The vice chairman of Kenya’s National Commission on Human Rights says he is proud of the pivotal role his organization played that aided the International Criminal’s Court’s (ICC) decision to begin investigation into the 2007 post-election violence.
Hassan Omar urged Kenyans to assist in the ICC’s investigation, saying masterminds of the violence will not escape justice.
“We are extremely elated (and) we do believe that it’s one of the circumstances where our work has paid off at the highest level of international mechanisms with respect to bringing perpetrators to justice. These are issues that we continue to raise domestically but always faced very harsh resistance from government agencies and the interim government in its totality,” he said.
Omar’s comments followed a decision by judges at the International Criminal Court to authorize chief prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo to investigate Kenya’s post-election violence.
He said the ICC will vigorously go after the masterminds of the chaos.
“I think the International Criminal Court is essentially interested in the perpetrators of violence at the highest level. Therefore, this is the first time I think we might be able to see an investigation that tries to bring some level of justice to people who have always been afforded impunity by being in state power or wielding instrument of power and control,” he said.
Reports in the local Kenyan media said ICC chief prosecutor Moreno Ocampo is scheduled Thursday to outline steps he will take to begin investigating crimes allegedly committed during the 2007 post-election violence.
Some analysts predicted that top officials alleged to have been instrumental in the post-election violence would be working hard to undermine the ICC investigation.
Critics accused Kenya’s parliament as well as top government officials of refusing to set up local tribunals to investigate what was described as organized violence after the controversial 2007 election.
