Not long ago, we reported on the manner in which Chad invited Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir to a regional conference in their capital, declining to arrest him and turn him over to the International Criminal Court as required by the Rome Statute. Now, it appears, the nation of Kenya has done the same thing. The Sudanese president has visited the Kenyan capital to participate in a celebration of Kenya's new constitution, being greeted as a friend rather than the wanted criminal that he is.
The ICC has issued arrest warrants for Omar al-Bashir on charges of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes related to the conflict in Darfur. Both Chad and Kenya are signatories to the Rome Statute and fully-fledged members of the ICC. The fact that they are refusing to live up to their treaty obligations is a disgrace.
The ICC has complained to the United Nations Security Council regarding the Kenyan refusal to arrest al-Bashir. At the very least, the Council should pass a resolution condemning the Chadian and Kenyan tolerance of the presence of al-Bashir on their soil. Ideally, the Council should implement some form of economic sanctions against the government ministers who made the decision not to arrest al-Bashir.
The Rome Statute is a binding treaty under international law. But if the ICC has to depend only on the goodwill of potentially uncooperative nations, and is unable to enforce the provisions of the treaty itself, it will remain a highly imperfect instrument for promoting global justice. And war criminals and genocidal killers will remain free.
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