Saif Gaddafi Arrested: What now for Justice in Libya?

Posted on November 20, 2011 by Mark Kersten

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi on the plane to Zintan after being captured (Photo: Getty Images/AFP)

Last Friday night, Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, dressed in the traditional garbs of the Tuaregs, was detained whilst on the run, likely to neighbouring Niger. With the death of his father, Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, Saif al-Islam had become the most wanted man in Libya and one of the most wanted men in the world. Now, bearing injuries from a NATO air raid this past October, he is cowering in some detention facility in Zintan, a few hours outside of Tripoli. So what now for justice in Libya?

Journey to the ICC: Over before it Began?

Just a few weeks ago, Saif al-Islam made international headlines with reports suggesting he was trying to flee Libya and was willing to hand himself over to the International Criminal Court (ICC). In the wake of the nauseating treatment of Colonel Gaddafi following his capture, it only made sense that Saif al-Islam would want to prevent a similarly brutal fate.

What’s more, the ICC chief Prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, maintained that the Court had been in contact with Saif’s “intermediaries” to discuss his surrender to the Court in The Hague.

To date, there has been little more than speculation as to whether any of the above actually happened. The conflict in Libya has spewed a lot of hearsay and rumours, reminding us of the all-too-true adage that “in war, truth is the first casualty.”

Indeed, it is interesting that when asked about having spoken to the ICC about potentially surrendering by a Reuters correspondent following his capture, Saif, who had said little to that point, remarked: “It’s all lies. I’ve never been in touch with them.”

Whether or not Saif did get in contact with ICC officials or not, the chances that Saif al-Islam will ever reach an ICC court room are zero-to-none.

There are rumours that the Libyan National Transitional Council (NTC) will hold a vote to decide where Saif al-Islam Gaddafi should be tried. While this would be a sensible and democratic approach, it virtually guarantees that Saif will be tried in Libya.

Observers are right to point out that, under international law and Resolution 1970, Libya has an obligation to arrange the transfer of Saif to The Hague. However, it seems unlikely that much will be made of this obligation amongst international diplomats and leaders.

In this context, the remarks by UK Prime Minister David Cameron were telling, but for what they didn’t say:

“It is a great achievement for the Libyan people and must now become a victory for international justice too…

…Britain will offer every assistance to the Libyan government and the International Criminal Court to bring him to face full accountability and justice for what he has done.

The Libyan government has told us again today that he will receive a trial in line with international standards, and it is important that this happens.”

Cameron neglects any mention of the obligation to bring Saif to the ICC and like other comments on the issue and much of the rhetoric regarding international justice in Libya, suggests that Libyan authorities will be in the drivers’ seat when it comes to deciding Saif’s fate.

Photo of Saif al-Islam Gaddafi shortly after his capture (Photo: Getty Images/AFP)

What (International) Justice will be served?

Despite protestations by the NTC that Saif al-Islam will get a “fair trial”, there are significant potential dangers to having a trial in Libya. Beyond the fact that there has never been a functioning independent judiciary for at least four decades, it is not clear what domestic legal paradigm could be used in trying Saif al-Islam, nor whether international law would be respected in key regards. Continue reading →

Posted in Complementarity, Human Rights, ICC Prosecutor, International Criminal Court (ICC), Justice, Libya, Libya and the ICC, The Tripoli Three (Tripoli3) | 3 Comments

Justice in Conflicts: What’s all the Fuss About?

Posted on November 16, 2011 by Patrick Wegner

Pablo Picasso's 'Guernica' has become one of the most powerful symbols for suffering in war of contemporary times

When I first found this blog, weeks before becoming a regular author, I was excited. I thought it covered an angle of the transitional justice debate that had so far been neglected, and I would like to take the time to elaborate that point in this post. I believe that the application of international criminal law in conflicts is a trend that will be with us for the decades to come. The implications of this development may be enormous, and I believe that the potentially far-reaching consequences have so far not gotten the attention they deserve by academics and practitioners alike.

For those who have been working on questions of transitional justice for some time, this statement might seem a bit grandiose. After all there is a long history of national trials and amnesties implemented during conflicts. Nicaragua tried a number of rebels for crimes against humanity between 1983 and 1988 while its bloody civil war was still ongoing and the Philippines tried members of its military in 1988 and 1990 during its conflict with the Communist Party of the Philippines, to just name two examples. But the trend of transitional justice moving into conflicts can be demonstrated both in figures as well as in statements made by stakeholders.

