Dominic Ongwen of the LRA at the ICC @ Coalition for ICC
In Global Justice news this week: First Lord’s Resistance Army leader Dominic Ongwen may go to trial; French President Francois Hollande said he would pull his country’s troops from the CAR once it elected a new president; Tales from Uganda’s female former child soldiers and much more.
First Lord’s Resistance Army leader trial?
A key hearing to determine whether to send to trial the case against Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) commander Dominic Ongwen opened this week at the International Criminal Court in The Hague.
“Victims of the LRA in Northern Uganda have waited over 10 years for justice for the shocking crimes that have torn apart their lives and communities,” said Mohammed Ndifuna of the Human Rights Network-Uganda.
Ongwen is charged with 70 counts of crimes against humanity and war crimes allegedly committed in 2002-05 against civilians sheltering in Internally Displaced Persons camps in Northern Uganda during the course of a conflict between the LRA and Ugandan armed forces. He is the first member of Joseph Kony’s LRA to come before the ICC and claims to have been kidnapped by the militia at age 14.
Outlining their case at the hearing’s opening, prosecutors said that Ongwen and his troops deliberately targeted civilians, murdered indiscriminately, and abducted children to fight in the militia and serve as wives and sex slaves, among other crimes.
Hearings resume next week with further submissions from the prosecution, victims’ representatives and the defense.
Stay up-to-date with daily summaries from the Ongwen hearings on theInternational Justice Monitor.
International Criminal Court investigations
Central African Republic: French President Francois Hollande said he would pull his country’s troops from the CAR once it elected a new president.
Uganda: Tales from Uganda’s female former child soldiers: How do women abducted by the LRA reintegrate into their communities?
Democratic Republic of Congo: The ICC trial of Congolese rebel leader Bosco Ntaganda resumed this week. The Congolese justice minister reaffirmed ICC convicted Germain Katanga will be tried for other acts than those for which he was convicted by the ICC. Katanga was released by the Court earlier this month.
Darfur: As peacekeepers in Darfur share their concerns over a surge of fighting in Darfur, here’s a reminder of the reasons that led the situation to come before the ICC.
ICC preliminary examinations
Nigeria: Indigenous populations in south east Nigeria intend to file a complaint against president Buhari for alleged crimes against humanity.
Ukraine: A former separatist leader in east Ukraine admitted he ordered executions in Slovansk but doubts he will end up before the ICC.
Campaign for Global Justice
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What else is happening?
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ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda detailed the current work and challenges facing her office.
Burundi governmental forces allegedly used rape and other sexual violence as a mean to maintain president Nkurunziza in power.
Up to 19,000 civilians died during the armed conflict in Iraq since 2014 according to a new UN report.
Amnesty International brought new war crimes allegations against Kurdish forces in Iraq which destroyed thousands of Arab homes.
How can impunity for alleged grave crimes in Mexico be stopped?
The International Criminal Tribunal Rwanda closed its doors last year. So what does its last president have to say about its successes and challenges?
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