided, by majority, to endorse its previous definition of the term ‘organisational policy’ and confirmed that the ICC has jurisdiction over the two Kenyan cases.

The Defence teams appealed the Pre-Trial Chamber’s decisions on 30 January 2012, essentially alleging legal, factual or procedural errors stemming from the Pre-Trial Chamber’s interpretation of the term ‘organizational policy’ and its subsequent findings that such policy existed in the two cases. They requested the Appeals Chamber to declare that the Court does not have subject-matter jurisdiction in this instance and to reverse the Pre-Trial Chamber’s confirmation of charges against the accused.

In its decisions, today, the Appeals Chamber indicated that the interpretation and existence of an ‘organizational policy’ relate to the substantive merits of this case as opposed to the issue of whether the Court has subject-matter jurisdiction to consider such questions. These issues relate to whether the Pre-Trial Chamber erred when it confirmed the charges in respect of the accused. As the Prosecutor has expressly alleged crimes against humanity, including the existence of an ‘organizational policy’, the Appeals Chamber found that the ICC has subject-matter jurisdiction over the alleged crimes.

The Appeals Chamber noted that whether the Prosecutor can establish, in law and on the evidence, the existence of such a policy is not a question of jurisdiction, but rather a question to be determined on the merits. The Appeals Chamber concluded that the issues raised on appeal are therefore not properly before the Appeals Chamber. The Appeals Chamber decisions relate only to the issues raised by the accused and are with no prejudice to the merits of the cases.

The cases The Prosecutor v. William Samoei Ruto and Joshua Arap Sang and The Prosecutor v. Francis Kirimi Muthaura and Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta are currently before Trial Chamber V. Status Conferences are scheduled, respectively, on 11 and 12 June 2012.

end

source.ICC

• Thomas Ochieng reporting from Kenya                                 

The Kenya rural Electrification Authority awarded ISO Certification for its effort in connecting t the rural areas in Kenya to the national electricity grid.

In 1973 the Kenyan government a young nation having attained its self-rule from the British, embarked on a massive infrastructural undertakings, one being the development of energy infrastructure particularly in the rural areas to match the growing demand buoyed by a growing population. The project was known as the Rural Electrification programme. Although a noble project the rural electrification recorded very little gain for decades until the year 2006 when the Rural Electrification Authority was established by an Act of parliament with the express mandate of acceleration of both the access and penetration of electricity in the rural areas.

The Authority has lightened a big part of rural Kenya which has superseded expectations This achievement by this body led to its attainment of the ISO 90001:2008 certification from the country’s official testing body the Kenya Bureau of Standards KEBS.

Speaking during the official launch of the certification in Nairobi the Assistant minister for energy Amb.Mahmud Mohamed commended the REA board, management and staff for the energy passion and drive they have pushed the agenda of lighting up rural areas in Kenya “The attainment of the certification is the culmination of a long and rigorous process that has taken many years of hard work and commitment to the laid down goal and objectives of your institution” Said Amb. Mahmud. Adding that the government was looking forward to the institution to carry out its full mandate of lighting up the rural areas  in the shortest time possible.

From the year 2003 to date Rural Electrification Authority has connected 15,000 public facilities down from 1729,this accounting for 72% of the 25,427 public facilities targeted in the rural areas in Kenya, with the remaining 7,173 to be connected to the national grid  in the next two years.

 Prior to the establishment of the Rural Electrification Authority the Kenyan new government had put funds in the monopolistic parastatal the Kenya Power and Lighting company but the realized that the said institution could not adequately cater for the huge demand of electricity in the rural areas hence the formation of  the utility company.

The chief executive of the Rural Electrification Authority Mr.Zachary Ayieko laid down a road map of achieving 100% connectivity in the rural eras in three faces by the year 2030 “firstly we intend to achieve a 100% access of electricity by connecting all public institution by the year 2013, thereby providing connection to house holds by the year 2030”Said Mr. Ayieko, adding that access to electricity is the overall short-term goal that will be achieved in a year time.

Since 1973 the rural electrification programme has spent Ksh.48 billion of which a whooping Ksh.41 billion being spent from 2003 to date. This huge spending underscores the priority the current administration resolve to light up the rural areas to spur economic activities in the rural settings in Kenya. 

Ends.

