20 Mar: The Danger of Arms and Ammunition Stockpiles: Proper management of State stockpiles of arms and ammunition is the responsibility of the government. The stark reality, however, is that many stockpiles throughout Africa are decaying rapidly and many governments choose to ignore the situation.
(Picture: Bombing of the US Embassy in Dar es Salaam)
Overview of key concepts
Terrorism and counter-terrorism
Terrorism poses a major threat to international peace, security and stability. It threatens all nations, developed and developing, and all people. Africa has not been spared the devastating consequences of terrorism; in fact it has been one of the hardest hit continents, both by domestic and international forms of the crime. And while terrorism is not a new threat, since the 1990s, and especially following the appalling attacks in Kenya and Tanzania in August 1998, and on the United States on September 11 2001, terrorism has catapulted up the list of priorities of the international community.
In response to the growing threat of terrorism in selected countries (especially new transnational forms), and partly as a result of international pressure, several African countries have adopted inappropriate and unsustainable counter-terrorism measures that undermine human rights, due process, and the rule of law. Rather, an effective African counter-terrorism programme must entail a broad range of initiatives, ranging from addressing underlying conditions conducive to the spread of terrorism, to building state capacity to prevent and combat terrorism.
A key component of this response is provided by the domestic criminal justice system, which is able to detect, investigate, and prosecute terrorist attacks, and thus, should be characterised by respect for the rule of law and human rights; guided by the policy framework provided by the international and continental counter-terrorism legal regimes. This requires strengthening the capacity of national criminal justice systems to bring perpetrators of terrorist crimes to justice, or extradite them to another country for trial, in full compliance with the provisions of these regimes.
International crime and criminal justice in Africa
In many countries in Africa, the rule of law and democracy are threatened by the pervasive culture of impunity. Although states are slowly beginning to recognise this challenge, several factors limit the extent to which states are responding. In most cases, competing national priorities leave little room for international justice issues on the agendas of African governments. Added to this is the fact that national judicial systems struggle to cope with the burden of rendering justice for international crimes. Resource and skills shortages are a key factor, along with the challenge of establishing criminal justice processes in countries with little tradition of the rule of law. But of equal importance are the political constraints inherent in prosecuting high-profile leaders.
Although the International Criminal Court (ICC) can assist, it is both preferable and necessary (given the complementarity principle governing the ICC’s work) that states develop their domestic capacity to respond to international crimes.
And while African countries were generally supportive of the creation of the ICC (more than half have ratified the Rome Statute), only two (South Africa and Senegal) subsequently passed the domestic legislation in keeping with their obligations under the Statute. This means that most countries are currently unable to respond on a prescribed lawful basis to an ICC investigation or request for arrest and surrender, nor able to themselves prosecute the most serious international crimes.
Of these, the primary barrier to implementation appears to be that co-operation on international crimes is not seen as having sufficient importance, relevance and priority.
There is clearly a need for greater opportunities to engage practitioners in debates on international justice. While many of the challenges relate to valid concerns about states’ priorities and capacity, they also reflect the need for more detailed knowledge about the objectives and provisions of the Rome Statute (notably those relating to complementarity), as well as the need to build appreciation for the symbolic importance and long term preventive role of international justice mechanisms in fostering peace and security in Africa.
Overview of ISS’s work on terrorism and international criminal justice
The ISS’s work on counter-terrorism started in 2002 with a project that assessed the threat of terrorism in the SADC sub-region and examined existing legislation relating to the combating of terrorism. The focus has since expanded geographically to cover the whole African continent and substantively to include terrorism and broader international crime and criminal justice issues.
Specific interest in the possible threat of terrorism in the Horn of Africa, and the need to build capacity and cooperation between the ISS and IGAD, led to the ISS opening an office in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and the launch of the IGAD’s Capacity Building Programme Against Terrorism (ICPAT) which focuses on counter-terrorism research and capacity building in the IGAD region.
In February 2008 the ISS launched the International Crime in Africa Programme (ICAP) to lead its work on international criminal justice and terrorism in Africa. ICAP’s overall objective is to enhance peace, justice and accountability in Africa by raising awareness and building capacity to respond to the most serious international crimes, including war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and terrorism. This objective supports the ISS’s overall goal of promoting a stable and peaceful Africa characterised by sustainable development, human rights, the rule of law, democracy and collaborative security.
To achieve these aims, ICAP undertakes the following activities:
Terrorism and counter-terrorism:
Researching terrorism in Africa to understand and address the problem, including through domestic criminal justice responses.
Assisting requesting countries to draft counter-terrorism laws to implement the provisions of the international and continental counter-terrorism instruments to which they are party, and to comply with legally binding obligations stemming from relevant Security Council resolutions and human rights instruments.
Assisting in building African domestic capacity to detect, investigate, prosecute and adjudicate terrorist crimes in accordance with international standards, including enhanced international cooperation mechanisms.
Providing an African forum for policy makers, criminal justice practitioners and experts working in the field of counter-terrorism to exchange experiences and review progress on the continent.
Responding to core international crimes:
Building understanding of, and support for, the role of international justice and the ICC in ending impunity.
Promoting the ratification and effective implementation of the ICC Statute.
Assisting in building domestic African law enforcement and criminal justice capacity to deal with international crimes, including enhanced international cooperation mechanisms.
Providing an African forum to exchange experiences and review progress on the continent.
04 Mar 2009: ICC Arrest Warrant for Sudanese President Al Bashir. Interview with Anton du Plessis, ISS Programme Head. Station: SAfm; Programme: PM Live; Time: 4:08:54 PM; Duration: 00:11:39
(podcast)
05 Dec 2008: Does Terrorism Pose a Threat to South Africa? eTV Interview with Anneli Botha, ISS Senior Researcher
(wmv video)