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"id": 194968,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/194968/?format=api",
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"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Ms. Karua",
"speaker_title": "The Minister for Justice, National Cohesion and Constitutional Affairs",
"speaker": {
"id": 166,
"legal_name": "Martha Wangari Karua",
"slug": "martha-karua"
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"content": " Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I rise to second this very important piece of legislation, which has been ably moved by the Attorney-General. I wish to congratulate him on bringing this very timely Bill before the House. As stated by the Attorney-General, Kenya ratified the Rome Statute on 15th March, 2005. This is boldly stated in the Memorandum of Objects and Reasons. The entire Rome Statute has been reproduced at the back of this Bill, so that we can understand the references that are made to the Bill on the Rome Statute. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I want to start by saying that the Rome Statute, from the day of ratification, applies to Kenyans and the country even without the passage of this Bill. The only thing that is going to change once we pass this Bill is that Kenya itself can apply the Rome Statute as its domestic law. We can prosecute here in Kenya without waiting for an international tribunal. We can also extradite a Kenyan who has committed a crime and punish him here. We can also prosecute for those crimes. So, even for the period we had not domesticated the law, the Rome Statute was applicable to Kenya. Just as the Attorney-General has pointed out, we are already very good friends of the Court. We are aware of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) in Arusha, Tanzania. Kenya has co-operated in extraditing persons needed for trial in Arusha, and giving any other facilitation. There is a topical case in the newspapers of property that is being attached, of a person who is sought by the ICTR. These are things in which Kenya has actually been playing her role as she is part of the international community. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, if I may go a little back before there was the Rome Statute, there still was international law. The Rome Statute came to actually codify international law that had been applied ever since the advent of the United Nations (UN). We all remember the unfortunate incident of the persecution of the Jews. I know that most of us are aware of the trials that have been going on. Even today, if any of the fugitives from the crimes against humanity meted on the Jews is nabbed, it is never too late; they will still be tried. There has been some recent trial. Some came 40 years after the fact. The Rome Statute has codified all that and set up a permanent tribunal because, previously, the world community was setting up ad hoc tribunals. This is now set up as a sort of a permanent court. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I also want to remember that in Eastern Europe, Mr. Slobodan Milosevic was tried for crimes against humanity. I want to recall that in Liberia, a warrant was out for Serjeant Samuel Doe. I want to remember all the trials that have gone on, and to know that international law has been applicable. What the Rome Statute has done is to codify it, so that we remind ourselves, not just as legislators, but also as citizens of Kenya and the world, that we are all subject to international law. We all have to observe certain standards. We are now translating our 912 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES May 7, 2008 commitment and domesticating the Statute. In the matter of the recent unfortunate events in our country, it has been in the newspapers that some of our nationals have rightly petitioned the International Criminal Court (ICC). But even without a petition, the ICC, on its own motion, can actually come and investigate. The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR), whose seat is in Geneva, actually sent a fact-finding mission to Kenya. We, as a Government, welcomed them. As the Minister for Justice, National Cohesion and Constitutional Affairs, I facilitated them in arranging meetings with the various Government agencies they wanted to meet. I also met them. On their own, they went to the IDP camps and to the sites where some of these atrocities were committed, to carry out their own investigations. Therefore, even without any of the nationals petitioning the ICC, once the happenings are known, the ICC can, on its own motion, investigate. None of us, whatever our positions, can escape international criminal justice for the things that are cited in the Rome Statute, mainly crimes against humanity, genocide and war crimes. They are ably articulated in this Statute. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, as a Parliament, in passing this legislation, we shall be together saying, on behalf of our nation, that we want to uphold the highest standards and hold each other to account on all these issues, so that we protect each other and the human race from completely wasting itself. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, with your permission, I just want to recall the few stated principles in the Preamble to the Rome Statute, because it is the one that we are making part of our domestic law in all these clauses. It states:- \"Conscious that all the people are united by common bonds, their cultures pieced together in a shared heritage, and concerned that this delicate mosaic may be shattered at any time; Mindful that during this century millions of children, women and men have been victims of unimaginable atrocities that deeply shock the conscience of humanity---\" If I may pose there, we as a nation, collectively, have been guilty of standing and watching atrocities get committed, and sometimes not acting appropriately. So, we all need to support each other as the human race by adhering to these principles. The Preamble further states:- \"Recognising that such grave crimes threaten peace, security and well-being of the world; Affirming that the most serious crimes of concern to the international community as a whole must not go unpunished, and that their effective prosecution must be ensured by taking measures at the national level and by enhancing international co- operation; Determined to put an end to impunity for the perpetrators of these crimes and thus to contribute to the prevention of such crimes---\" We have all been talking about impunity. Impunity is, indeed, the concern of the entire world. Whether it is in cases of economic crimes or crimes against humanity, impunity is something we cannot support. The Preamble further states:- \"Recalling that it is the duty of every State to exercise its criminal jurisdiction over those responsible for international crimes; Reaffirming the Purpose and Principles of the Charter of the United Nations, and in particular that all States shall refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any State, or in any other manner inconsistent with Purpose of the United Nations---\" So, even under the guise of war, a State cannot aggress another and commit atrocities against its citizens. May 7, 2008 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 913 The Preamble further states:- \"Emphasising in this connection that nothing in this Statute shall be taken as authorizing any State Party to intervene in an armed conflict or in the internal affairs of any State; Determined to these ends and for the sake of present and future generations, to establish an independent, permanent International Criminal Court in relationship with the United Nations system, with jurisdiction over the most serious crimes of concern to the international community as a whole---\" This Statute is not for every other criminal offence. It is for most serious offences of concern to the entire international community and to humanity as a whole. The Preamble continues to state:- \"Emphasizing that the International Criminal Court established under this Statute shall be complementary to national criminal jurisdictions; Resolved to guarantee lasting respect for and the enforcement of international justice---\" Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, therefore, the whole object of this is to protect the entire human race. By passing this Statute we shall be protecting ourselves as individuals, families, communities, Kenyan citizens and as citizens of the world. I would urge all hon. Members to rise up and be counted, and to pass this very noble piece of legislation. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, we should remember that none of us can hide from our actions. We can run but not hide, because it is not only the national law that will be watching us, the international law will also be watching us. We, therefore, need to do to our neighbours what we would like them to do to us. I want to agree with those who have said, both inside and outside this House, that the best security of each individual is their neighbour. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, it is time, therefore, we rose up to be counted and we became each other's keeper. Let us not ask like Cain in the Bible that we are not our brother's or sister's keeper. Let us become each other's keeper and uphold the human rights of each one of us. I beg to second."
}