ICC trial may move
June 4, 2013
The judges were responding to requests from lawyers for Kenya's deputy president, William Ruto, who said it would be "in the interests of justice" for the politician's trial to be held closer to home.
Though no final decision has been taken, the ICC judges said holding parts of the trial in Kenya, or Tanzania, where a UN court is trying alleged perpetrators of the Rwandan genocide, would bring it closer to victims and affected communities.
Both Ruto and Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta - elected on a joint ticket in March - face charges of orchestrating violence after the previous election, five years ago, in which 1,200 people died.
Ruto has said he would attend hearings in The Hague if ordered to do so, but has also asked to participate by video link.
Victims' concerns
Prosecutors have warned that moving the trial to Kenya could make it harder to provide protection for witnesses who, they say, have been threatened into withdrawing their testimonies.
Stella Ndirangu, a lawyer representing victims and people who were displaced by the 2007/2008 post-election violence, told DW that the victims were worried about their security.
"Some of them are saying they wouldn't be able to testify if the cases were heard close to home because the likelihood of interference is higher," she said.
The trial would still be conducted by the ICC, regardless of where it was held. Kenyatta's lawyers have submitted a similar request to relocate the trial.
Starting date delayed
Judges also ruled that the trial of Ruto and his co-accused, broadcaster Joshua Arap Sang, would start on September 10, rather than the original start date of May 28, which was nullified last month, accepting defense requests for more time to prepare their cases.
Kenyatta's is a separate case, currently scheduled to start in July, though his defence has requested a delay which judges are considering. All men deny the charges.
Leaders at an African Union summit in Addis Ababa last week urged the ICC to refer the cases to Kenyan courts.
Ethiopian President Hailemariam Desalegn accused the court of racial bias and of targeting Africans for prosecution, an allegation the court has always rejected.