TEN YEARS ON, SUPPORT FOR ICC GROWS

By JUDGE SANG-HYUN SONG
THE HAGUE, THE NETHERLANDS
July 2 2012

On 1 July 2002, the first three staff members of the International Criminal Court (ICC) entered the ICC’s building in The Hague, the Netherlands. On that day, the ICC’s founding treaty, called the Rome Statute, entered into force.

Ten years after that modest beginning, the ICC has turned into a major international institution, securing justice for victims when it cannot be delivered at the national level.

121 States have ratified the Rome Statute, and another 32 countries have signed it, indicating their intention to join the treaty.
The ICC is working in seven situation countries, and monitoring developments in seven others on several continents, turning the principles of the Rome Statute into reality.

In March this year, the ICC delivered its first judgement in a case concerning the use of child soldiers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Six cases are in the trial stage and nine others in pre-trial phase. These proceedings are testimony that impunity for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity is no longer tolerated by the international community.

The victims are a vital part of the ICC’s work. Thousands of victims have been given a voice in the arena of international justice, where their rights are upheld and their suffering recognised.

The ICC’s proceedings have emphasized, on a global scale, that children cannot be used as soldiers during hostilities, that sexual violence as a weapon of war is an unacceptable international crime, and that those in positions of power must safeguard the fundamental human rights of people caught in conflict.

Support for international justice is growing around the world every year. Everywhere, people want peace, justice, rule of law and respect for human dignity. The ICC represents the voluntary gathering of nations in a community of values and aspirations for a more secure future for children, women and men around the world.

However, rather than rejoice over our accomplishments, it is far more important that we recognise the shortcomings and the obstacles that remain, and redouble our commitment to further strengthen the Rome Statute system in order to move closer to our ultimate goals. If we act wisely, pulling our strength together, we can prevent terrible suffering before it takes place.

The ICC is the centrepiece of the evolving system of international criminal justice, but the most important aspect of the fight against impunity takes place in each country, society and community around the globe.

Domestic justice systems must be strong enough to be able to act as the primary deterrent worldwide, while the ICC is a “court of last resort”, a safety net that ensures accountability when the national jurisdictions are unable for whatever reason to carry out this task.

In a spirit of solidarity, the States Parties to the Rome Statute have expressed their commitment to work together to ensure that this principle of complementarity is effective.

Another crucial aspect of the ICC is the cooperation of states and the enforcement of the Court’s orders. The ICC has no police force of its own. The Court relies entirely on states to execute our arrest warrants, to produce evidence, to facilitate the appearance of witnesses and so on. Unfortunately, several suspects subject to ICC arrest warrants have successfully evaded arrest for many years. Political will and international cooperation is crucial in order to bring these persons to justice.

While we work together to prevent impunity and to ensure accountability, we must remember that international criminal justice is one piece in a bigger framework for protecting human rights, suppressing conflict and working for peace and stabilisation.

It is vital that other essential elements of conflict prevention and post-conflict recovery are present where needed, alongside international justice mechanisms. Only when accompanied by education, democracy and development, can justice truly help prevent the crimes of the future.

Let us cherish our spirit of solidarity as we look forward to the ICC’s next decade, celebrating our achievements and acknowledging the challenges that remain ahead. We must be united in our resolve to defeat impunity and the lawlessness, brutality and disdain for human dignity that it represents.

At this crucial juncture, we must continue the fight against impunity with renewed resolve and increased vigour. We cannot rest until every victim has received justice.

On the 10th anniversary of the International Criminal Court, I call on states, organisations and people everywhere to join this shared mission of humanity.

Judge Sang-Hyun SONG, President of the International Criminal Court. Distributed by the African Press Organization on behalf of the International Criminal Court.

EASTJET PLANS 15-STRONG AIRBUS FLEET IN AFRICA DISCOUNT PUSH

Bloomberg News
By Chris Jasper
July 03, 2012

FastJet, the African discount airline startup backed EasyJet Plc (EZJ)’s Stelios Haji-Ioannou, said it aims to operate 15 leased Airbus SAS aircraft within a year and will be a prospective customer for new models from the European planemaker and U.S. rival Boeing Co. (BA) (BA)

FastJet will add five leased A319 jetliners, which can seat as many as 156 people, within six months, before building up to three times that number, London-based holding company Rubicon Diversified Investments Plc (RUBI) said today in a statement.

