Ugandans commemorate the eighth anniversary of the entry into force of the Rome Statute

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On 1 July, 2010, hundreds of Ugandans joined to celebrate the eighth anniversary of the entry into force of the Rome Statute, the founding treaty of the International Criminal Court. Commissioners, representatives of civil society organisations, unions of persons with disabilities, women’s groups, local leaders, teachers and school children from eight

secondary schools in the districts of Soroti, Amuria and Kaberamaido participated in the events.

The commemorative events held in Soroti included a march through the main streets of the municipality, a town-hall style meeting with various key note speakers, an ICC moot court demonstration or role model play and interactive radio talk shows.

Over 500 people participated in the march-past. The event that was organised by the Field Outreach Unit in partnership with local NGOs, the Ugandan Coalition for the ICC and HURINET, was also attended by the resident District Commissioner of Soroti. Clad in uniform T-shirts and caps with the catchphrase, ‘Say no to impunity – accountability and justice for all’, the participants cheerfully marched to the rhythm of the brass-band that led the procession, with assorted banners raised high.

After the march the participants gathered at the Boma grounds to listen to various speakers.

The resident District Commission, Hon. Ben Etonu presided over the session. In his address, he noted that “…Soroti [is] one of the districts most affected by the crimes under the Rome Statute. Therefore it is an honour to host this event.’ He further commented on the appreciation of the Teso sub-region of the efforts that have been made by the ICC in addressing the most serious crimes that are of great concern to the world. He also highlighted that Uganda’s ratification of the Rome Statute, the referral of the situation to the ICC and the passing of the ICC related bill into national law, are genuine demonstrations of the country’s commitment to accountability and justice initiatives.

Speaking of behalf of the Uganda Victims’ Foundation (UVF), vice-chairperson Chris Ongom acknowledged some significant provisions in the Rome Statute, especially the inclusion of gender and sexual-related crimes, and crimes against children. He further commended the

provision of rights for victims to participate in Court proceedings, which give them a unique opportunity to express their views and concerns before the judges; and the right for them to request reparation at the end of trials if an accused person is found guilty. He called upon the State Parties to the Rome Statute to strengthen co-operation with the Court as determined during the Review Conference.

In her address on the theme of the day, the co-ordinator of the Uganda Coalition for the International Criminal Court (UCICC), Joyce Apio stated that all actors should be fully involved in saying ‘no to impunity in order to create stronger pillars for accountability and justice for all.”

Following the statements, students enacted a role-play that presented the different parties and participants in the Court, which stimulated debate. Questions were asked about the distinct roles and functions of the prosecution’s team, the defence counsel and the victims’ legal representatives.

The majority of the participants expressed concerns about the outstanding arrest warrants in all situations under investigation before the Court. Some urged States Parties to galvanise efforts to arrest and surrender suspects to the ICC and to enable the Court to fulfil its mandate.

The celebrations of the day were concluded with two interactive radio talk shows that were held in parallel - one in Soroti hosted by the Voice of Teso community radio station and another in Kampala on K-FM. Over two million Ugandans followed the respective discussions that addressed the history of the formation of the Court and its achievements so far.

Background

The ICC has been established to help end impunity for the most serious crimes of concern to the international community, namely genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes committed after entry into force of the Rome Statute (1 July 2002), as well as the crime of aggression, once the conditions under which the Court can exercise its jurisdiction have been fulfilled. The Court may exercise jurisdiction over international crimes committed on the territory of a State Party, or a State having accepted the jurisdiction of the Court, or by one of their nationals. These conditions however, do not apply if a situation is referred to the Prosecutor by the United Nations Security Council. Today 111 are States Parties to the Statute.

Uganda signed the Statute on 17 March, 1999 and ratified on 14 June, 2002.

The situation in northern Uganda was referred to the Court by the government in December, 2003. The Prosecutor opened an investigation in July 2004. In the case derived from the investigation The Prosecutor v. Joseph Kony, Vincent Otti, Okot Odhiambo and Dominic Ongwen, five warrants of arrest have been issued against top members of the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Uganda since July 2002. Following the confirmed death of Raska Lukwiya, the proceedings against him have been terminated. The four remaining suspects are still at large.

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