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Uganda's Military High Command Incapacitated By ICC
Last updated : 15 Jul 2008, Kampala
By Asuman B.
Since its establishment in 2002, much of the international community has been waiting in anticipation to see if the International Criminal Court (ICC) will have the force of authority to prosecute alleged criminals as required. Within the short period, the ICC has made its presence known, some investigations have been conducted and prosecutions are beginning. Already the ICC's actions are beginning to bear positive albeit unintended benefits.
To date the international court has carried out investigations on crimes against humanity within the East Central African great lakes region. In fact about a dozen public arrest warrants and numerous sealed arrest warrants have been issued and some suspects have been arrested.
However, the recent arrest of a suspect that was in a sealed warrant has given many of Africa's 'big men' and their sycophants sleepless nights. Its only recently that these continental misfits have realised the dangers of a sealed warrant. Many of them know they have committed crimes against their citizens and are wondering if their arrest warrant could also be sealed. This is especially so in countries like Rwanda, Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan and the Central African Republic (CAR).
The recent daring arrest of Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo, President and Commander in Chief of the Mouvement de libération du Congo (MLC), by the Belgian authorities following a sealed warrant of arrest has left the senior echelons of the Ugandan military in disarray.
Ugandan senior military officers have reason to worry. Jean-Pierre Bemba is accused of being criminally responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in the Central African Republic.
It was the Ugandan Peoples Defence Force (UPDF) with the acquiescence of Lt. General Yoweri Museveni that made Jean-Pierre Bemba an agent of doom and provided him with military training to execute the devilish agenda far and wide. It was the same UPDF officers that trained recruits of the Mouvement de libéération du Congo and then issued them with military hardware that was used to commit crimes against humanity in CAR.
Individual top army commanders also profited tremendously through trafficking of military hardware to MLC and other competing rebel groups within the DRC.
It is very telling that the kind of war crimes alleged to have been committed by Bemba in CAR, i.e rape, torture, disfigurement, humiliating and degrading treatment , and pillaging of whole villages are identical to what the UPDF has been doing in northern Uganda and the Sudan over the last 20 years - It was the case of the student imitating the teacher.
Investigations have revealed that among the still outstanding sealed arrest warrant are a number of senior Ugandan military officers. They are wanted for being either an accomplice, aiding and abetting, inchoate offenses or simply persons of interest.
These officers include: Major General Salim Saleh, Major General James Kazini, Major Muhoozi Kainerugaba, Major General Kahinda Otafiire, Major General David Tinyefuza, General Aronda Nyakairima, Col. Mugeni, Col, Tinkamanyire, Col. Peter Kerim, Col. Kyakabale and Col. Leo Kyanda.
It is believed arrest warrants for these officers were sealed because of their military background and likelihood of flight should they get wind of what is afoot. It has been established as well that Interpol and immigration offices in North America, Europe, and select countries in Asia and Africa where these officers are known to frequent have received "notifications". Belgium is the one country, which has it written in statute to arrest these international criminals under their municipal law while all the others have agreed to do the same under international treaty. Now it is not only Belgium the crooks fear visiting rather they fear that they could be arrested anywhere. As the saying goes the pressure is now on them how to avoid going to the countries where they are hiding their loot?
Slowing the effort to capture them is the fact that some of these officers are known to use aliases when travelling out of Uganda. Recently two senior officers narrowly missed being captured by Interpol. One was in Nairobi but was using an alias that helped him survive, and the other was in Johannesburg also travelling on an alias.
Interpol is however now aware of this, and it is a matter of time before they will be apprehended.
Effectively, the ICC has incapacitated Uganda's military high command.
Anyone with information that might be helpful in apprehending these individuals especially regarding their foreign travel plans can contact the International Criminal Court anonymously at
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If you are outside Uganda and want to use regular mail, address it to:
Information and Evidence Unit
Office of the Prosecutor
Post Office Box 19519
2500 CM The Hague
The Netherlands
or sent by facsimile to +31 70 515 8555.