————–

Situation: Democratic Republic of the Congo
Case: The Prosecutor v. Callixte Mbarushimana

Today, 30 May 2012, the Appeals Chamber decided unanimously to dismiss the Prosecution’s appeal against the decision issued by Pre-Trial Chamber I <http://www.icc-cpi.int/Menus/Go?id=16248122-82c5-47bc-8c02-9a6158b9247b&lan=en-GB> , declining to confirm the charges against Mr Callixte Mbarushimana.

Judge Erkki Kourula, presiding judge in this appeal, delivered a summary of the judgment in open session. He explained that the Appeals Chamber rejected the first two grounds of appeal, related to the Pre-Trial Chamber’s power to evaluate the evidence at the confirmation of the charges stage. The Appeals Chamber found that in determining whether to confirm charges under article 61 of the Rome Statute, the Pre-Trial Chamber may evaluate ambiguities, inconsistencies, contradictions or credibility doubts in the evidence.

Judge Kourula stressed that “the confirmation of charges hearing exists to ensure that cases and charges go to trial only when justified by sufficient evidence” and that article 61(7) of the Rome Statute requires the Pre-Trial Chamber to evaluate whether the evidence is sufficient to establish substantial grounds to believe the person committed each of the crimes charged.

The Appeals Chamber also rejected the third and last ground of appeal, related to whether, under article 25(3)(d) of the Rome Statute, the contribution of the person must be “significant”, because the alleged error did not materially affect the decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber.

Judge Silvia Fernández de Gurmendi appended a separate opinion under this ground of appeal, as she would have found it necessary to hold that the Pre-Trial Chamber erred in finding that the contribution to the crimes must be significant under article 25(3)(d) of the Rome Statute.

Judge Kourula highlighted that the Appeals Chamber’s judgment relates only to the issues submitted in appeal and should therefore not be seen as endorsing the Pre-Trial Chamber’s factual findings.

Background information

On 16 December 2011, Pre-Trial Chamber I decided by Majority to decline to confirm the charges in the case The Prosecutor v. Callixte Mbarushimana and ordered that the warrant of arrest issued against him cease to have effect. Mr Mbarushimana was released from the ICC’s custody on 23 December 2011, upon the completion of the necessary arrangements, as ordered by Pre-Trial Chamber I.

Callixte Mbarushimana was surrendered to the custody of the ICC by the French authorities on 25 January 2011, in accordance with the warrant of arrest delivered against him on 28 September 2010 by Pre-Trial Chamber I. In the document containing the charges, the Prosecutor charged Mr Mbarushimana with five counts of crimes against humanity (murder, inhumane acts, rape, torture and persecution) and eight counts of war crimes (attacking civilians, murder, mutilation, cruel treatment, rape, torture, destruction of property and pillaging). The Confirmation of Charges hearing was held from 16 to 21 September 2011. The Majority of the Chamber, comprising Judge Sylvia Steiner and Judge Cuno Tarfusser, found that there was not sufficient evidence to establish substantial grounds to believe that Callixte Mbarushimana could be held criminally responsible, under article 25(3)(d) of the Rome Statute, for these counts. Judge Sanji Mmasenono Monageng, presiding judge, filed a dissenting opinion. The Prosecutor is not precluded from subsequently requesting the confirmation of charges on the basis of additional evidence.

end

source.ICC

—————-

It would help the people of America if you would send a real copy of his real birth certificate.
In this country our constitution demands all who hold the office of President, and Vice President must be natural-born citizens. In other words, his mother, and his father, Obama sr.  would both have to be American citizens, born in America.

This issue creates a huge problem for our troops serving in various foreign countries. A president not qualified to hold the office of President thereby
makes our troops criminal’s of war.

Sir, I beg you to put an end to this now. We have already buried enough of our children. My beautiful daughter served 4 years in the Marine core.

May God bless you, and keep you well.

Carol Hicks, USA

He will serve his sentence in Britain. This will be so, after a deal was struck between the UK and the International Court. There is fear that if he serves his sentence in Africa that may create new problems in his country by his supporters.

It is also due to the fact that many countries in Africa do not trust the International court and may help Taylor escape from an African jail.

He was accused of crimes against humanity.

End

He is accused of rape in Sweden. He fought a fierce battle against extradition to Sweden where he is expected to face rape charges

While in Britain, he was placed in house arrest where he has been for over 540 days.

His fate is now sealed. He may end up being extradited from Sweden to the USA due to his Wikileaks activities that revealed a lot of top-secret information on what the US does round the world.

