'ICC still committed to capture Kony'

Jul 14, 2009

THE Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Moreno Ocampo, told President Yoweri Museveni that his interest remains to capture Joseph Kony and try him in at The Hague.

By Henry Mukasa

THE Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Moreno Ocampo, told President Yoweri Museveni that his interest remains to capture Joseph Kony and try him in at The Hague.

“He noted that such an achievement would lead to the collapse of all the other militia groups in Africa,” according to a release from State House.
Ocampo, who met the President on Monday, also discussed matters pertaining to the security situation in the region.

In response, the President said the LRA no longer posed a problem to Uganda. “The LRA has been contained because of having a better infrastructure,” the statement said.

Meanwhile, his press secretary, Tamale Mirundi, said yesterday that the President would issue an official statement to give his stand on the ICC’s demand that Uganda, like any state party to the Rome Statute, arrests Sudanese President Omar El Bashir when he visits Uganda later this month.

Museveni at several occasions noted that, given the complexity of arresting a president of a country, the ICC should defer the indictment until the Africa Union appointed committee of eminent persons carries out its own probe into the situation in Darfur.

Bashir is accused by the ICC of genocide and war crimes in Darfur. He has dismissed the charges.
During a press conference at the Media Centre on Monday, international relations minister Okello Oryem said Uganda could arrest Bashir.

“Already the warrant of arrest of President Bashir is deposited in the office of the Solicitor General here in Uganda. If and when Bashir arrives in Uganda, it’s up to (Police Chief Maj. Gen. Kale) Kayihura to take action,” Oryem stated.

This did not go down well with the Sudan government. Their ambassador to Kampala was quoted in the press as warning: “If it is true Uganda has said it will arrest President Bashir, then that means something else to the relations with Sudan.”

Meanwhile, Museveni also held talks with the internal affairs minister of Southern Sudan, Maj. Gen. Gier Chuang Aluong. No details of the meeting were released.

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