The Transitional Justice Database compiled by Prof. Payne, Andrew Reiter and Tricia Olsen includes all transitional justice measures implemented worldwide between 1970 and 2007. If we have a look at the trials conducted in the context of conflicts, we find a steadily increasing number, particularly starting in the early 90s. While 17 trials were carried out in conflict contexts between 1972 and 1991, 34 were initiated between 1992 and 2007 alone. At the same time, the share of international and hybrid trials amongst the total number of trials conducted in conflicts is increasing.

This graph shows the number of transitional justice mechanisms applied in conflict context. The share of trials is increasing.

This suggests that there is an increasing probability that atrocities committed in conflicts will trigger what we might call an international criminal justice intervention. The likelihood that either the International Criminal Court (ICC) or a tribunal mandated by the United Nations Security Council intervenes has increased with time. This is reflected in the statements of some stakeholders. The Chief Prosecutor of the ICC, Luís Moreno Ocampo, has made this explicit: ‘[t]he ICC’s mandate to select the most serious crimes committed after July 1, 2002, requires that we engage in judicial proceedings in relation to conflicts even before they have ended. […] My Office is part of a new system dealing with a complex new reality: transitional justice during ongoing conflicts.’ Continue reading →

Posted in Justice, Peace Processes, Peacebuilding, Responsibiltiy to Protect (R2P), Transitional Justice, UN Security Council, Uncategorized, War crimes | 1 Comment

Who Gets to Serve Justice: Saif Gaddafi and ICC Due Process

Posted on November 15, 2011 by Mark Kersten

Mathias Holvoet, a PhD-Candidate, studying international criminal law, at Vrije Universiteit Brussel (Free University of Brussels), joins us to discuss the possible surrender of Saif al-Islam Gaddafi to the ICC. Specifically, Holvoet covers the issue of due process of the accused at the ICC in the context of the complementarity regime . Mathias is also an nalyst for the Global Justice Section of the Global Governance Institute. 

Who will try Saif al-Islam Gaddafi (middle)?

On the 26th of October, Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, the last of Muammar Gaddafi’s eight children still on the run, proposed surrendering to the International Criminal Court (ICC), which had indicted him for crimes against humanity.

Apparently, Saif al-Islam, having seen his father killed in cold blood by rebel militiamen, is so fearful of staying in Libya that he would rather face trial in The Hague. Saif al-Islam had previously called the ICC a tool of foreign powers. But they are also the only organization that would at least respect his rights as an accused, something doubtful of the NTC. Given the troubling human rights record the NTC has compiled in recent, including abuses of detainees and assassinations, Saif  al-Islam’s fear would appear to be warranted.

It was also reported that the former intelligence chief of the Gaddafi regime, Abdullah al-Senussi, intended to surrender to the ICC as well. On the 28th of October, the ICC said it had held talks – through intermediaries – with Saif al-Islam about his possible surrender. In response, the NTC expressed concerns over the informal talks the ICC had with Saif al-Islam. The NTC would prefer to capture Saif al-Islam and put him on trial in Tripoli.

Due process of the accused v. the primary right of the state to prosecute its nationals for international crimes in light of the principle of complementarity (Article 17 ICC Statute)

The future will tell if Saif al-Islam really wanted to surrender to the ICC as a result of the deteriorating human rights situation in his home country. But let’s consider, for the sake of the argument, that Saif al-Islam indeed surrenders himself to the ICC in order to evade “justice” (in whatever form that may be) in Libya and the Libyan courts subsequently start their own investigations, and request the transfer of Saif al-Islam, basing themselves on the principle of complementarity and their primary right to investigate and prosecute the crimes at stake. This raises fundamental questions on the mysterious mysteriousness of the concept of complementarity, which is considered the cornerstone of the Rome Statute.

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi has reportedly said he wants to give himself up to The Hague to avoid a fate similar to his father's

Under Article 19 of the Rome Statute, an accused has the right to challenge the admissibility and jurisdiction of the ICC on the grounds referred to in Article 17 of the Statute, but the Statute is silent on the right of the defendant to challenge the inadmissibility of the case. What is more, it seems that the Rome Statute relies on the underlying presumption that the rights of the accused are guaranteed if the accused can challenge the jurisdiction of the ICC by asserting his right to a trial in his home forum.