End

Photo: Naresh Newar/IRIN

Protestors have different ideas as to how the country should be set up

KATHMANDU,  – Just days before Nepal’s Constituent Assembly (CA) reaches its fifth deadline to agree on a new constitution on 27 May, the country remains divided over the issue of federalism.

“Debates over federalism and identity threaten to polarize Nepali society,” Anagha Neelakantan, South Asia senior analyst for the conflict resolution NGO, International Crisis Group, told IRIN in the capital, Kathmandu. “At the same time, politics and the constitution-writing process are at an impasse, and a constitutional crisis is possible.”

The 600-member CA, which also acts as the country’s interim legislature, was tasked in 2008 with drafting the next constitution after a decade-long civil war between Maoist forces and the government ended in 2006. Over 13,000 people lost their lives in the conflict and the nation of 30 million has been without an effective government since then.

On 15 May, the CA leaders made a hurried decision to restructure the former Hindu monarchy into 11 federal states, based on “multi-ethnic federalism”, meaning all ethnic groups, not just one ethnic group, would live in a single undivided state.

This rather than “identity and capacity based federalism”, in which a single ethnic group and its ability to be self-sustaining, along with geographical and economic considerations, would be the model used.

Unable to reach an agreement, the CA requested another three-month extension, but this was rejected by the Supreme Court on 24 May, which directed the government to promulgate a new constitution by the 27 May deadline.

“The proposal for 11 federal provinces was done haphazardly, with no names and without any principles,” said Prof Krishna Hachhethu, a prominent expert on federalism at Tribhuvan University, the country’s largest tertiary institution.

The issue has fuelled anger amongst Nepal’s indigenous ethnic groups, known as ‘Janjatis’, who have been staging protests and strikes throughout the country since mid-May in a bid to pressure the CA and the main political parties to restructure the state along the lines of identity-based federalism.

There are more than 100 ethnic and caste groups in Nepal, and according to the Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities (NEFIN), the Janjatis represent 37.2 percent of the population.

“Most Janjatis have been exploited and still remain underprivileged and neglected by the government,” said Laxman Tharu, the leader of the Joint Tharu Struggle Committee.

There are an estimated 1.5 million Tharus spread across Nepal’s southern Terai Region and the Far West. They are considered one of the most impoverished and exploited indigenous ethnic groups, most of whom who have suffered bonded slavery, indentured servitude and landlessness, according to NEFIN, a non-profit organization formed by the Janjatis.

Photo: Naresh Newar/IRIN

Tight security security ahead of this weekend’s constitutional deadline

Since 2007, the Tharus have been demanding self-government in a Tharuwat federal province in the Far West region of the country, over 700km southwest of the capital. But high-caste groups like the Brahmins and Chettris, who live in the same region, have protested against their demands, fearing ethnic division and a loss of influence.

On 24 May, thousands of high-cast groups took to the streets in the Far West, demanding an “undivided nation” – ethnic-based federalism – which Janjati activists say is misinterpreted by protestors.

“For the first time, the Brahmins and Chettris are protesting against ethnic federalism with the slogan of an “undivided Nepal”, which is now a “major national issue”, said federalism expert Mohan Manandhar, director of the Niti Foundation, a policy research NGO.

“We all know that there can be no constitution without federalism based on ethnicity,” said Hachhethu. “The debate has started, and this is a good start, but we should not be too speculative, which has spread lot of fear among people about the country being divided.”

The issue has become deeply entrenched in Nepal’s mainstream society and politics. Much of one of Asia’s poorest nations has been at a standstill, with strikes in cities and towns harming an already fragile economy.

“Federalism is key to unite our multi-ethnic populations and provide hope for the marginalized to finally get a better political space and confidence,” said Raj Kumar Lekhi, chairman of NEFIN, which organized an “indefinite strike” last week before calling it off when the government agreed to meet with Janjati leaders.

“Now, politicians and other leaders need to urgently convene discussions with a wide range of groups to resolve their competing claims and enshrine commitments on federalism in the new constitution,” said ICG’s Neelakantan.

On 24 May, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on Nepal’s political parties and other groups to ensure that its constitution-making process was concluded successfully.

“The Secretary-General is concerned about the prospect of the term of the Constituent Assembly expiring without the adoption of a constitution that meets the expectations and aspirations of the people of Nepal,” Ban’s spokesperson said in a statement that also called for calm and restraint. 

nn/ds/he
source www.irinnews.org