Zanu-PF is afraid of ratifying ICC, says MDC-T

ZANU-PF is afraid of ratifying the International Criminal Court (ICC) because of its shady past which includes the Gukurahundi massacres of the 1980s and other human rights abuses, the MDC-T party has said.

The African Union (AU) convened an extra-ordinary summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on Saturday to discuss among other things its relationship with the ICC. Zimbabwe is one of the 20 African countries that have not ratified the Rome statutes which gave birth to the ICC. The ICC handles trials for leaders accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

During the summit, the African leaders reiterated their "unflinching commitment to fight impunity, promote human rights and democracy, and the rule of law and good governance on the continent".

MDC-T spokesman Douglas Mwonzora hailed the AU for the stance it adopted.

"We are extremely thrilled that the African Union has not agreed to pull out of ICC," Mwonzora said. "The International Criminal Court is important because it keeps dictators in check. It provides justice to victims of dictators. Without the ICC it would not be possible to punish war crimes by dictators."

Mwonzora said those who respected human rights in their own countries have nothing to fear and should not be worried by the existence of the ICC.

"If African leaders respect human rights why should they be afraid of the ICC? Only those who violate human rights fear the ICC. In fact, Zimbabwe should be a member of the ICC. Zimbabwe should be applying for membership of the ICC. Our Parliament should debate that and ratify membership of ICC. But you see the Zanu-PF-led government does not want to ratify membership of the ICC because of its human rights abuses including Gukurahundi and those from 1987 to 2008," he said.

Over 20 000 people were believed to have been killed during Gukurahundi massacres between 1982 and 1987 mostly in the Matabeleland region and parts of the Midlands.

President Robert Mugabe described Gukurahundi "as a moment of madness" which should never be allowed to happen again.

Zanu-PF spokesman Rugare Gumbo could not be reached yesterday. But, Mugabe spokesperson George Charamba last week said: "We signed, but we did not ratify it because we developed misgivings on the biased application of the law against Africans.

"We also had misgivings because of certain experiences we saw against the Africans. The irony of it is that countries that did not sign or ratify the protocol have now become the owners of the instrument because they are the ones who are hauling people before the ICC. The ICC debate has been spurred by the indictment of the Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto over the role they allegedly played in the killings following the disputed 2007 elections in Kenya.

The AU on Saturday resolved to set up a contact group of the Executive Council to "undertake consultations with the members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), in particular, its five permanent members, with a view to engaging with the UNSC on all concerns of the AU on its relationship with the ICC."

The continental body said this should be done before the expected beginning of the trial of Kenyatta at the ICC on November 12. Ethiopian Prime Minister and AU chairperson Hailemariam Dessalegn said: "Our goal is not and should not be a crusade against the ICC, but a solemn call for the organisation to take Africa's concerns seriously."

AU Commission Chairperson Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma also said: "It is critical that we remain within the legal framework of the Rome Statutes."