Consider, for example, that the Libyan authorities pursued their own investigations into the crimes committed by Saif al-Islam and bring challenges under Article 19 of the Rome Statute to the ICC on the grounds that the Libyan courts are genuinely able and willing to prosecute Saif al-Islam, similar to the recent submissions brought by the Kenyan authorities before the ICC to challenge its cases against six suspects accused of orchestrating violence in the aftermath of the disputed 2007 elections. Would Saif al-Islam be able to challenge a referral of his case to the Libyan authorities, arguing that the Libyan courts are unable to guarantee due process?  More generally, can the ICC rely on due process for a defendant to render a case admissible, and if yes, to what extent?

The majority of international criminal law scholars would answer with a clear “yes”. In defense of the due process thesis, they argue that the prospect of an unfair national trial renders a State ‘unwilling’ to investigate or prosecute. Others point to Article 17(2) of the Statute, which says that unwillingness should be determined with ‘regard to the principles of due process recognized by international law’. Still others argue that a State is ‘unable’ to investigate or prosecute if it does not guarantee fair trial rights of the accused.

A minority however disagrees. Kevin Jon Heller argues, in my view quite compellingly, that nothing in the Rome Statute suggests that Article 17 requires States to guarantee defendants due process. Continue reading →

Posted in ICTY, International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), Libya, Libya and the ICC, The Tripoli Three (Tripoli3) | 2 Comments

Pride and the Interventionist Itch: NATO in the Wake of Libya

Posted on November 13, 2011 by Mark Kersten

Walking a thin line (Photo: Reuters)

Pride is a tricky thing. We want to feel it but it doesn’t always manifest itself as a good trait. For this reason Alexander Pope once declared that pride is “the never-failing vice of fools”, while Saint Augustine wrote that “[i]t was pride that changed angels into devils; it is humility that makes men as angels.” Pride can blind us and can lead even those with the best of intentions astray.

Last week, when NATO chief Fogh Anders Rasmussen declared that the military organization’s mission to Libya would conclude, he stated that he was “proud of the part NATO played” in “answering the call” to save civilians under attack from Gaddafi forces.

My contention here isn’t to predict the future of NATO engagements. The aim is simple: to place NATO’s “success” in Libya into context and consider the potential dangers of a proud military organization seeking to reproduce its success beyond the remits of international law.

NATO in Libya: Success?

It is remarkable how little the ambivalence and uncertainty of the first few months of the Libyan intervention is now recalled. Who now remembers the Obama administration’s ambivalence and (poorly) expressed desire to “lead from behind” in Libya? And what of the consistent reports that Libya faced a grave danger of becoming an intractable conflict, mired in a perpetual stalemate? All but distant memories now.

On the contrary, the rhetoric surrounding the mission in Libya has been thoroughly triumphalist. Chalk up a victory for the Obama administration, and especially its “liberal hawks” – Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, UN Ambassador Susan Rice, and senior security adviser Samantha Power. Chalk up a victory for NATO and its member states. And, before they forget, chalk up up a victory for Libyans!

(Cartoon: Ottawa Citizen)

Libya has been framed as a success for a number of reasons. For many internationalists, Libya is a success because the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) was finally invoked by the UN Security Council. Many had thought that the emerging doctrine of R2P had become stagnant and were caught by surprise when adversaries like Russia and China allowed the words “responsibility to protect” to be articulated in Security Council Resolution 1973. Not only was R2P invoked but it appeared to work – the obvious threat to the citizens of Benghazi was averted.

For many Western states, particularly the US, the fact that there were no Western casualties was critical to any possible success. Since the events of Black Hawk Down in Somalia, it has become a pseudo-doctrine in Washington that US troops not be deployed in humanitarian crises. Indeed, the “success” of Libya in this regard may embolden a US belief that holding to the ‘Mogadishu line’ and succeeding in engaging in humanitarian disasters is feasible and desirable. While the number of humanitarian crises that the US gets involved in may increase, the use of drones and jets will almost surely contribute to the trend of removing the human from humanitarian interventions.

