February 7, 2010
Mr Luis Moreno Ocampo, Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) at the Hague, The Netherlands has decided to consider a petition by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), requesting him to use his position “to investigate allegations of unlawful killing of at least 326 people and perpetration of other crimes under international law during the violence this month in Jos, Plateau State of Nigeria; and the reports that the military and police used excessive force against both Christians and Muslims in responding to the violence.”
Mr Luis Moreno Ocampo, Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) at the Hague, The Netherlands has decided to consider a petition by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), requesting him to use his position “to investigate allegations of unlawful killing of at least 326 people and perpetration of other crimes under international law during the violence this month in Jos, Plateau State of Nigeria; and the reports that the military and police used excessive force against both Christians and Muslims in responding to the violence.”
In the response to SERAP’s petition dated 8 February 2010, and signed by M.P. Dillon, Head of Information and Evidence Unit of the Office of the Prosecutor, the ICC said that, “The Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court acknowledges receipt of your communication. This communication has been duly entered in the Communications Register of the Office. We will give consideration to this communication, as appropriate, in accordance with the provisions of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. As soon as a decision is reached, we will inform you in writing.”
Reacting to the development, SERAP’s lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana who had sent the petition to the ICC on behalf of the group, said that, “This is an important decision; we look forward to the ICC getting fully involved and addressing the subject matter of the petition. Given the persistent lack of political will by the Nigerian government to address the problem, we believe the intervention by the ICC in this case is especially important as the ICC can once and for all address the responsible of those who instigated the violence in Jos. The ICC decision is also an important development for the tens of thousands of victims of the latest violence and previous outbreaks of deadly violence in Jos. Ending impunity for the cycle of violence in many parts of Nigeria is absolutely important for sustainable peace, stability and security, and for the country’s social, economic and political development.”
Earlier, in a petition dated 29 January, 2010 and sent to Mr Ocampo, the group said that “Nigeria is a state party to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, and deposited its instrument of ratification on 27 September 2001.”
According to group, “the Plateau State Police Command said that at least 326 people were killed during the violence. Tens of thousands are displaced, and denied access to humanitarian assistance and basic necessities of life such as food and medical care. Many have not been assisted to return to their homes and land, or provided with alternative accommodation.”
“The latest violation of international law in Jos is coming just after the apparently unlawful killings of more than 700 people that followed the Boko Haram crisis last year. Inter-communal, political, and sectarian violence have claimed the lives of more than 20,000 people, including women and children, during the past 10 years,” the group added.
The group also said that, “Those who are suspected to be responsible for the latest violence and previous outbreaks of deadly violence in Jos have not been arrested let alone brought to justice because the government has shown itself to be too weak to act, contrary to its international legal obligations, including under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. The government usually response to outbreaks of violence in many parts of the country by setting up commissions of inquiry, but few of them have ever published their reports, and even when they have, their recommendations have rarely been acted upon or led to prosecutions.”
The group also argued that, “In effect, the government has shown itself unwilling or unable to transparently and effectively investigate and prosecute allegations of crimes under international law committed in the context of the outbreaks of violence in Nigeria, including the latest violence in Jos. This situation amounts to a denial of the victims’ access to a fair, effective and prompt system of justice. The denial of justice to the victims of violence also violates the Security Council (SC) Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security (October 2000), which emphasises the ‘responsibility of all States to put an end to impunity and to prosecute those responsible for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.”
“We are concerned that a cycle of violence has had a deleterious effect on development and has been a core source of instability and insecurity in many parts of Nigeria. The vicious cycle of violence in many parts of the country is breeding impunity of perpetrators, with the Nigerian government unwilling or unable to bring suspected perpetrators to justice. The crimes committed against the Nigerian people in Jos could amount to crimes against humanity under Article 7 of the Rome Statute of the ICC, which fall under the jurisdiction of the ICC,” the group further argued.
The group said that, “Under Article 17 of the Rome Statute, the Court is a court of last resort, expected to exercise its jurisdiction only if states themselves are unwilling or unable genuinely to investigate and prosecute international crimes. Also, pursuant to the Rome Statute, the Prosecutor has power to intervene in a situation under the jurisdiction of the Court if the Security Council or states parties refer a situation or if information is provided from other sources such as the information SERAP is providing in this case.”
On the basis of the above, the group asked the ICC to:
1. Urgently commence an investigation proprio motu on the allegations of the unlawful killing of at least 326 people and other crimes committed during the violence in Jos this month, with a view to determining whether these amount to crimes against humanity within the Court’s jurisdiction. In this respect, we also urge you to invite representatives of the Nigerian government to provide written or oral testimony at the seat of the Court, so that the Prosecutor is able to conclude on the basis of available information whether there is a reasonable basis for an investigation, and to submit a request to the Pre-Trial Chamber for authorization of an investigation.
