Alliance of Sahel States Citizens support countries leaving ICC

The citizens of Burkina Faso, Niger, and Mali have supported the Alliance of Sahel States’ decision to leave the International Criminal Court (ICC), as covered by Africa news plus agencies on 24th September.

The ICC is a judicial intergovernmental body backed by the UN that is responsible for investigating crimes carried out on an international scale, such as genocide, war crimes and aggression. Despite the organisation’s contribution to the prevention of global crimes, some are critical of the institution’s anti-African bias.

The three members of the West African alliance reportedly announced their instantaneous withdrawal from the ICC on September 22nd, citing it as an “instrument of neo-colonialist repression.”

The Alliance of Sahel States was created by the three military-led states of Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali. Following the creation of the alliance, the three countries have gradually detached themselves from the West, working towards establishing economic independence and building military ties with Russia. They have also slowly moved towards unifying their military forces.

Many citizens were reported to be in favour of their country leaving the ICC, implying unanimous support for the decision from the public.

Emmanuel Kafando, a local of Burkina Faso’s capital, Ouagadougou, claimed the choice was a monumental step for “total independence” of the country. He explained, “It was high time we left this court, which was practically designed – or pre-designed – only for African leaders and not for all the leaders of the world.”

This sentiment was echoed by citizens of Ouagadougou. Another resident, Lionel Dolomweogo, was reported to have braced the decision “with great satisfaction and joy”, going on to say “because we are sovereign, and every sovereign state must be able to take responsibility in all areas, including social and economic justice.”

While many people of these Sahel states in Bamako, Niamey and Ougadougou have celebrated pulling away further from the ICC, others argue that the hasty departure from the ICC may signal reduced protections for international crimes. Their armies have faced accusations of carrying out crimes against civilians, with violence and extremism being on the rise partially as a reaction to jihadist groups linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State.

Whether the Sahel states’ decision to pursue greater independence by leaving the ICC is a good one remains to be seen, however there has been a clearly reported optimism towards the event from the public of the Sahel states.

Africa news plus agencies, maghrebi.org