"Mugabe must be tried at The Hague for crimes against humanity"

Overwhelming evidence, including first-hand accounts by Democratic Alliance election observers in Zimbabwe , present a case for Robert Mugabe to be tried at the International Criminal Court at The Hague for crimes against humanity.

I will tomorrow write to the Secretary General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon, to request that he put human rights violations in Zimbabwe on the agenda of the UN Security Council with a view to:

1. Establishing a Commission of Inquiry to investigate human rights abuses perpetrated by Mugabe and the Zanu-PF leadership; and
2. Referring the matter to the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in order to open a criminal investigation into crimes against humanity committed by the Mugabe regime.

A copy of the letter will be sent to the Rotational Chair of the UN Security Council, the United States , the UN Commissioner for Human Rights as well as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International.

It is pointless requesting the South African government to put Mugabe's crimes against humanity on the UN Security Council (UNSC) agenda. By the South African veto of a UNSC resolution that the results of the run-off election "could have no credibility or legitimacy", President Mbeki has shown that he is willing to shield Mugabe in defiance of world opinion.

Mbeki has resisted all calls to declare the Mugabe government illegitimate, despite the sham election on Friday and the bloodshed that led up to it. Instead of condemning and isolating Mugabe, Mbeki has allowed Mugabe to literally get away with murder.

The DA has therefore decided to bypass Mbeki and go straight to the United Nations. We hope that this action will set in motion a process that will result in Mugabe and his henchmen facing justice for the crimes they have committed against the Zimbabwean people.

There is precedent for such action. In 2004, then UN Secretary General Kofi Annan established an International Commission of Inquiry into crimes against humanity in Darfur which resulted in the ICC opening an investigation, which is ongoing.

Article 7 of the Rome Statute of the ICC defines ‘crimes against humanity' as a widespread or systematic attack against any civilian population that includes any of the following acts: murder; extermination (acts calculated to bring about destruction to a part of the population); deportation (displacement); imprisonment; torture; rape; and political persecution.

There is a strong prima facie case that all of these crimes have been committed by Robert Mugabe and the Zanu-PF leadership. Evidence gathered by DA MPs Dianne Kohler-Barnard and Manie van Dyk as well as press and other reports indicate that the following crimes against humanity have been perpetrated: 

Murder

• Since the elections in March, over 100 deaths of MDC members have been confirmed, another 40 remain unconfirmed.[1]
• This includes the abduction and murder of Abigail Chiroto, wife of MDC mayor-elect for Harare[2] and the abduction and murder of Archfred Chipiyo, the son of an MDC politician.[3]
• Three female teachers in Nyanga were beaten to death.[4]

Extermination

• Hospitals are full to capacity with torture victims. NGOs that would have assisted with the overflow have been shut down by ZANU-PF.[5]
• ZANU-PF halted all food aid.[6]

Deportation

• 200 000 people have reportedly been displaced.[7]
• Hundreds of MDC supporters are currently seeking sanctuary from Zanu-PF militia at the South African Embassy in Harare [8].

Imprisonment

• Key opposition leaders, including Morgan Tsvangirai and Tendai Biti have been repeatedly arrested and detained.
• A number of journalists have been detained.

Torture

• Over 6000 people are reported to have received treatment for wounds - including severed limbs, knife wounds, severe burns and bruising - received as a result of torture inflicted on them.[9]
• People are being rounded up and taken to "torture bases."[10]

Rape

• Women are being raped and sexually tortured by Zanu-PF militia. Victims include Liza Mwaramba, an MDC supporter who was raped by ZANU PF supporters on 9 June 2008[11] and Yvonne Chipowera, who was tortured and raped in the home of Zanu-PF district chairman, Teddy Garakara.[12]

Political persecution

• If people don't attend rallies, their cattle are killed.[13]
• MDC offices are burned down.[14]
• People are hauled out of their houses at night and forced to chant ZANU-PF slogans. If they don't know the slogans, they are beaten.[15]
• On election day, voters were frogmarched to the polls by soldiers.
• Voters are being forced to hand the serial number of their ballot paper and their identity details to an official from ZANU-PF so he could see how they voted. They were told that every vote for Tsvangirai would mean a life lost.
• A ‘red ink campaign' is reportedly underway to identify those who refused to vote.[16]

