UNSC calls for deferral of ICC proceedings against Kenyan leaders

The UN Security Council on Friday failed to adopt a draft resolution, co-sponsored by African countries, calling for the deferral of the International Criminal Court (ICC) proceedings against Kenyan leaders. Seven of the 15-member Council members - Pakistan, China, Russia, Azerbaijan, Morocco, Rwanda and Togo, voted for the draft, none voted against, with eight (United States, Britain, France, Argentina, Australia, Guatemala, Luxembourg and South Korea) abstaining.
The draft was, therefore, not adopted, as it lacked the requisite nine affirmative votes. Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy, William Ruto, face the ICC trial for their alleged roles in murders, deportation or forcible transfer of population, and persecution during Kenya's 2007-2008 post-election violence. Both have denied the charges.
On October 31, the ICC postponed the trial of Kenyatta to February, 5, 2014. However, African countries have called for the ICC proceedings against the Kenyan leaders to be deferred for one year. Under the Rome Statute, an international treaty that established the ICC, the Security Council has the right to defer ICC case. Explaining his vote, Pakistan's UN Ambassador said Kenya's case rested on sound, solid strategic, political and legal grounds, adding that its logic was compelling.
From a strictly legal standpoint, the principle of complementarily must respect national jurisdiction, he said, noting that the functioning of the offices of the President and Deputy President was under question. A provision on deferral was already available in the Rome Statute, the Pakistani envoy pointed out.
African countries had sought that the Council use such power to suspend the Kenya case, which they said could be a "threat to peace." They also sent a high-level contact group to New York, where the UN headquarters are located, to approach Security Council members on the issue. The draft resolution said that the case is "distracting and preventing" Kenyatta and Ruto from fulfilling their constitutional duties.
In his remarks, Ambassador Masood Khan also said that, while Pakistan was not a member of the Court, it recognised the obligations of members, and noted that the African Union had unanimously requested a deferral. That had produced a tension between those seeking justice and those seeking to promote peace and security. He said Kenya and the African Union were fully conscious of the complexity of the case and its repercussions for the region. From a strictly legal standpoint, the principle of complementary must respect national jurisdiction, he said, noting that the functioning of the offices of President and Deputy President was under question.