ICC to give verdict in Dominic Ongwen trial next year

The International Criminal Court will deliver its judgment in the case against former Lord’s Resistance Army(LRA) commander, Dominic Ongwen in 2021, the Kampala Field Outreach staff have said.

Addressing a news conference on Friday at Hotel Africana, Beti Hohler, an Associate Trial Lawyer said the defence team will conclude their case with five witnesses by November.

“The prosecution is expected to present one more witness, a psychiatrist as a rebuttal and by December, the prosecution will have concluded,”Hohler said.

According to the officials from the ICC Kampala Field Outreach office, the psychiatrist will help disprove evidence by defence lawyers that Ongwen committed the crimes against humanity because he was mentally ill.

“By February, 26, 2020 parties will file final written submissions and on March 10, both sides will present their closing statements. The panel of judges  will then sit and deliver judgment between 6 and 10 months from then.”

Hohler said the judgment is expected to be delivered towards the end of next or latest by the beginning of the year 2021.

Ongwen was   charged with 70 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity that occurred during the LRA insurgency commanded by rebel leader Joseph Kony.

The accused is expected to rely on 69 witnesses and of these, 51 have already testified in Ongwen’s defence.

According to Dahirou Sant-Anna, the International Cooperation Adviser in the Office of the Prosecutor,  Ongwen relied of witnesses including local leaders in Northern Uganda, former LRA fighters, former Kony wives, former UPDF soldiers, witch doctors and former LDU members to defend him in the court.

The ICC officials noted that in his defence, Ongwen told judges that he committed the crimes under duress and therefore cannot be held liable for the crimes.

“We have adduced enough evidence to the court that we think can lead to a conviction. For the claims that he was under duress have not been satisfied because Ongwen was not under any threat as he alleges,”Hohler said.

The ICC official said evidence presented that included radio communication interceptions indicate that Ongwen was operating far away from LRA commander, Joseph Kony and had chances to escape but he never did it.

“He was the most senior commander in the LRA and very remote from Kony. He, therefore, had opportunities to escape but he didn’t.”

The Ugandan government in 2005 referred five top LRA leaders including Joseph Kony, Vincent Otti, Raska Lukwiya, Dominic Ongwen and Odhiambo Okot to the ICC for war crimes and crimes against humanity in northern Uganda.

However, of these, only Ongwen and Kony are still alive with the rest believed to have been killed,

For Ongwen is accused of commanding LRA rebels who attacked four camps for displaced people in Pajule in Pader District, Abok, Lukodi, Odek in Gulu and Oyam districts killing, raping and looting among other crimes committed by the insurgents.