For better or worse, there’s only so much states are willing to pay for humanitarianism. It appears that the intervention in Libya never came close to any such threshold. While the cost of the intervention will undoubtedly grow as the damage done by the intervention is assessed, the total expenditure of the US was about $1 billion and about the same for the UK. That may seem like a lot but just put that into comparison with the following figures:

Now, I’ll be honest. I love baseball, I appreciate a good Hallmark card and, somewhat selfishly, I do dream of reversing the pandemic of receding hairlines. Joking aside, compared to these expenditures, the costs of the Libya intervention is astonishingly low. In contrast to Iraq and Afghanistan, Libya was peanuts. Iraq and Afghanistan have cost the US trillions of dollars alone. In 2011, monthly military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq were costed at $6.7 billion (Afghanistan) and $6.2 billion (Iraq) per month, respectively. Indeed, it was in part because of these exorbitant costs that virtually no one predicted another intervention in the region.  Continue reading →

Posted in Afghanistan, Iran, Libya, NATO, Responsibiltiy to Protect (R2P), Syria | 1 Comment

What a Difference Actually Asking Makes: Burkina Faso, Asylum and Gaddafi

Posted on November 10, 2011 by Mark Kersten

Campaore and Gaddafi (Photo: AFP)

A few months ago, amidst rampant rumours that Muammar Gaddafi was seeking asylum in Burkina Faso, I expressed my frustration at what I thought was groundless and largely unfounded speculation:

“If Gaddafi does, in fact, seek asylum he will surely be very careful which country he chooses for his refuge. Yet few analysts seem to know the slightest about Burkina Faso. Indeed, there has been zero concrete evidence that the pro-Gaddafi convoys are, in fact, heading to Burkina Faso. Most media reports suggest this could be the case because the capital of Niger is close to the border with Burkina Faso and because Burkina Faso had offered Gaddafi asylum.

Burkina Faso now denies that it had offered Gaddafi asylum and it’s interesting to look at media reports to the contrary which never quote any officials from the country.”

Alison Cole at the Open Society came to a similar conclusion. In his typically astute and thoughtful fashion, John Birchall commented on the fact that the offer of asylum could not actually be traced:

 I find it interesting to trace the origins of the widely reported “offer of asylum” from Burkina. It seems all based on the Reuters interview with the FM. Its not clear that he even used the word “exile”, which sems based on this quote:

“In the name of peace, I think we will take, with our partners in the international community, whatever steps are necessary,” Bassolet said, without giving any other details.

And exile went to asylum as fast as you can drive across the deserts of Niger.”

This week, it became even more evident that Burkina Faso never actually offered Gaddafi asylum. The President, Blaise Compaore, was remarkably unequivocal about his country’s support for the ICC’s role in Africa:

“It is our duty to sensitise Africans… We must continue to convince them that such a court is essential…Many African countries believe that the ICC was a tool from the Western world against African countries. There’s a perception to be changed.” Continue reading →

Posted in Burkina Faso, International Criminal Court (ICC), Libya, Libya and the ICC, The Tripoli Three (Tripoli3) | Leave a comment

The “Injustice Cascade” – Supplanting International Justice with Targeted Killing

Posted on November 9, 2011 by Mark Kersten

Dear readers – this piece was originally posted, in an edited form, at JURIST. For keen readers of JiC there may be some repetition from previous themes or pieces but I thought it was “original” enough to post here nonetheless. Enjoy!Gaddafi killing

(Credit: ssoosay)

Hilary Clinton thought it was funny. Millions rejoiced and took to the streets in celebration. Some were simply disgusted. Others worried about what it all meant, for Libya and for justice. Indeed, the reactions to the death of Muammar Gaddafi have been remarkably mixed and contradictory. In particular, there has been a vast gulf between those who see Gaddafi’s killing as having finally served justice to a man who reigned, at times brutally, over his police state and those who viewed his killing as a concerning demonstration of injustice. Perhaps even more worrying is the reality that, rather than being exceptional, Gaddafi’s killing is part of an increasingly acknowledged trend which may challenge not only international law but the nature of justice itself.

The “Justice Cascade”

Numerous scholars, diplomats, human rights activists and lawyers often proclaim that we live in a world where impunity is a thing of the past. This high rhetoric represents the belief that international criminals – including heads of states who perpetrate war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide – have no place to hide. Even if they escape justice now, accountability will catch up with them eventually.

