Over 2000 victims participating in ICC confirmation hearings for Ongwen: In the confirmation of charges hearing for Dominic Ongwen 2,026 victims will participate and have their interests represented by lawyers Paulina Matsida, the head of the Office of Public Counsel for Victims at the ICC, Jane Adone, and two others. The pre-trial hearing is to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to establish substantial grounds that he committed each of the crimes brought against him. Mr. Ongwen was one of five top Lord’s Resistance Army commanders indicted by the ICC for his alleged role in the killing of fifty-four civilians in Lukodi Internally Displaced People’s camp in April 2004. In a meeting discussing the possible implications and the way forward after the pre-trial hearings ICC Field Outreach Assistant for Uganda Jimmy Otim said that if Ongwen faces trial and is convicted, reparations for victims could be considered by the court. (StarAfrica, allAfrica)
Amnesty open letter to Ukraine President urges Ukraine to join Rome Statute: In an open letter Amnesty International in Ukraine is calling on President Petro Poroshenko to “take all relevant measures to facilitate Ukraine’s ratification of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.” In the letter Amnesty reminds the President of the benefits of being a member of the ICC, including electing judges and prosecutors, shaping policy, adopting the budget and taking management solutions, as well as the upcoming vote “for extending the court competence against crimes of aggression.” Ukraine signed the Rome Statute in 2000, but has not ratified it. (Ukraine Today)
Amnesty report states Kurdish forces might have committed war crimes in Iraq: A new Amnesty International report claims that Kurdish forces may have committed war crimes in the fight against the Islamic State (IS) when it swept through northern Iraq a year and a half ago. Amnesty’s Donatella Rovera said “In some villages, nothing is left, not even a single house…[u]nder international law, such deliberate destruction is very clearly a war crime. Amnesty’s claims coincide with the release of the latest United Nations report on the conflict and the impact on civilians in Iraq. (ABC News)
The post 20 January 2016 – NEWS ABOUT THE COURTS – Victims participating in Ongwen confirmation, UN report on ISIS crimes, Ukraine urged to join ICC and Amnesty report on Iraq WC appeared first on ICL Media Review.