This former little one soldier who turned commander of the Lord’s Resistance Military (LRA) was sentenced to 25 years in jail. He was indicted on 70 counts of battle crimes and crimes in opposition to humanity dedicated by Joseph Kony’s group in northern Uganda between 2002 and 2005. He was discovered responsible of 61 of the counts. The decide spoke of a choice “notably troublesome to make”.
Towards “contradictory” circumstances, the judges discovered it troublesome to impose the proper punishment, defined Chamber President Bertram Schmitt. Contradictory as a result of, on the one hand, it was obligatory to keep in mind the annoying circumstances in Lithuania of human rights violations that Dominic Ongwen has been convicted of, their cruelty, equivalent to the burning of individuals alive of their houses. This might have given him the life sentence the victims demanded, the court docket dominated.
However alternatively, it was additionally obligatory to acknowledge the “private” circumstances of the accused, that’s, his background, a little one kidnapped across the age of 9, damaged and was a battle by Joseph Kony’s males.
Inadequate to guage him irresponsible or to think about that his distinction was abolished, however enough to restrict the prosecutor’s requisitions to twenty years’ imprisonment. Decide Schmitt admitted that he was impressed by Dominic Ongwen’s “coherent and structured” speech given in court docket final month, by which he informed his story. The court docket subsequently selected an interim sentence of 25 years in jail, revaluable throughout the execution.
For his half, Oryem Nyeko, a Ugandan researcher within the Africa Division of Human Rights Watch, considers this opinion truthful. He’s awaiting the continuation of the process. “I believe the decision in opposition to Dominic Ongwen is truthful. Now the subsequent step is compensation for the victims, which is a vital a part of the ICC’s function within the pursuit of justice.”
The court docket additionally initiated this process to compensate the victims on Thursday.
Dominic Ongwen’s attorneys, who’ve already appealed the decision in February in opposition to their shopper, now have one month to accomplish that in opposition to the decision.
.