Kathryn Sikkink, for example, recently published The Justice Cascade, wherein she argues that we have been in the midst of a tectonic normative change in how we deal with human rights abuses and international crimes. Today, Sikkink argues, the world expects that leaders who abuse their people will be held to account. That is the conclusion we should draw, according to Sikkink, from the experiences of Argentina’s junta trials, the indictment for Pinochet, and from seeing Slobodan Milosevic in the dock. But does Sikkink’s notion of a “justice cascade” represent an accurate reflection of the way the world is or is it instead a form of talking norms into reality?

Blinded by the Light

It is worth wondering whether part of the reason so many observers were so shocked by Gaddafi’s death was because they believed in the justice cascade. Surely, a justice cascade existed, Gaddafi would have been presented alive, in front of his victims, in a cold court room, rather than dead, his corpse lying half-naked in a cold storage container.

Indeed, it seems that the belief in a settled norm where leaders who commit international crimes are held legally accountable is an expression of hope of where international politics could go, rather than a reflection of where it actually is. Continue reading →

Posted in Crimes against humanity, Justice, Libya, Libya and the ICC, Middle East, NATO, Slobodan Milosevic, The Tripoli Three (Tripoli3) | Leave a comment

Propping up Tyrants: Selling to and Supporting Authoritarian Regimes

Posted on November 8, 2011 by Mark Kersten

Brittany Lyons joins us as a guest-poster to discuss the mixed signals sent by states like the US when they provide military support to authoritarian regimes but decry authoritarian tactics. An aspiring professor of psychology, Brittany is currently working “to help people learn to navigate the academic lifestyle.” Enjoy the post!

(Cartoon: Steve Bell)

The international human rights organization Amnesty International has expressed concerns about the alleged willingness of Western nations, including the United States, to sell weapons to dictators and terrorist organizations. According to an Amnesty report, the U.S., Russia, and others were major sources of weapons, bullets and military-grade equipment sold to repressive regimes in the Middle East and North Africa. Even though the U.S. claims to be in opposition to dictatorships in these regions, American-made weapons and other military supplies are known to have been used against peaceful protestors in places like Tunisia, Egypt, Syria and Yemen.

The Amnesty International report examines transfers of arms since 2005, and has become the basis for a new push for legislation in the U.S. Congress to block a $53 million arms deal between the United States and Bahrain. The Bahraini government has been condemned by President Obama for its willingness to use violence against unarmed protestors, most of whom are entirely innocent, and many of whom only want rights to equal treatment and education. The weapons will almost certainly be used against those very people, and Amnesty investigators are shining a light on this inconsistency.

Additionally, before the Arab Spring uprisings, the U.S., Great Britain, Russia and other Western nations have actively supplied weaponry and munitions to Yemen, in spite of a belief that they would be used to continue the brutal crackdown on Yemeni citizens.

Amnesty contends, with some real evidence, that there is a generalized failure in arms sales legislation, and an unwillingness to create new arms sales treaty regulations. The U.S. is by no means alone in this failure. Spanish cluster munitions and Soviet-era rockets were found by Amnesty investigators in Misrata, and at least 20 nations are believed to have sold small arms and riot-control agents to Egypt (the U.S. tops the list with sales near $1.3 billion). Since 2005, the brutal regime of Libya has been the beneficiary of arms sales by countries including Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Russia, Spain and the United Kingdom, even as those same countries were accusing the nation’s dictator Gaddafi of committing of war crimes against his own people.

A destroyed tank used by Gaddafi forces. Does it matter if such military weapons were provided by states like the US, Germany, or Russia? (Photo: AFP)

Researchers at Amnesty International continue to argue that only a rigorous, case-by-case examination of proposed arms transfers can begin to address the problems and reduce outside military support for these atrocities. It’s a difficult and touchy situation in some cases, because U.S. allies are often the ones on the Amnesty hot seat. Israel, for example, has been identified as a regular user of U.S.-made weaponry, including hellfire missiles and white phosphorous artillery shells. The use of white phosphorous is considered a war crime when implemented against civilian populations, and although has Israel denied its use, doctors told Amnesty investigators that they had been treating severe burns consistent with white phosphorous injuries. Continue reading →

Posted in al-Shabaab, Arms Deals, Arms Trade, Bahrain, Egypt, Libya, Middle East, Syria, Tunisia, United Kingdom, United States, Yemen | 1 Comment

Dancing with the Devil – Dealing With Gaddafi

Posted on November 6, 2011 by Mark Kersten

Just part of the game, right?

