The key figures behind the 2007 post-election violence in Kenya, in which 1500 people were killed, will be prosecuted by the International Criminal Court in The Hague. Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo says he has a strong case, but the Kenyan government is reluctant to assist the Court.

Listen to a Newsline interview here:

Kenyan human rights activist Marceau Sivieude told Radio Netherlands Worldwide it’s because high ranking politicians were allegedly behind the outbreak of the violence. “That’s why the government has so far rejected any investigation”.
 

Hurdle
Mr Ocampo went to Kenya last week to speak to government officials, but he has been unsuccessful in securing an official referral from the government. “We have not reached that hurdle yet”, Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga told Kenyan newspaper The Daily Nation.

The disputed December 2007 presidential elections were marred by violence as president Mwai Kibaki was accused of having stolen the vote.
 

National unity
Fifteen hundred people were killed and 300,000 displaced in only a few weeks. Eventually, a government of national unity in which Mr Kibaki’s rival Odinga took the post of Prime Minister, took office in February 2008.

Since then, there have been international calls for an independent investigation by the ICC into the violence. The Kenyan government has suggested a domestic tribunal instead, but that hasn't materialised yet.
 

Impartiality
“Some politicians are worried about the impartiality of such a national tribunal, and I think they have a point there”, says Mr Sivieude, who works for the Kenyan branch of the International Federation for Human Rights. “These politicians are less reluctant towards an international independent body like the ICC, and I think they’re right”.

Mr Sivieude thinks it’s vital that the trial goes ahead. “The state has a prime responsibility to fight the impunity of this violence, but it hasn’t done anything so far”.
 

Instability
If the outcome of the ICC trial proves that government officials were indeed (partly) responsible for any crimes during the post-election violence, it could bring further instability in the country, as it could bring an end to the power sharing government.

But Mr Sivieude also sees a bright side to such an outcome: “At the same time, it could also urge the political parties to solve some issues that need to be addressed, like the judicial reforms. It could put pressure on the parties to reach some stability and peace. I think the ICC’s intervention will serve as paving the way to political reform rather than bring back instability”.