The International Criminal Court (ICC) Appeals Chamber confirmed on 3 June 2025 that proceedings to confirm charges against Joseph Kony can go ahead without his presence if he cannot be found.
Tuesday's ruling upheld a decision by Pre-Trial Chamber III from October 29, 2024, clarifying that the ICC Rome Statute allows confirmation of charges to proceed in absentia without requiring the suspect’s initial appearance.
Judge Erdenebalsuren Damdin, presiding over the Appeals Chamber, said the Statute’s safeguards protect the fair trial rights of the accused, even when they have not appeared before the court.
The judgment was delivered unanimously by Judges Damdin, Solomy Balungi Bossa, Kimberly Prost, Joanna Korner, and Gocha Lordkipanidze.
Joseph Kony, leader of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), faces 12 counts of crimes against humanity, including murder, enslavement, sexual enslavement, and rape, as well as 21 counts of war crimes such as attacking civilians, pillaging, and forced recruitment of child soldiers.
These crimes allegedly occurred in northern Uganda between 2003 and 2004.
The ICC first issued Kony’s arrest warrant in 2005. On December 12, 2024, Pre-Trial Chamber III scheduled the confirmation of charges hearing for September 9, 2025, to proceed without Kony’s presence.
