Kenya: Update on ICC trials
Two key witnesses in the ICC trial against Deputy President William Ruto and Radio Journalist Joshua Sang have withdrawn their testimony in sworn affidavits due to security reasons and pressure from the family just a week before the proceedings begin.
However, the precedent setting trial will commence on 10 September, 2013 as scheduled and the proceedings will be held for three weeks followed by three weeks breaks. Mr. Ruto’s request to have the proceedings held in an interval of two weeks and a break of similar duration was rejected by the court.
In the meantime, the Kenyan Parliament has been recalled for a special session on 5th September, 2013 to discuss the withdrawal of Kenya from the Rome Statute, a move that is fronted by members of the ruling Jubilee Coalition. Reacting to this move, the ICC spokesman Fadi el Abdallah stated that “as indicated in the Rome Statute of the ICC, a withdrawal does not have any impact on the open cases nor on the State’s obligations regarding cases that are already open before the ICC.”
Assuming the legislators move is successful; such an application for withdrawal will still take at least one year to be effected.
Further, the ICC is scheduled to hold a Status Conference on Friday, 6 September, 2013 to consider the request by President Kenyatta to attend his proceedings via video link.
Zimbabwe: New law forces foreign companies to cede half of their stakes
The ruling party ZANU PF has enacted an empowerment law which forces foreign companies to cede 51 % of their stakes to locals within 14 days. This move targets over 1,138 companies across 14 sectors of the economy.
The National Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment (NIEEB) Act requires the companies to obtain a certificate of compliance and any person operating a business without this certificate from the 1st January 2014 will be liable to a fine not exceeding level four or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding three months.
President Robert Mugabe has announced that he will also seize British and American companies in retaliation against the sanctions imposed on his family and close associates due to alleged electoral fraud and violations of human rights.
Senegal: President Macky Sall dismisses the Prime Minister and dissolves cabinet
Senegal’s President Macky Sall dismissed the Prime Minister Abdoul Mbaye and dissolved the cabinet in what was termed as ‘a move towards attaining greater efficiency in government’. Abdoul Mbaye, a former banker, was leading the government since 25 March, 2012 without being a member of any political party.
The Minister for Justice Aminata Toure was nominated as the Prime Minister just a few hours after the dismissal of Mbaye. She pledged to speed up the pace of public development programs and reforms so as to enable every person in Senegal to feel the change in their daily livelihoods.
On 2nd September, 2013 Aminata Toure named her new cabinet with Mr. Sidiki Kaba, the former head of the International Federation for Human Rights being appointed in the key position of the Minister for Justice; and Amadou Ba, the former head of Senegalese tax office being appointed as the Minister for Finance.