THE International Criminal Court (ICC) has written to Uganda to explain the implications of the accountability and reconciliation agreement on the warrant of arrest against Joseph Kony.
Internal affairs minister Ruhakana Rugunda yesterday said the Government had received the letter and the Attorney General was handling the matter.
However, the Attorney General was not available for comment.
The LRA leader and his top commanders were indicted by the ICC.
On February 29, ICC judges Mauro Politi, Fatoumata Diarra and Ekaterina Trendafilova, ruled that to ensure the efficient conduct of the court proceedings, it was necessary to get an explanation from Uganda.
“We request Uganda to provide the chamber with detailed information on the implications of the annexure on the execution of the warrants at the earliest convenience, preferably not later than March 28, 2008,” the letter said.
In February, the Government and the LRA signed a landmark agreement on how to deal with war crimes.
It was agreed that severe crimes committed by the LRA be tried under a special division of the High Court in Uganda.
The agreement requires the Government to establish a unit for carrying out investigations and prosecutions.
In the letter, the ICC asked Uganda to explain the steps it would take to implement the agreement.
It also wanted to know the categories of offences that would be addressed by the traditional justice system.
The court also asked Uganda to explain the impact of the special division of the High Court and the recourse to traditional justice mechanisms on the execution of the warrants against Kony and his commanders.
The LRA lawyer, Caleb Alaka, yesterday said this was a big development.
“In effect, the ICC is surrendering the case to the Ugandan Government but wants to make sure that the country is competent to handle it.
“Therefore, it is up to Uganda to come out boldly in the interest of justice and peace,” he said.
