Ruto, Sang no case to answer at ICC submissions moved to January

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has moved the dates for the oral hearing of the ‘no case to answer’ motion in the case of Deputy President William Ruto and radioman Joshua Arap Sang from November this year to January next year.

The Trial Chamber V(A) of the ICC said that it “vacates the dates of the oral hearings currently fixed for 24 and 25 November 2015 and moves the hearing dates to 14 and 15 January 2016.”

The court further said the new dates are “the earliest possible dates following the Court’s move to the permanent premises.”

ICC said the change of dates is pursuant to Rule 132(2) of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence of the ICC.

Ruto and Sang, through their lawyers, filed a ‘no case to answer’ motion at the ICC following the decision of the Prosecutor on September 10^th this year to close the case facing the two.

ICC’s prosecutor Fatou Bensouda notified the Trial Chamber, Parties and participants in the case of her decision to close the case.

In a letter Bensouda wrote; “In compliance with the Trial Chamber’s order ICC-01/09-01/11-1948-Conf, the Prosecution hereby notifies the Trial Chamber, Parties and participants that it formally closes the Prosecution’s case.”

Her decision triggered reactions from different quotas with the African Union writing to ICC requesting to make observations on the decision by the Trial Chamber to admit as evidence prior recorded testimony of five undisclosed witnesses in the case against Ruto and Sang.

The African Union said that its observations, if allowed by the Appeals Chamber of the ICC, are likely to assist in the proper determination of whether the amended rule can be applied in this case without offending prejudice to the rights of the accused.

This application was the first ever by the African Union in an ICC proceeding since the adoption of the Rome Statute thirteen years ago.

Ruto and Sang are facing charges of crimes against humanity following the 2007/08 post election violence that left at least 1,300 people dead and over 600,000 others displaced.

The two are among the six Kenyans who were facing charges of crimes against humanity at the Hague-based court.

Early this year, the ICC cleared President Uhuru Kenyatta of the charges of crimes against humanity that were facing him citing lack of enough evidence to prosecute his case.

Others who were cleared include former Head of Civil Service Ambassador Francis Muthaura, former Tinderet MP Henry Kosgey and former Police Commission Major Gen. Hussein Ali.