2. Bring to justice those suspected to be responsible for crimes against humanity in Jos.
3. Urge the Nigerian government to fulfil its obligations under Article 86 of the Rome Statute to cooperate; including complying with your requests to arrest and surrender suspected perpetrators of crimes against humanity in Jos, take testimony, and provide other support to the ICC.
Signed
Adetokunbo Mumuni
Executive Director
8/2/2010
In the response to SERAP’s petition dated 8 February 2010, and signed by M.P. Dillon, Head of Information and Evidence Unit of the Office of the Prosecutor, the ICC said that, “The Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court acknowledges receipt of your communication. This communication has been duly entered in the Communications Register of the Office. We will give consideration to this communication, as appropriate, in accordance with the provisions of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. As soon as a decision is reached, we will inform you in writing.”
Reacting to the development, SERAP’s lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana who had sent the petition to the ICC on behalf of the group, said that, “This is an important decision; we look forward to the ICC getting fully involved and addressing the subject matter of the petition. Given the persistent lack of political will by the Nigerian government to address the problem, we believe the intervention by the ICC in this case is especially important as the ICC can once and for all address the responsible of those who instigated the violence in Jos. The ICC decision is also an important development for the tens of thousands of victims of the latest violence and previous outbreaks of deadly violence in Jos. Ending impunity for the cycle of violence in many parts of Nigeria is absolutely important for sustainable peace, stability and security, and for the country’s social, economic and political development.”
Earlier, in a petition dated 29 January, 2010 and sent to Mr Ocampo, the group said that “Nigeria is a state party to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, and deposited its instrument of ratification on 27 September 2001.”
According to group, “the Plateau State Police Command said that at least 326 people were killed during the violence. Tens of thousands are displaced, and denied access to humanitarian assistance and basic necessities of life such as food and medical care. Many have not been assisted to return to their homes and land, or provided with alternative accommodation.”
“The latest violation of international law in Jos is coming just after the apparently unlawful killings of more than 700 people that followed the Boko Haram crisis last year. Inter-communal, political, and sectarian violence have claimed the lives of more than 20,000 people, including women and children, during the past 10 years,” the group added.
The group also said that, “Those who are suspected to be responsible for the latest violence and previous outbreaks of deadly violence in Jos have not been arrested let alone brought to justice because the government has shown itself to be too weak to act, contrary to its international legal obligations, including under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. The government usually response to outbreaks of violence in many parts of the country by setting up commissions of inquiry, but few of them have ever published their reports, and even when they have, their recommendations have rarely been acted upon or led to prosecutions.”
The group also argued that, “In effect, the government has shown itself unwilling or unable to transparently and effectively investigate and prosecute allegations of crimes under international law committed in the context of the outbreaks of violence in Nigeria, including the latest violence in Jos. This situation amounts to a denial of the victims’ access to a fair, effective and prompt system of justice. The denial of justice to the victims of violence also violates the Security Council (SC) Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security (October 2000), which emphasises the ‘responsibility of all States to put an end to impunity and to prosecute those responsible for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.”
“We are concerned that a cycle of violence has had a deleterious effect on development and has been a core source of instability and insecurity in many parts of Nigeria. The vicious cycle of violence in many parts of the country is breeding impunity of perpetrators, with the Nigerian government unwilling or unable to bring suspected perpetrators to justice. The crimes committed against the Nigerian people in Jos could amount to crimes against humanity under Article 7 of the Rome Statute of the ICC, which fall under the jurisdiction of the ICC,” the group further argued.
The group said that, “Under Article 17 of the Rome Statute, the Court is a court of last resort, expected to exercise its jurisdiction only if states themselves are unwilling or unable genuinely to investigate and prosecute international crimes. Also, pursuant to the Rome Statute, the Prosecutor has power to intervene in a situation under the jurisdiction of the Court if the Security Council or states parties refer a situation or if information is provided from other sources such as the information SERAP is providing in this case.”
On the basis of the above, the group asked the ICC to:
1. Urgently commence an investigation proprio motu on the allegations of the unlawful killing of at least 326 people and other crimes committed during the violence in Jos this month, with a view to determining whether these amount to crimes against humanity within the Court’s jurisdiction. In this respect, we also urge you to invite representatives of the Nigerian government to provide written or oral testimony at the seat of the Court, so that the Prosecutor is able to conclude on the basis of available information whether there is a reasonable basis for an investigation, and to submit a request to the Pre-Trial Chamber for authorization of an investigation.
2. Bring to justice those suspected to be responsible for crimes against humanity in Jos.
3. Urge the Nigerian government to fulfil its obligations under Article 86 of the Rome Statute to cooperate; including complying with your requests to arrest and surrender suspected perpetrators of crimes against humanity in Jos, take testimony, and provide other support to the ICC.
Signed
Adetokunbo Mumuni
Executive Director
8/2/2010
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