There is certainly sufficient evidence for Mugabe, along with the other members of the Joint Operational Command (JOC) responsible for the terror campaign, to be investigated by the ICC for crimes against humanity. They include:

• Emmerson Mnangagwa, the Head of the JOC
• General Constantine Chiwenga, Head of the Army
• Augustine Chihuri, Chief of Police
• Air Marshall Perence Shiri, Head of the Air Force
• Major Gen Paradzayi Zimondi, Chief of Prisons
• Gideon Gono, the Governor of the Zimbabwean Reserve Bank

The DA's position on Zimbabwe remains the same as it was before the presidential run-off on Friday. Mugabe's regime is illegal and it should therefore not be recognised as a legitimate government. All countries should sever formal diplomatic ties with Zimbabwe , impose smart sanctions on the Zanu-PF elite and lobby for the suspension of Zimbabwe from the United Nations, the AU and SADC.

It is time for the world to take direct action against Mugabe and his henchmen. International isolation, coupled with a trial at the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, would send out a signal to other would-be demagogues that human rights abuses and will not be tolerated in the 21^st century.

Notes:

1. Procedure
The following procedure must be followed for Mugabe and his accomplices to be investigated by the International Criminal Court (ICC):

• The UN Seretary General or a member of the UN Security Council puts the issue on the Security Council's agenda.
• The UN Security Council adopts a resolution requesting that the Secretary-General establish an international Commission of Inquiry to investigate crimes against humanity.
• The UNSC, after considering the findings of the Commission may adopt a resolution to refer the situation in Zimbabwe , together with the supporting information collected by the Commission, to the International Criminal Court.[17]
• The Chief ICC Prosecutor, after evaluating the case, may initiate an investigation into whether crimes against humanity were perpetrated.

2. Jurisdiction

• Article 12 of the Rome Statute gives the International Criminal Court (ICC) jurisdiction over countries that are signatories to the statue. Zimbabwe is not a signatory.
• However, article 13(b) of the Rome Statute grants the ICC jurisdiction over cases involving states that are not party to the statute provided that they are referred to the ICC by the UN Security Council.
• Precedent for this was set in 2005 in the case of Sudan , which, like Zimbabwe , is not a signatory to the Rome Statute. In deciding whether or not it had jurisdiction to try Sudanese citizens under the Rome Statutes, the Court noted that: " Sudan is not a State Party to the Statute. However, article 12 (2) does not apply where a situation is referred to the Court by the Security Council acting under Chapter VII of the Charter, pursuant to article 13(b) of the Statute. Thus, the Court may, where a situation is referred to it by the Security Council, exercise jurisdiction over crimes committed in the territory of States which are not Party to the Statute and by nationals of States not Party to the Statute."

Sources:

[1]Kohler-Barnard Report, 26 June 2008
[2] SAPA 19 June 2008 - Story ID 2569883
[3] The Times ( London ), 19 June
[4] Kohler-Barnard Report, 26 June 2008
[5] Kohler-Barnard Report, 26 June 2008
[6] New York Times, 12 June
[7] MDC Communication, 25 June 2008
[8] Cape Times, 27 June 2008
[9] MDC Communication, 25 June 2008; Kohler Barnard Report, 26 June 2008
[10] http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/africa/06/27/zimbabwe.victims/
[11] The Guardian, 17 June 2008.
[12] The Guardian, 21 June 2008; Irin News, 27 June 2008
[13] Kohler-Barnard Report, 26 June 2008
[14] Kohler-Barnard Report, 26 June 2008
[15] Kohler-Barnard Report, 26 June 2008
[16] SAPA 27 June 2008 - Story ID 2576090; Reuters 27 June 2008

Statement issued by Democratic Alliance leader, Helen Zille, June 29 2008