The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court says he
has "no doubt" that fugitive African warlord Joseph Kony will be
arrested this year because the international spotlight has helped boost the
hunt for the Lord's Resistance Army leader.
Luis Moreno-Ocampo said the fact that 100 million people watched the
first video about Kony's crimes in just six days showed that "the world
today understands that justice has to be done" - and he expressed hope
that the world will put a spotlight on other fugitives including Sudan's
president and a Congolese army general to help bring them before the court. There are now 121 countries that are parties
to the ICC, but Moreno-Ocampo said even
countries that are not parties, like the United States, Russia, China and
India, have supported referrals to the permanent war crimes tribunal - and the
US is supporting the collection of evidence for possible future prosecutions of
crimes in the Syria conflict. Thousands
of people have been killed since the Lord's Resistance Army took up arms in
1986 in northern Uganda. The rebels abducted thousands of children and forced
them to become fighters or sex slaves and were notorious for mutilating victims
by cutting off their tongues and lips. The
ICC, based in The Hague, Netherlands, issued arrest warrants for Kony and four
of his senior commanders in July 2005. Kony is charged with 12 counts of crimes
against humanity and 21 of war crimes, including murder, rape, mutilation and
the forced enlistment of child soldiers. Three of Kony's top commanders are
also wanted by the ICC for war crimes and crimes against humanity. The ICC also has accused Sudan's President
Omar al-Bashir for orchestrating genocide, crimes against humanity and war
crimes in Darfur. I believe that it is a
good thing that Kony should be arrested this year. No one like him should have the opportunity
to remain free to continue the crimes that he has committed. This man has committed numerous crimes
against innocent people and he needs to be held accountable for them. It is definitely important that he be
arrested this year and put on trial, and be held accountable for the things
that he has done.
http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/international-criminal-court-prosecutor-kony-will-be-arrested-in-2012-194916
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