ICC to rule on recanted evidence in Ruto, Sang case

The International Criminal Court (ICC) Appeals Chamber will Friday deliver a verdict on whether recanted evidence will be used in the case against Deputy President William Ruto and former journalist Joshua Arap Sang.

This comes after Ruto and Sang filed an appeal challenging the move by the court’s prosecution to apply the amended Rule 68 of the Rome Statute that allows it to use prior recorded evidence.

The trial chamber decision elicited controversy with the court being accused of contravening an agreement reached at the assembly of state parties in 2013 that Rule 68 would not be used retroactively.

If the Appeals Chamber rules in favour of Ruto and Sang and, therefore, overrule the use of recanted evidence, then the prosecution’s case could be significantly weakened as the evidence of the five witnesses who have since renounced their testimonies is key to ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda’s case.

However if the Appeal’s Chamber upholds the decision to use recanted evidence then it means Ruto and Sang will face an uphill task in their cases at least according to the prosecution, the case against them will be solid.

In November last year, the Assembly of State Parties (ASP) Plenary ratified the resolution of its Bureau that the controversial Rule 68 on recanted evidence should not apply retroactively.

Rule 68 was first amended in 2013 during the 12th Session of the ASP to allow the use of prior recorded evidence, popularly referred to as recanted evidence.

The ASP Bureau agreed with Kenya’s proposal to suspend the use of recanted evidence in the case of Ruto and Sang.

The ICC Bureau, which is a 18 member state committee, presented its report with the recommendations to the ASP Plenary, which endorsed them unanimously.

However, Amnesty International said the ASP’s recommendations are not binding and the ICC Judges can still decide to use the recanted evidence.

Ruto and Sang are facing charges of crimes against humanity at the Hague-based court following the 2007/08 Post Election Violence in which at least 1,300 people were killed and over 600,000 others displaced.