The four prominent Kenyans facing crimes against humanity charges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) still stand a chance of being tried at home. Kenya's President Mwai Kibaki said the government was looking into ways of making this happen. The President called upon Kenyans to remain calm as the government looked into ways and means of establishing a local mechanism to try Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta, former head of the Public Service Francis Muthaura, Eldoret North MP William Ruto and radio presenter Joshua arap Sang for crimes committed during the post election violence 2007/2008. President Kibaki was emphatic that the victims of the chaos deserved justice while on the other hand the suspects also had a right to a fair hearing. In his State of the Nation address in Parliament on Tuesday, the President said "I am also aware of the concerns that the upcoming ICC cases have caused among Kenyans. I am also cognizant of the fact that this House passed a motion that Kenya pulls out of the ICC.”

Justice

The four Kenyans are suspected to have had a hand in the chaos which resulted in the deaths of 1,133 people. 650,000 others were displaced from their homes. The presumed suspects will in the coming months find themselves on trial at The Hague. Following the failure by the Kenyan Government to establish a local tribunal to prosecute the suspected masterminds of the violence, the ICC took over the cases. According to evidence from the ICC Chief Prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, Mr. Kenyatta and Mr. Francis Muthaura who both belong to the Party of National Unity (PNU), one of the coalition partners, are accused of committing the crimes of murder, persecution, forcible transfer of populations, deportations and rape against supporters of the other coalition partner Orange Democratic Party (ODM) in Naivasha and Nakuru. Mr. Ruto and Mr. Sang are also accused of crimes against supporters of the rival party PNU which include murder, forcible transfer of population, and deportation in the Rift Valley during the tribal clashes following the post election violence.

Confirmed charges

After many months of suspense and anxiety for Kenyans, the ICC judges confirmed charges against the four in January. Months later, the court's Presidency constituted a Trial Chamber made up of three judges to hear the cases. The Kenyan Government’s hope is based on the fact that it has the option of lodging an admissibility challenge at the ICC with a view to bringing the cases back home. During his address, President Kibaki also assured Kenyans of a peaceful handover of power after the next General Election. He expressed his desire that the next president should be a visionary leader who will pursue development.