Ongwen case: Statement, ICC Spokesperson Fadi El Abdallah, 23 March 2016
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On 23 March 2016, Pre-Trial Chamber II of the International Criminal Court issued a decision confirming seventy charges brought by the Prosecutor against Dominic Ongwen and committed him to trial before a Trial Chamber.
The confirmed charges concern crimes allegedly committed during attacks against the Pajule IDP (October 2003), Odek IDP (April 2004) Lukodi IDP (May 2004) and Abok IDP camps (June 2004), as well as sexual and gender based crimes directly and indirectly committed by Dominic Ongwen and crimes of conscription and use in hostilities of children under the age of 15 allegedly committed in northern Uganda between 1 July 2002 and 31 December 2005.
The Chamber concluded that there are substantial grounds to believe that Dominic Ongwen is responsible, for the:
• War crimes consisting attack against the civilian population; murder and attempted murder; rape; sexual slavery; torture; cruel treatment; outrages upon personal dignity; destruction of property; pillaging; the conscription and use of children under the age of 15 to participate actively in hostilities;
• And for the Crimes against humanity consisting in murder and attempted murder; torture; sexual slavery ;rape; enslavement; forced marriage as inhumane act; persecution; and other inhumane acts.
The Chamber based its decision on the evidence presented to it by the Prosecutor and by the Defence which included (i) witness statements or transcripts of interviews of a total of 123 witnesses; (ii) records of intercepted LRA radio communications; and (iii) oral testimonies of seven witnesses given before Single Judge Cuno Tarfusser in the presence of the Prosecutor and the Defence in September and November 2015.
The decision confirming the charges can be appealed only with the authorisation of Pre-Trial Chamber II. The ICC Presidency will assign the case to a Trial Chamber in due course.
