Whilst the Gaddafi regime in Libya appears to be on its last legs, prosecutors in The Hague are anticipating the arrival of three Libyans, including the 'Great Leader' himself, all accused of crimes against humanity.
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The International Criminal Court (ICC) has three cells ready and waiting for Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, his son Saif Al-Islam Gaddafi and security chief Abdullah Al-Senussi. Libyan rebel forces have already arrested Gaddafi junior and are negotiating with the ICC regarding his transfer to The Hague.

The ICC's chief prosecutor, Luis Moreno Ocampo, says there is more than enough evidence to support claims that the Gaddafi regime has caused hundreds of victims among the country’s civilian population. Mr Ocampo says, for example, that the three named individuals arranged for Viagra to be issued to military personnel so they could rape women. Mr Ocampo has investigated the allegations, at the request of the United Nations, and issued his arrest warrants back in June this year.

No doubts
‘Murder and persecution’ are among the crimes against humanity listed in the indictment. The three men are said to have organised, supervised and carried out the violence inflicted on civilians in Libya by the state and its personnel. It was under their authority that civilians were tortured, raped, shot at and killed.
 
Saif Al-Islam Gaddafi could be the first of the three to have the chance to come to The Hague and see the charges for himself. If transferred to the ICC, the 39-year-old – designated until his arrest on Sunday as Libya’s ‘premier’ – will be immediately presented with the document that sets out the charges against him, together with a pile of documentary evidence, as well as a list of lawyers registered with the court.

Then, arrangements will be made to bring him as quickly as possible before the ICC for an initial appearance. This would be followed by a series of other preliminary sessions which will examine whether there is sufficient evidence to push ahead with a full trial. Mr Ocampo says there’s no doubt about that. In fact, he goes one step further and says further investigations are pointing in the direction of war crimes, which could mean there may be more charges added to the indictment. 
 
Helping the rebels
The whereabouts of colonel Al-Senussi are unknown at present, but Muammar Gaddafi is probably still holed up inside his residence in Tripoli. He claims he will fight unto death, which could be close now given that his regime appears close to total collapse. But this also means that the possibility of the ‘great leader’ finding his way to a cell at The Hague becomes a more realistic prospect.

The ICC does not have its own police force, so there’s no one available to come and arrest these ‘wanted men’, but the Libyan rebels have said they will help the court.

If Gaddafi should manage to escape arrest – and doesn’t fight unto his own death – he’ll need to make his foreign travel plans carefully. In principle, all the member countries of the United Nations are obliged to execute the ICC arrest warrant. There are, however, some countries that simply do not do so, including Sudan. That country’s president, Omar al-Bashir, is also on Mr Ocampo’s ‘most wanted’ list, but this good friend of Gaddafi has been successfully managing to avoid a trip to the ICC since 2008.  

Continually explaining
The ICC is supposed to be a global court, but it is far from being that at the moment. Along with Libya and Sudan, three of the world’s great powers – China, Russia and the United States – do not even recognise its legal authority. This means the ICC finds itself continually having to explain the reason and purpose for its existence.
 
This permanent court, which brings to trial those accused of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, may intervene in countries which have ratified the Statute of Rome. This may take place only if there are no other judicial alternatives. In other words, the ICC judges must always examine first whether a signatory state is itself able to carry out its own, credible investigations into allegations of war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide.
 
If nothing happens, however, then the ICC may launch its own investigation. In the case of non-signatory countries, the UN Security Council may intervene. That’s what happened in the case of Sudan and, in February this year, Libya too. Now the New-York-based Security Council is looking at whether Chief Prosecutor Ocampo should be sent to Syria to investigate whether any war crimes have been committed there.

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