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Interview with ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo on Darfur with La Croix (French)

15 May 2007

The TK-BASED web magazine, La Croix, published an interview with ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo on 15 May 2007, entitled "A Second Investigation Opens on Crimes Committed in Darfur."  Please find below a translation by the CICC of key excerpts.  To read the full text of the interview in French, please visit
http://www.la-croix.com/article/index.jsp?docId=2303077&rubId=1094#

Regards,

Linda Gueye
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Linda Gueye
French Information Services Coordinator
Coalition for the International Criminal Court

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La Croix: On 27 April, the ICC judges issued arrest warrants for two leaders allegedly responsible for crimes committed in Darfur. The Sudanese government refused to surrender them to the Court. How do you plan on ensuring their arrest?

Luis Moreno-Ocampo: The judges' decision represents an important step forward. For 20 months, we have been leading investigations in difficult conditions. We have turned the testimonies into evidence and the judges confirmed they were solid enough and issued the arrest warrants. The Sudanese government must respect the ICC decision. As a territorial state, Sudan has a legal obligation to arrest and surrender Ahmad Harun and Ali Kushayb to the Court. The latter was arrested in Sudan on 28 November 2006. Bringing the suspects to the Court could take two months or two years, but I am positive they will end up at the Court.

LC: Aren't those arrest warrants a way to pressure the Sudanese government to negotiate with Darfur's rebels and agree to the deployment of UN peacekeepers?

LMO: The issuance of arrest warrants follows a judicial decision based on the evidence we have collected. I am neither a diplomat nor a politician and I am not in a position to bring peace and security. As a prosecutor, I have led investigations to establish the truth, prosecute those bearing the most responsibility and help prevent the future commission of crimes.

Our priority was to access victims. Because we have the duty to protect victims and witnesses, we conducted our investigations outside of Darfur for security reasons. We carried out 70 missions in 17 different countries and collected more than one hundred testimonies. Most of those we interviewed were direct witnesses to the conflict.

We concluded that there were good reasons to accuse Ahmad Harun and Ali Kushayb of being both responsible for 51 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed between August 2003 and March 2004. At the same time, my office led five missions in Khartoum to collect information from the justice department, police department and other ministerial departments.

The Sudanese government gave us part of the information we asked for. We did not have access to the suspects but we asked to interview a number of them and we are still awaiting the government's authorization to interview them. In accordance with the Rome Statute, I had the obligation to check whether Sudanese judicial authorities had investigated the same cases and prosecuted the same suspects. I concluded this was not the case.

LC: What is the impact of your investigation and the judges' decision on the ground?

LMO: The crimes being prosecuted were committed in 2003-2004 at a time when violence was at its peak in Darfur. The most important aspect of this case is that it will bring to light the system that enabled these crimes and reveal how this system is organized. Today, the biggest challenge is handling the 2 million displaced and some 200 000 refugees from the conflict.

LC: Do you expect to issue more arrest warrants for more highly ranked officials?

LMO: We are leading a second investigation on crimes currently committed, particularly in the region at the border of Chad and the Central African Republic, both of which are states parties to the ICC.  We did not require a referral from the UN Security Council for this investigation. We will act according to the evidence we have collected. If we have more evidence on other suspects, we will file for additional arrest warrants.

LC: In Uganda, four LRA leaders for whom the ICC issued arrest warrants are still on the run. Some talk about amnesty. What international cooperation is necessary to secure their arrest?

LMO: The LRA lost its sanctuary in South Sudan and started negotiating with the Ugandan government. The arrest warrants have helped speed up peace negotiations and the reduction of violence. Their arrest is essential for peace and justice.

LC: In the DRC case, when do you plan to file additional arrest warrants for crimes committed?

LMO: The situation in Ituri is very bad and this affects our investigation. We continue working on that and we should be able to file for additional warrants this year.

Interview conducted by François D'Alancon

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CICC'S POLICY ON THE REFERRAL AND PROSECUTION OF SITUATIONS BEFORE THE
ICC:

The Coalition for the ICC is not an organ of the Court. The CICC is an
independent NGO movement dedicated to the establishment of the
International Criminal Court as a fair, effective, and independent
international organization. The Coalition will continue to provide the
most up-to-date information about the ICC and to help coordinate global
action to effectively implement the Rome Statute of the ICC. The
Coalition will also endeavor to respond to basic queries and to raise
awareness about the ICC's trigger mechanisms and procedures, as they
develop. The Coalition as a whole, and its secretariat, do not endorse
or promote specific investigations or prosecutions or take a position on
situations before the ICC. However, individual CICC members may endorse
referrals, provide legal and other support on investigations, or develop
partnerships with local and other organizations in the course of their
efforts.

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