Kenya told to cooperate as Kenyatta trial reset to October

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta attends an ICC hearing. © AFP

On Monday, ICC judges rescheduled the start of the trial of Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta to 7 October this year.

The new date is intended to allow the Kenyan government time to comply with its obligations to cooperate with a prosecution request for the president’s financial and phone records, which it believes are crucial to its case.

The judges ruled against the argument of the Kenyan attorney general that the prosecution does not have the authority to make cooperation requests.

The prosecutor now has two weeks to submit a revised request for the records, while Kenya needs to provide reasons if they fail to hand them over.

The Chamber said that the two parties must provide regular updates on their cooperation, and set a hearing for 9 July to further assess progress.

Kenyatta’s request to terminate the case was rejected, as was the prosecutor’s request for an indefinite stay of proceedings.

The judges also deferred making a determination regarding non-compliance alleged by the prosecution until after the adjournment period.

Kenyatta is suspected of planning and organizing crimes against humanity during violence that followed Kenya’s 2007 presidential election which killed over 1,200 and displaced 600,000.

The trial had been due to open on 5 February last.

However, the withdrawal of several key witnesses has led the prosecution to place heavier emphasis on Kenyatta’s records, which it has been requesting the Kenyan government to provide since April 2012.

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