Sometimes there are articles that simply get under my skin and that create a pesky need to address them individually. John Deverell’s op-ed in The Guardian, There’s no shame in talking to pe0ple like Gaddafi, was one of those pieces.

Deverell is a British military figure who notes, with obvious pride, that he was involved in negotiations between the UK and Gaddafi. He is frustrated with a trend of criticizing the British government and institutions over their relationship with Gaddafi:

“it has become politically expedient to decry the relationship fostered since 2003 between the last British government and Gaddafi’s regime.

Former prime minister Tony Blair, officers from the British secret intelligence service, the London School of Economics (in the news again last week): all have been criticised for the personal relationships they built with senior Libyans, to the extent of being accused of turning a blind eye to human rights and other abuses.”

Deverell believes that none of these institutions have anything to apologize for. According to him, what they did was, quite simply, necessary. Rather than being an issue of concern, the relationship between Libya and the UK (and it could be said, for the US, France, Italy etc.),

“should remind us of the importance of communication and of building personal relationships with the other side – irrespective of the differences we hold – rather than to the contrary.”

Gaddafi's son, Mutassim with Hilary Clinton during a meeting which was, at the time the highest level talks between Libya and the US in years. Many claim Mutassim was responsible for killing thousands of political prisoners and anti-Gaddafi forces.

Without “communication”, according to Deverell, Libya would still be developing weapons of mass destruction, building an arsenal of nuclear weapons and sponsoring international terrorism. British and Western institutions and governments should not be derided for “communicating” with Gaddafi but rather be praised!

Deverell adds that diplomacy must always come first and that Western treatment of Gaddafi’s Libya is demonstrative of this belief:

“Therefore communication, dialogue and the search for areas of common interest leading to a potential ‘win-win’ solution should never be disregarded as an option. As Winston Churchill noted, ‘better jaw-jaw than war-war’.”

Deverell is absolutely correct here: communication should always come before warfare. Few disagree that military intervention is an absolute last option to be exercised only in the most dire situations or when all other non-violent options have been exhausted.

But the challenge isn’t whether to “jaw-jaw” before “war-war”. It is about knowing who to “jaw-jaw” with and, just as importantly, how to “jaw-jaw”. Continue reading →

Posted in Arms Deals, Human Rights, Justice, Libya, United Kingdom | Leave a comment

US Troop Deployment Revisited – The Hunt for Kony

Posted on November 3, 2011 by Patrick Wegner

US Troops in the field (New Vision)

US President Barack Obama’s decision to send 100 combat armed military advisors to Uganda, Central African Republic (CAR), the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Southern Sudan made worldwide headlines about three weeks ago. The controversial decision and discussions about its consequences brought the LRA conflict back into the headlines after the world had all but forgotten about the steady trickle of mutilations, killings and abductions mainly committed in the DRC and CAR by the LRA. One thing has become very clear to me in interviews with diplomats and staff of international organizations that are working in the context of the conflict: the LRA is no longer seen as a threat for regional stability. This means that the LRA conflict has ceased to matter in the big picture of geopolitics. It is another one of those low intensity conflicts that claim the lives of innocent civilians on a daily basis but are not endangering the security interests of powerful nations. What does the US troop deployment mean in this context?

Since foreign policy practitioners do not see the conflict as a risk to regional stability, President Obama’s move could be regarded as a surprise. Yet, it makes perfect sense both in a US domestic as well as in an international perspective. The US has seen constant campaigning by civil society organizations like Enough and Invisible Children who pressure the US administration to do something about the deaths of innocent civilians in Central Africa. The campaigning led to the signing of the LRA Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act by Barack Obama in May 2010. A high ranking diplomat I talked to a couple of weeks before the troop deployment told me that he expects the US to ‘do something’ in the LRA context soon, as a Congress report on the LRA Act was upcoming in late October and the administration needed to be seen doing something. His prediction proved right.