Africa’s first continent-wide, low-cost airline will use operating licenses held by majority owner Lonrho Plc (LAF)’s existing Fly540 unit to establish flights in Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania and Angola. The company opted for an Airbus-based fleet after saying last month that E-190 regional jets from Embraer SA (EMBR3) of Brazil were also under consideration.

“The decision to launch FastJet with the Airbus A319 will offer unit costs low enough for us to cut fares and stimulate the market,” Rubicon Chief Executive Officer Ed Winter said in an interview. The airline is likely to move toward purchasing its own planes in three to five years, with the Airbus A320 neo and Boeing 737 MAX the most likely contenders, he said.

Capacity Boost
The first aircraft will be leased from Nomura Babcock Brown Co. and are scheduled for handover as early as September, Rubicon said, with further deliveries due later in the year.

The initial five jets should double Fly540’s capacity to the equivalent of 1.5 million passengers a year within six months, Winter said, with each aircraft potentially carrying upwards of 250,000 passengers.

A rise in GDP and consumer spending means Africa is ready to support a discount carrier of the kind that has transformed aviation elsewhere, according to Winter, who has worked at EasyJet and British Airways. Like carriers from Southwest Airlines Co. in the U.S. to Malaysia’s AirAsia Bhd. (AIRA), Fastjet aims to create a market using fares low enough to persuade some people to fly for the first time and others to travel more.

The four markets to be targeted by Fastjet all have large- scale oil or gas developments, from which wealth is beginning to trickle down to a growing middle class, the executive said.

The airline was established after Rubicon bought Lonrho Aviation, which runs Fly540, in an $85.7 million all-stock reverse takeover which gave Lonrho a 73.7 percent holding.

EasyJet founder and No. 1 shareholder Stelios, who goes by his first name, has a 5 percent stake in Rubicon and will receive 0.5 percent of its revenue for providing consulting services and use of the Fastjet name, which he owns. The discount aviation pioneer also nominated Winter as CEO and will sit on Rubicon’s board.

While European discount operators fly to north Africa and there have been experiments with low-cost carriers south of the Sahara, no pan-continental service has so far been attempted.

To contact the reporter on this story: Chris Jasper in London at cjasper@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Chad Thomas at cthomas16@bloomberg.net

BUSH HELPS RENOVATE HEALTHCARE CENTER IN AFRICA

By THE WASHINGTON TIMES
Monday, July 2, 2012

Former President George W. Bush paints the walls of a health center ... more >
PHOTO GALLERY:

DALLAS — Former President George W. Bush has been helping to renovate a women’s cancer-screening center in Zambia during a weeklong trip to Africa.

Mr. Bush, clad in a T-shirt and jeans, painted and hauled lumber at the Ngungu Health Center in Kabwe, about 90 miles north of the Zambian capital, Lusaka. The center will start screening and treating women Tuesday for cervical cancer and precancer.

The former president and his wife, Laura, are in Africa to promote a partnership among the George W. Bush Institute, the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, UNAIDS and Susan G. Komen for the Cure, that aims to fight cervical and breast cancer in sub-Saharan Africa.

The George W. Bush Presidential Center says the Bushes arrived in Africa over the weekend.

KENTUCKY

McConnell: Odds long to undo health care law

ELIZABETHTOWN — It’s on his to-do list, but U.S. Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell says the odds are against repealing the health care law championed by President Obama.

The Kentucky Republican said Monday it’s hard to unravel something of the magnitude of the 2,700-page health care law, whas-tv reports.

“If you thought it was a good idea for the federal government to go in this direction, i’d say the odds are still on your side,” Mr. McConnell said. “Because it’s a lot harder to undo something than it is to stop it in the first place.”

Mr. McConnell discussed the law in comments to about 50 people at Hardin Memorial Hospital in Elizabethtown. the state’s senior senator was making stops at Kentucky hospitals discussing what’s next since last week’s ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that the law was constitutional.

The high court upheld the law’s crucial mandate that individuals buy health insurance or face a penalty.

Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., a conservative, provided the pivotal vote in that decision by ruling that the penalty was legal under the government’s taxing authority. while technically handing a political victory to Mr. Obama, Chief Justice Roberts‘ ruling invigorated Republicans eager to cast the law as a new tax.

Mr. McConnell still says he’ll do whatever he can to repeal the law.

If given control of the Senate next year, Mr. McConnell said he would support using budget reconciliation rules to repeal it. doing so would prohibit senate filibusters and require only 51 votes to succeed. In 2010, Republicans lambasted Democrats for relying on these rules to pass the health care bill, calling their tactics unusual and hyperpartisan.