The International Criminal Court and Its Targeting of African Leaders: A Case of Legitimising Another Global Apartheid Regime?
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Date
2021
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Lexington Books/Fortress Academic Books
Abstract
Most African states, like the apartheid era tribal- reserves were created to be dependent. Most of these states, like the “sovereign states” created under apartheid in South Africa, have been weakened by colonialism, trans-Atlantic slavery, structural adjusted programmes, human trafficking and so on. They are further weakened by globalization, and international organizations like International Criminal Court (ICC), created through the Rome Statute, 1998, which the unsuspecting African leaders subscribed to in large numbers. The chapter addresses the geopolitical imbalance in the indictment, investigation and prosecution at the ICC. It argues that the court’s main focus seems to be only on Africans and espouses the indictment of a serving African head of state whose country is not a party to the Rome Statute, contrary to customary international law. It also interrogates the irony of the referral and deferral powers of the United Nations Security Council, majority of whom (permanent members) are not party to the Rome Statute. The article examines the flaws in the Rome Statute, the cases instituted and similar cases that were ignored by the ICC prosecutor. The result indicates that the independence of the ICC is compromised because it focused mainly on African states, while ignoring similar violations of the Rome Statute by the “powerful nations” and their allies. It concludes that African countries need strong national and regional mechanisms to promote transparency in governance; and should be circumspect in adopting treaties without weighing the implications.
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Citation
24. Animashaun, O and Chitimira, H.T (2021): The International Criminal Court and Its Targeting of African Leaders: A Case of Legitimising Another Global Apartheid Regime? In Global Jurisprudential Apartheid in the Twenty-First Century Universalism and Particularism in International Law Artwell Nhemachena, Howard Tafara Chitimira, and Tapiwa Victor Warikandwa (eds.) 173-196. Lanham, ML.: Published by Lexington Books/Fortress Academic Books. ISBN 978-179-364- 337-7.