US and UPDF soldiers during a training in Jinja (US Department of Defence)

From the international perspective, Uganda is of high strategic importance in the region. The Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) is one of the strongest armies in the area. It plays a major role in the UN Mission in Somalia, provides staff for UNAMID in Darfur, and plays the leading role in regional efforts to hunt down the LRA. The fact that the UPDF is providing troops for these missions removes pressure from Western nations to deploy their own troops in the region. Finally, the recent discovery of oil has just increased Uganda’s importance. The decision can therefore also be seen as an acknowledgement of the important role Uganda is playing in the region. Continue reading →

Posted in Democratic Republic of Congo, International Criminal Court (ICC), Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), Southern Sudan, Uganda, United States | 2 Comments

US troops to Uganda & Kony off to Darfur?

Posted on November 2, 2011 by Mark Kersten

A UN helicopter monitors LRA held areas in DRC in 2005 (Photo: Reuters/STR)

(This article was originally posted at RNW, here.)

The decision to deploy 100 US troops to Uganda in order to contribute to efforts in the “hunt for Joseph Kony” has been, by and large, positively received. Finally, many opined after the announcement by the Obama administration last week, the US was putting into action what it had for so long said it would do: – contribute to the elimination of the brutal and oppressive Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) in Central and East Africa. The decision to send troops or, more accurately, “military advisers,” also marked a substantial shift in White House policy. Less than a year ago, the administration signed a bill which committed the US to the fight against the LRA but guaranteed that any American commitment would refrain from “putting boots on the ground.”

It is important to view the Obama administration’s decision with some scepticism. In twenty-five years, the government of Uganda, at times with regional support from neighbouring states, has failed to defeat the LRA. Locating Kony, who has been remarkably adept at avoiding death or capture, has not and will not be an easy task in a region of Africa which has been devastated by violent political conflict, has minimal infrastructure and large swaths of which can accurately be described as lawless. The idea that all it takes is 100 US soldiers to defeat the LRA and the “crazy”, “mystical” and “bizarre” Kony is a fallacy – and a dangerous one at that.

Some of these difficulties have been captured by astute commentators. But what has yet to be adequately considered are the regional dimensions of the decision by the US to intervene. It may be that this renewed military impetus to fight the LRA and “remove Kony from the battlefield” will export the LRA to areas where US troops won’t be allowed access. There is enough evidence to suggest that Darfur could be one such area.

A cosy partnership: Khartoum and Kony

While orthodox descriptions of the war in Uganda often paint the conflict as an intra-state war between the government of Uganda and the LRA, any assertion of the war being constrained within the territorial boundaries of Uganda could not be farther from the truth. Tellingly, in the first ever prosecution against a LRA commander, the Ugandan government charged Thomas Kwoyelo with breaches of the Geneva Conventions, charges which require that the breaches were conducted in the context of an international armed conflict.

The relationship between the LRA and the Government of Sudan goes back, at the very least, to 1994. Since then, Khartoum has employed the LRA to act as a proxy in its civil war against Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) in South Sudan. LRA rebels were often protected, provided with weaponry, and supported economically by Khartoum.

The cosy relationship between Kony and Khartoum can accurately be described as an “open secret” in the region – everyone knows it but there is little official acknowledgement of the fact. In an illustrative example recounted to the author, a rebel commander, ordered to destroy a radio tower with newly acquired bombs in Gulu, northern Uganda, was told that he must both fulfil his mission and retrieve any remnants of the bombs used. Those bombs were provided by the government of Sudan.

It is widely believed that Sudan ceased its support for the LRA in the mid-2000s. This is often ascribed to pressure from the international community and a desire not to be associated with Kony, against whom the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant. However, last year, evidence emerged that Kony may have been hiding in Darfur, once again acting at the behest of Khartoum. This was corroborated to the author by former senior LRA commanders in northern Uganda.

Thinking regionally, marginalising rebels and exporting conflict

Since 2006, when the Juba peace talks to end the conflict between the government of Uganda and the LRA began, the LRA has not had much, if any, presence in northern Uganda. Indeed, most northern Ugandans will tell you that there is peace in the area, often described as “a silencing of the guns.” But this sense of peace belies the reality that the conflict in northern Uganda has been “exported” to neighbouring states, particularly the DRC, South Sudan and CAR. LRA attacks on and abductions of civilians in these states have been an all too regular occurrence. Continue reading →

Posted in Darfur, International Criminal Court (ICC), Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), Peace Processes, Sudan, Uganda | 2 Comments