06.07.11 - ICC/KENYA - KENYA STARTED ITS OWN INQUIRY ON POST-ELECTION VIOLENCE

6 July 2011 By

The Hague, July 6, 2011 (FH) - Kenya has just conveyed to the International Criminal Court (ICC) its first investigation report on post-elections violence which happened in December 2007.

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ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo had been allowed to take over the Kenyan case on March 31, 2010, after the Kenyan parliament failed to set up a special tribunal to judge six high Kenyan officials.

The six men - two of whom are candidates for the Presidential election in 2012 are Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta, Head of the Civil Service Francis Muthaura, former police chief Mohammed Hussein Ali, former Education minister William Ruto, Minister for Industrialisation Henry Kosgey and radio executive Joshua arap Sang.

All of them are charged with crimes against humanity in relation to the post-election violence in Kenya in which 1,220 people were killed, 3,500 were injured and 350,000 displaced over a period of 30 days.

Since the ICC summoned to appear the six suspects on March 2011, Nairobi has been trying to take back the case.

A first request was rejected by the ICC on grounds that no evidence had been given that Nairobi was really investigating the case. Lawyers of the Kenyan government Geoffrey Nice and Rodney Dixon appealed the decision. To prove their good faith they have sent an investigating report to the Court in the first days of July.

According to the report, 35 witnesses have already been heard. « To date no evidence has been received from any of these witnesses which could link any of the suspects to the crimes as alleged by the ICC Prosecutor, or any other crimes", reads the document which is signed by the Kenyan Director of criminal affairs, Francis Ndegwa Muhoto.

Moreover, ten policemen charged with the investigation have started to hear the six suspects, to consult police registers in the Rift Valley and to read press articles related to the case.

However, they claim that « the inquiries to date have not shown that any of the six suspects made statements that could link them to any of the crimes alleged by the ICC Prosecutor ».

Francis Ndegwa Muhoto concludes by asking ICC's prosecutor cooperation.

Confirmation of charges hearing are expected to start on September 1st.

SM/GF