THREE PROMINENT Kenyans appeared before the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague yesterday over their alleged role in the violence that followed the country’s 2007 election.
Suspended higher education minister William Ruto, former industry minister Henry Kosgey and radio presenter Joshua Arap Sang, who are accused of being co-perpetrators in the violence that left more than 1,000 dead, attended the court to hear charges of crimes against humanity, including murder, forcible transfer and persecution.
All three denied the charges, with Mr Ruto dismissing them as “only possible in a movie”. Another three suspects, including deputy PM Uhuru Kenyatta, will attend a separate hearing today.
The accused are among the most powerful people in Kenya, with Mr Kenyatta and Mr Ruto regarded by many as the leaders of the Kikuyu and Kalenjin, the two ethnic groups that have shared the presidency since independence in 1963. Both were billed as likely contenders in next year’s presidential election. However, their appearance before the ICC has derailed such ambitions, with the prime minister, Raila Odinga, the favourite to succeed President Mwai Kibaki.
Mr Kenyata and Mr Ruto have held rallies in recent weeks to drum up support, with the Kenyan government filing a petition for a postponement of the trials for a year so that local mechanisms can be established to try the suspects.
They argue that the adoption of a new constitution last year has opened the way for the cases to be held in Kenya. However, ordinary Kenyans disagree. A poll in this week's Nationnewspaper showed that 61 per cent wanted the trials to proceed in The Hague.
The cases have topped the news agenda for months in Kenya, where many people hope that the country’s long history of impunity among the political elite may be coming to an end.
“By addressing the post election violence . . . in Kenya, today’s hearings constitute a step towards . . . justice for victims, with a view to promoting . . . reconciliation,” said William R Pace, head of the Coalition for the International Criminal Court, a civil rights organisation that supports the work of the ICC.