Uhuru calls for reforms to have Africa represented at the the UN Security Council
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwpA3e7-pWU
Published on Nov 17, 2014
President
Uhuru Kenyatta said the United Nations Security Council was
undemocratic and had failed to reflect the world power distribution.UN Security Council 'has failed Africa'
2013-11-18 08:49
President Uhuru Kenyatta
The African Union had requested that the UN Security Council defer the cases against Uhuru Kenyatta and his number two, William Ruto, for one year to allow them to deal with the aftermath of an attack by al Qaeda-linked Somali militants.
But the 15-member Security Council was split - seven members, including Russia and China, voted in favour, and eight abstained, including France, the United States and Britain. Resolutions need nine votes and no vetoes to pass. Britain, France, the United States, China and Russia hold veto powers.
Kenya, a key partner in the West's fight against militant Islam in Somalia, said the outcome highlighted the need for reform of the security council to prevent a few powerful nations imposing their will on the world.
Kenyatta and Ruto are accused of fomenting ethnic violence after Kenya's 2007 elections, in which 1 200 people died. Both deny the charges and have tried to have the cases adjourned or halted. Ruto's trial began last month, while Kenyatta's trial is due to start on 5 February after being delayed for a third time.
In a statement, Kenya's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said those who abstained showed "clear cowardice in the face of a critical African matter".
The African Union had made its request to the Security Council with the stability and security of the continent in mind, the ministry said.
"But the Security Council has failed to do this and humiliated the continent and its leadership," it said.
Justice for the victims
At least 67 people were killed in the Nairobi mall attack in September, the worst attack on Kenyan soil since al Qaeda bombed the US Embassy in 1998.
Rwandan UN Ambassador Eugene Gasana, who led the push for a resolution, said: "Let it be written today in history that the Security Council failed Kenya and Africa on this issue."
The Kenyan cases have stirred an African backlash against the ICC Court and sparked claims that the Security Council does not take Africa seriously enough.
African states put the resolution to a vote knowing it would fail.
"It has been insinuated that not joining the vote that favours the resolution is somehow an expression of ill will towards the African Union," said Guatemalan UN Ambassador Gert Rosenthal. "We find this view frankly offensive."
British UN Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant noted that the United Nations supports over 100 000 peacekeepers in Africa.
Western and Latin American council members believe the African concerns should be dealt with at the ICC and at a meeting this month of the Assembly of States Parties, which is made up of the 122 court members.
An Ipsos Synovate poll of 2 060 Kenyans showed on Thursday that 42% believe the ICC cases should continue, two percent thought they should be deferred, while almost a third wanted the trials dropped completely.
"We believe that justice for the victims of that violence is critical to the country's long-term peace and security. It is incumbent on us all to support accountability for those responsible for crimes against humanity," US Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power told the council.
Sad and tragic
Concerns had been raised by some council members that a deferral could lead to impunity. But Ethiopia's U.N. Ambassador Tekeda Alemu said the notion Africa tolerated impunity was the mantra of those who treated Africans as unequals. Ethiopia is currently chair of the African Union.
The Security Council can defer ICC action for one year under Article 16 of the Rome Statute that established The Hague-based court a decade ago.
Seven of the members who abstained are ICC members - France, Britain, Guatemala, Argentina, South Korea, Australia and Luxembourg. The United States is not a member. The seven who voted yes are not court members - China, Russia, Togo, Azerbaijan, Rwanda, Morocco and Pakistan.
Kenyan UN Ambassador Macharia Kamau said after the vote that Africa's engagement at the Security Council had been met with "derision, suspicion, impatience and even irritation" and that Africa now believed that the body was not the destination for solving complex and fluid security and political problems.
"At every turn the boogie man of impunity and dictatorship is dragged out to devastating effect. This is wrong, and it is unfair, as it is sad and tragic," Kamau said.
The UN Security Council turned down a previous deferral request by Kenya in 2011 and rejected a request in May for the cases to be terminated because the council had no such power.
http://www.news24.com/Africa/News/UN-Security-Council-has-failed-Africa-20131118
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