The Netherlands should host Jean Pierre Bemba pending his war crimes trial if other states fail to do so, says Amnesty International

Written by: Thijs Bouwknegt and Saskia van Huijgevoort

Democratic Republic of Congo ex-vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo was granted conditional release pending his war crimes trial before the International Criminal Court (ICC) Friday as the search began for a country willing to host him.

The ICC in The Hague says there is no reason to believe that Bemba, charged with atrocities in the Central African Republic (CAR), would obstruct the investigation or repeat any of the crimes.

The countries Bemba wished to be released to, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal and South Africa, have all expressed “objections and concerns” to host the former warlord.

Belgium, where Bemba was arrested last year, said his presence in the country could pose "public security problems" among its Congolese expatriate community of divergent political opinions. The ICC allowed him to attend his father’s funeral in Brussels last month, but the city said it had many problems to guarantee his safety.

France said through a foreign affairs spokesman that it was "not in a position to accommodate Jean-Pierre Bemba", while South Africa's foreign ministry said the country "has not made any offer to host Bemba".

“If no country agrees to receive him, Jean-Pierre Bemba could remain in ICC detention indefinitely,” warns Amnesty International’s Christopher Keith Hall.

He adds that “Bemba has the right to be presumed innocent until a decision is made by the ICC on his case. And given this ruling, to keep him in detention indefinitely would violate Jean-Pierre Bemba’s right to a fair trial.”

“The ICC simply will be unable to function if states fail to cooperate, and the Dutch government has a particular responsibility, as host of the ICC,” Amnesty’s Adviser says.

The Pre-Trial Chamber of the ICC has invited the governments suggested as hosts to Jean-Pierre Bemba to make further observations to the ICC before its next hearings on the issue between 7 and 14 September. 

The trial against Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo will be the Court's third trial. The Court's first war crimes trial against Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga Dyilo started in January 2009. A second trial will start on 24 September 2009 against Congolese rebel leaders Germain Katanga and Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.

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