| An End to Impunity? The International Criminal Court and Women in Africa |
| Written by Phephelaphi Dube |
| Friday, 16 July 2010 08:03 |
|
For thousands of years, women and girls have borne the brunt of vicious sexual and gender violence in times of armed conflict. Sexual violence happens where there is a breakdown in the rule of law and social systems and is often used by combat groups as a weapon of war. It may also be used as a retribution for an attack opposition forces. Sexual assault may be employed to terrorise targeted populations. Such brutal conduct is often approved or ordered by armies or governments. Whilst international law has gained some ground in proscribing atrocities committed during armed conflict, it is not until recent years that gender based violence in armed conflict can be prosecuted.(2) In 1998, the international community concluded a treaty (Rome Statute) that saw the creation of a permanent International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate and punish genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes which authorities at national level had failed to prosecute. The Rome Statute has codified crimes of sexual and gender violence, including genocide, rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, forced sterilisation as well as any other forms of sexual violence.(3) This brief focuses on the application of the Rome Statute regarding sexual violence (4) in four African countries, namely the Democratic Republic of Congo, Central African Republic, Uganda and Sudan. Some may argue that the ICC is a new form of western imperialism in Africa, but African states have been some of the most important supporters of the Court’s work.(5) Democratic Republic of CongoWomen and girls are the target of the resources-fuelled conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). In 2003, the ICC began investigating war crimes committed in the Ituri District of north-eastern DRC after a Human Rights Watch report revealed in 2002 that all sides of the DRC conflict were committing war crimes against women and girls.(6) The DRC government has a generally weak human rights record, which improved somewhat in 2000,(7) but the violence against women and girls has continued unabatedly. Current DRC law views women as second class citizens.(8) Even though rape and indecent assault in the DRC penal code are outlawed, very little has been done in the eastern part of the DRC to protect the victims of sexual assault. Clemetine, mother of eight, was sexually assaulted by a group of men belonging to one of the militia groups that are present in the region.(9) Similar tales exist all over the country. Rape has reached such high prevalence levels that Margot Wallström, United Nations Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, described the DRC as the “rape capital of the world."(10) In 2008 the United Nations Fund for Children (UNICEF) estimated that “hundreds of thousands” of women and girls had been raped in the DRC since the mid 1990’s.(11) The Congolese army has failed to protect civilians caught in the conflict zones. In fact, Congolese troops are reported to be perpetrators of sexual violence in the conflict areas alongside rebel groups and militia.(12) The ICC has since issued four warrants of arrest for militia leaders believed to be responsible for the war crimes and crimes against humanity. Of the four, only two, namely Germaine Katanga and Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui have been charged with sexual enslavement in addition to other crimes such murder and the use of children younger than 15 years old in armed hostilities. Their cases are still pending before the Court. “Sexual violence is impacting the next generation. These women and children have to fend for themselves as their families and communities have abandoned them. It is critical to create security in this region so that these women can generate incomes to support their families,” said UNICEF Executive Director Ann M. Veneman during a visit to the DRC in 2009.(13) Central African RepublicFollowing an attempted coup in the Central African Republic (CAR) in 2002, pervasive accounts of sexual violence were reported. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in 2008 stated that over 15% of women and girls in CAR have been victims of sexual violence.(14) After the government of CAR referred the crimes to ICC, the Court began investigations into the crimes committed. A warrant of arrest for Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo, a former rebel leader, was issued. The charges against him concern war crimes and crimes against humanity, of which rape is a key element.(15) Unlike the other cases before the Court, the case against this former rebel leader rests largely on sexual violence perpetrated against women and girls. Local women’s organisations in CAR assisted in the investigation process by making detailed accounts of over one thousand accounts of sexual assaults to available the ICC prosecutors. Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Luis Moreno-Ocampo travelled to the CAR in January 2010 to meet with victims, representatives of civil society and local population in the capital Bangui. “Hundreds of terrified women have been subjected to the ordeal of sexual violence. We hear of gang rapes, mass rapes, horrific sexual acts being inflicted on women, young girls, the elderly, in some cases on men,” he said in a statement. “Our investigative activities in CAR can bring to the attention of the international community the terrible problems facing the people here and the need to address them urgently. We need comprehensive solutions for CAR and the support of all. International justice is one part of the solution,” he stated.(16) UgandaNorthern Uganda has been the scene of particularly brutal conflict that began in 1986 when President Yoweri Museveni came into power. Rebel group the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) has waged a military campaign to overthrow the Government of Uganda. This campaign has been primarily aimed at the civilian population. Human rights groups accuse the LRA of “raping, mutilating and slaughtering or abducting civilians, raiding villages, looting stores and homes, and burning houses and schools.”(17) There are also reports of young girls and women raped and sexually enslaved as ‘wives’ by LRA commanders. The Ugandan Government referred the situation to the ICC in 2003. The ICC Prosecutor initiated an investigation in 2004 and consequently issued warrants of arrest for the main rebel leaders, namely Joseph Kony, Vincent Otti (now deceased), Okot Odhiambo, Dominic Ongwen and Raska Lukwiya. They have fled into the Congo jungles and the CAR, leaving trails of massacres and devastation behind them.(18) The charges against them include sexual enslavement amounting to crimes against humanity and war crimes. SudanIn 2005, the United Nations Security Council referred the situation in Darfur to the ICC Prosecutor.(19) The Prosecution conducted its own investigation in Darfur and thereafter issued warrants of arrest for a former Sudanese Cabinet Minister and a former leader of the Janjaweed militia in Darfur. In what is regarded as a milestone, the ICC further issued a warrant of arrest for the Sudanese President, Omar Al Bashir on 4 March 2009. Rebels in Darfur, mostly from the ‘African’ tribes in the south, took up arms against the mostly Arab Sudanese Government. They cited the lack of political representation and the underdevelopment of Darfur as the reasons for the uprising.(20) In response to the conflict, the Government began a military campaign against the rebels and also supported the Janjaweed militia against the tribes suspected to support of the rebel uprising. The civilian population of Darfur has borne the brunt of the conflict. In 2003, rape was present in epidemic proportions with an apparent violent and systematic campaign aimed at the sexual abuse of Darfuri women. A typical incident is told by a teenage student who describes her experiences as a victim of mass rape during an assault by the Janjaweed militia. She describes how she, alongside the girls in the school were sexually assaulted. Others described how they were kept as sexual slaves.(21) To date, the Government of Sudan refuses to abide by the warrants of arrest and will not recognise the authority of the ICC.(22) ConclusionThe ICC’s investigations and prosecution for specific gender related crimes in Africa is an important step in the ending of impunity on the African continent. Not only does the Court’s definitional expansion of sexual violence beyond rape serve to advance the rights of African women, its work also ushers in an era of accountability for some of the worst atrocities in recent world history. The ICC’s efforts could amount to a significant contribution to peace and stability in the long run as gender-based crimes become a thing of the past. Hopefully, the Court’s work will act as a deterrent and may even encourage African states to enact laws which provide stronger protection for women and girls. Notes: (1) Phephelaphi Dube is an External Consultant for Consultancy Africa’s Gender Unit (
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
). |
