Ghana: Time to prosecute atrocity crimes at home
Ghana is the August 2015 focus of our Campaign for Global Justice.
"By affirming its unwavering support for the ICC and its profound respect for the Rome Statute, President John Dramani Mahama has once again the opportunity to play a crucial role in improving the efficiency of the Rome Statute by encouraging parliamentarians to enact legislation enabling Ghana to conduct prosecutions for ICC crimes and enacting legislation once it is adopted," said Clément Capo-Chichi, regional coordinator for Africa at the Coalition for the ICC. "Ghana could thus strengthen its leadership in democracy by serving once again as an example in the fight against impunity in West Africa and the content as a whole."
Ghana has deposited its instrument of ratification of the Rome Statute of 20 December 1999 becoming the second African State to have acceded to the Statute.
In 1999, it became the second African state to accede to the Rome Statute, confirming its commitment to protecting its citizens by preventing mass atrocities and punishing those responsible. This commitment was reiterated at the 13th Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute in December 2014.
Meanwhile, during a high level seminar on cooperation with the ICC in Accra in July 2014, Ghana Attorney General and Minister of Justice H. E. Marietta Brew Appiah-Opong stated that "...[w]e expect from Member States that they commit to the full implementation of the adopted legislation as soon as possible. "
In a letter sent this week to President John Dramani Mahama, the Coalition urged Ghana to take the necessary steps to enable its courts to protect its citizens by preventing mass atrocities and punishing those responsible.
“By signing and ratifying the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court in the late 1990s, Ghana took the important step to join the global fight against impunity,” said Evelyn Ankumah, executive director of Africa Legal Aid. “Now it is time to take all measures necessary to translate that commitment into practical reality.”
