Kenya: ICC Drops Charges Against Ex-Civil Service Head Francis Muthaura

Nairobi---The International Criminal Court (ICC) has dropped charges against Francis Muthaura, who is accused alongside Kenya’s presidential election winner Uhuru Kenyatta over the 2007 election violence.

Mr Muthaura was among the six people initially charged by the ICC over the 2007-2008 post-polls chaos that claimed over 1000 lives and displaced 600,000 others. The court later dropped charges against two - Hassan Ali and Henry Kosgei.

Now lawyers representing Mr Kenyatta a co-accused of Mr Muthaura, want similar charges against him dropped, but ICC prosecutor says decision had no bearing on Mr Kenyatta whose trial is due to start in July.

Fatou Bensouda,  said she had dropped charges against Muthaura because some of the witnesses who had provided important evidence in the prosecution had died, while others were “too afraid” to testify.

“I have decided, as of the state of evidence available now, that we have no other choice but to withdraw the charges against Mr Muthaura," Bensouda told court.

She also cited a “disappointing fact” that Kenya’s government had failed to provide important evidence and had failed to facilitate access to witnesses.

Mr Muthaura, a former head of civil service was charged on five counts of crime against humanity, including authorizing the police to use excessive force against protestors during the unrest that followed the disputed elections of 2007.

The decision follows after the prosecution learned that a key witness in the Muthaura case was compromised and had to drop his evidence. The witness referred to as witness number four who was due to testify  in the case, admitted lying and taking bribes.

The prosecutor said the decision was only specific to Mr Muthaura’s case and could not affect the case against Mr Kenyatta, the presidential elections winner.

While we are all aware of political developments in Kenya, these have no influence, at all, on the decisions that I make as prosecutor of the International Criminal Court", she added.

Mr Kenyatta is accused of organising attacks on members of ethnic groups seen as supporting Prime Minister Raila Odinga against President Mwai Kibaki. He denies the charges.

In another case Mr Kenyatta’s running mate William Ruto then supporting Mr Odinga, is accused alongside radio journalist Joshua Sang of perpetrating violence against supporters of President Kibaki.

Kenyatta won the March 4 elections with 50.07% of the vote against Mr Odinga’s 43.31%, but Odinga has gone to court to challenge the results claiming it was marred by irregularities.

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Sudan, South Sudan to Resume Oil Production

Sudan and South Sudan have agreed to resume oil exports from the south through pipeline in Sudan within the next two weeks following more than one year of closure by the Juba government over a transit dispute.

Four days of rigorous negotiations between representatives of the two neighbour states brokered by the African Union saw a deal reached on Tuesday at its headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, setting out a timeline for resumption of the production.

Former South African leader Thabo Mbeki, who is mediating between the two sides said the companies had been ordered to resume oil flows by March 10 but had an extra period of two weeks to comply with the order.

Oil accounts for majority of revenue for the two governments and Lack of the crude which both sides heavily depend on, saw introduction of austerity measures following soaring inflations and shortages of foreign currency in the two neighbour states.

Earlier in January last year, the South shut down its 350,000 barrel-per-day output in a row with the north over oil transit fees, accusing Khartoum of stealing its oil and imposing deceitful transit fees.

The two sides have also agreed in the latest accord to order the withdrawal of their troop from the contested border within a week in order to ease tension and open up the way to resume the oil exports.

Philip Aguer, South Sudan Army spokesman said it would take Juba around two weeks to withdraw its troops southwards.

Troops must start moving to the designated areas, 10km away from the buffer zone," Aguer told reporters, following a statement  from the army chief of staff with orders.

A statement by Sudanese defence minister, Abdelrahim Mohammed Hussein on Monday confirmed that the Khartoum forces had started to pull out from the border, saying that they were committed to the timetable signed under the AU deal last Friday in Addis Ababa.

"From yesterday our troops started withdrawing from the buffer zone," he said.

Both sides had earlier agreed on a demilitarised border buffer zone last September, where each side must draw its troops 10km from the de facto line of control along the contested frontier.

Fighting along the disputed border had threatened an all-out war between the two states in April, prompting a resolution by the UN Security Council demanding both sides to end hostilities or face non-military sanctions.

South Sudan took most of the oilfields following its secession in July 2011, but requires Sudan’s pipeline to transport its crude to ports in the north for export.