Jonathan urges ICC halt Kenyatta's trial

President Goodluck Jonathan on Friday in Nairobi lent his voice to the ongoing debate on whether President Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya should be tried by the International Criminal Court (ICC) at the Hague.

Delivering an address to the Joint session of the Kenyan Parliament on the sidelines of his state visit to that country, Jonathan stressed that International Organisations were created to resolve problems and not to compound them.

He said International Organisations should be seen as agents for the resoluttion of crisis in countries across the world and should not be seen as contributing to problems of nations.

Specifically, Jonathan said that the insistence on trial of Kenyatta by the ICC would further compound the political crisis which had already been doused in Kenya, recalling the general elections in Kenya in 2006, which plunged the country into political turmoil.

Jonathan addressing Kenya parliament. State House photo

Jonathan noted that with the successful completion of the recent peaceful Presidential elections in Kenya, the ICC should not be seen as a body to derail the progress made in the country.

“I belief that any law whether local or international as well as Treaties and Conventions should be instruments for the resolution human problems and not to compound them,’’ he said.

He called on the international community to support Kenya in its social-economic development.

The trial of Kenyatta and his Deputy, William Ruto, over alleged crimes against humanity committed before their elections had generated controversies in that country.Members of the Kenyan Parliament were recalled on Thursday from recess to vote for the withdrawal of the country from the ICC.

The lawmakers who successfully voted in favour of the motion, had contended that they were taking the steps in defence of Kenya sovereignty.

However, the global court has insisted that the trial of Kenyatta and his Deputy Ruto would go ahead.

In a contrary opinion, Jonathan argued that the 2013 Presidential elections which brought President Kenyatta to office had demonstrated that Kenyans were capable of resolving their problems without interference from the international community.

“I believe and I share the sentiments of the government and people of Kenya when I say that we in Nigeria do not embrace democracy and the rule of law in response to external pressure or demand.

“We have embraced democracy and its underpinnings such as free, fair, credible and transparent election; rule of law; respect for human and peoples’ rights,because they are the right things to do and they are good for us.

“We do not seek the validation or endorsement of our democracy outside the collective will of our people, the citizens and electorates of our respective countries.

“Democracy is not a one-size-fits-all system; rather it is a dynamic political system which must be operated within the particular context it finds itself,’’ he said.

President Jonathan also called for the reform of the UN Security Council and other multilateral Organisations with lopsided membership.

“The on-going debate about the emerging global governance architecture should be of interest to our two countries and Africa as a whole.The existing international system is undemocratic and unfair,” the president said.

“Africa’s non-representation in the Councils and Chambers of international decision-making in the past was always explained in terms of our lack of sovereign independence.

“This claim is no longer valid. We call for the reform of the inherited global governance institutions. We call, especially, for the reform of the United Nations and its Security Council.

“Africa and other regions of the world, either not represented at all or inadequately represented, should be admitted into the permanent membership category of an expanded UN Security Council.

“Similar expansion and reform should also apply to all the other multilateral institutions with lopsided membership such as the Bretton Woods institutions.

“This would ensure that the decisions of these organisations enjoy the respect and credibility of their members,’’ he said.
Read the full address here:PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS TO THE KENYAN PARLIAMENT ON THE OCCASION OF STATE VISIT TO KENYA

Speaker of the Kenya National Assembly, Hon. Justin Muturi acknowledged President Jonathan’s support for the Kenyan position that its people should be allowed to solve their problems.

He noted that the decision on the position of the ICC could plunge Kenya back into the unfortunate incidents of 2007.

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3 Comments

Tee says:

September 7, 2013 at 10:08 am

This president just never cease to disappoint me…

the president of Kenya should not be prosecuted for crimes against humanity because there is now some form of political understanding ?

are the victims of the crimes toilet papers?

no wonder Nigeria is in shambles- the president lacks morals.

we are first humans before we are Africans…crimes against humanity should be condemned &prosecuted by all humans.

and for the sustenance of societal order justice must always be served…it does not matter if the culprit will be jailed wen they are a 100yrs old- justice must always be served.

Jonathan’s stand point on this issue is completely morally indefensible & should not be encouraged in any way !

Suny Lulu says:

September 7, 2013 at 5:07 pm

Honestly, I doubt if the president can be blamed for the speech because if anyone care to go through the speech, he/she will not be under any illusion that the portion dealing with the ICC could not have been part of the original speech.
The Kenyan government, looking for other African head(s) of state probably timed the adoption of the deplorable bill to coincide with the visiting head of state’s arrival so as to have his support.

Of course, this is a typical classical political game which can be very complex for people who are not adroits in international game plan. Hence, my earlier advise for him to refrain from making ex tempore speeches in future as this could easily let him slip unwittingly into other international political actor’s game plans.

As a rider, we can ask ourselves, if it would have been possible for him as a guest of the Kenyan president would it have been possible to denounce the adoption of the puerile ICC Bill which was solely aimed at removing the Kenyan president from the ambits of law. Discretion dictates that he either support them in their vain attempt or he must remain silent.

Suny Lulu says:

September 7, 2013 at 1:02 am

For sometime now I have been following the actions of our president via the media and my conclusion is that he is a good, forward looking leader who, giving the right environment, would most likely deliver excellent results. I would, however, like to proffer some advice that might be found useful.

First, it is important to note that though it is not wrong to take loan from China for developmental purposes, the problem is how to ensure that it is not olen by some greedy people. This is against the backdrop of the large amount that was once allocated for resurfacing the national expressway countrywide but which never happened while lives are still lost on these roads daily. How then can we be sure that this loan will be used for its intended purpose? We may also ask ourselves as a nation if it is possible to achieve the barest development without the basic infrastructural support such as good road networks, regular and adequate water and electricity supply, suitably qualified public servants, disciplined armed forces, police, etc.

Again, in pursuing his foreign relations the president should reserve his comments on issues having no direct bearing on the country’s national interest. Although the president had in most cases been reserved in his public pronouncements, I am including this point just because of his statement on ICC in Kenya.

His efforts at making the nation’s public service effective should also seriously look at the issue of using slots as the primary criteria for employment in the country. The slot system had only succeeded in planting mediocrity in the service and should be scrapped entirely. The nation’s public service was once its pride. Today, it is only living on its past glory and had in fact contributed much to the nation’s underdevelopment.

The best should be selected through rigorous examinations and interviews and mediocrity should be jettisoned immediately. There should be no compromise on this if the nation is to move forward and achieve its developmental objectives in ernest!