The lead defence lawyer for fugitive Ugandan warlord Joseph Kony has urged International Criminal Court (ICC) judges to suspend proceedings against his client, arguing that Kony cannot effectively challenge the evidence in his absence.
Peter Haynes described his role as a “paradoxical mandate,” representing Kony’s interests while having no way to consult with the accused, who has not been seen in public since 2006.
Kony faces 39 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including murder, rape, torture, enslavement and sexual slavery, allegedly committed between July 2002 and December 2005 in northern Uganda.
The three-day hearing in The Hague is the first of its kind at the ICC to be conducted without the suspect present. The session is a “confirmation of charges” hearing, in which a three-judge panel decides whether the prosecution’s allegations are sufficiently strong to proceed to a trial. However, as the court does not allow trials in absentia, Kony cannot contest the evidence, prompting his defence to call for a conditional halt to the case.
Haynes criticised the prosecution’s argument that confirming the charges would speed up proceedings should Kony ever be apprehended. “Seriously? Who does the deputy prosecutor think will arrest Joseph Kony? And where does he think he might be arrested? In Uganda? By the Ugandan authorities? Well, if that happens, he ain’t coming here,” he said.
The lawyer also highlighted the political sensitivities surrounding the ICC, noting US sanctions imposed after judges issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a US ally. “Compromising the rights of suspects by issuing confirmation decisions without their participation should not define the future of ICC proceedings,” Haynes said. He added that proceeding in this manner risks reinforcing perceptions of the court’s illegitimacy.
To preserve the court’s credibility, Haynes recommended that judges impose a conditional stay of proceedings, which could be lifted only if Kony is ever apprehended.
