Cape Town - The ANC has cited double standards and failure of the international community to unite around applied human rights and universal values as among the reasons for the government’s decision to begin a process of withdrawing from the International Criminal Court (ICC).
President Cyril Ramaphosa on Tuesday confirmed that the ANC had resolved to pull out of the ICC.
It is the second time that the ANC has taken a decision to withdraw from the ICC since 2016.
“The governing ANC has taken the decision that it is prudent that South Africa should pull out of the ICC largely because of the manner (in which) the ICC has been seen to be dealing with these types of problems.
“There has been commentary from Amnesty International where there has been a reflection that many people believe is unfair treatment,” Ramaphosa said.
He made the statement on Tuesday during a press conference during an official visit by Finland President Sauli Niinistö.
Ramaphosa said the ANC’s view was that “we would like this matter of unfair treatment to be properly discussed”.
“In the meantime, the governing party has decided once again there should be a pull-out, so that will be a matter that will be taken forward,” he said.
The decision by the ANC comes just months before Russian President Vladimir Putin is due to visit South Africa, at a time when the ICC has a warrant out for his arrest.
South Africa will be hosting the BRICS summit in August.
The ICC issued the warrant for alleged war crimes related to the alleged abduction of children from Ukraine.
Asked whether South Africa would arrest and hand over Putin to the ICC, Ramaphosa noted the ICC had issued the warrant of arrest.
“We are due to host, as South Africa, the next BRICS summit in August and the summit is often attended by heads of states, ministers and officials.
In our case, as South Africa, we intended to have an outreach programme and invite other countries to be part of this.
We often wanted Africa to be part of BRICS,” he said.
“Having heard what the ICC said in relation to that, the matter is under consideration and discussion.
“When the matter is finalised we will be able to tell everyone what our posture is going to be on all of this. Be rest assured that in this matter, having been discussed, we will be able to tell everyone what our posture will be,” Ramaphosa added.
In July 2021, Justice and Correctional Services Minister Ronald Lamola said there were still ongoing discussions in the government in order to develop proposals on whether South Africa should retain its membership of the ICC.
Responding to parliamentary questions, Lamola said South Africa took a decision to withdraw from the Rome Statute of the ICC in October 2016.
He said South Africa had sent a written notice to withdraw from the Rome Statute to the UN secretary-general.
Lamola had also indicated that the AU took a decision in January 2017, followed by a resolution issued in February 2017 encouraging member nations to withdraw from the ICC.
He said, in addition to South Africa, two other AU members, Burundi and Gambia, had also indicated their intentions to withdraw from the Rome Statute in 2016.
However, Gambia reversed its decision immediately after a newly elected government assumed power in February 2017, while Burundi has become the first country to withdraw its membership from the ICC.
Lamola said the North Gauteng High Court had unanimously ruled in February 2017 that the withdrawal notification sent by South Africa to the UN was unconstitutional and invalid without prior parliamentary approval, and ordered the government to rescind the notice with immediate effect.
“In line with the court decision, the South African government revoked its notice of withdrawal from the Rome Statute in March 2017.”
He said the International Crimes Bill, introduced in Parliament in 2017, which is aimed at withdrawing South Africa from the ICC, was still with the portfolio committee in Parliament.
The DA said it noted the ANCs latest decision “with alarm”.
“This decision is an overt declaration of hostility to the international community of democracies, and to South Africa’s largest trading bloc, the European Union.
“Despite Russia accounting for as little as 0.3% of South Africa’s trade ties, the ANC is willing to disregard South Africa’s crucial domestic interests in order to protect an alleged war criminal and shore up oligarchic patronage.
“As has become a defining feature of South Africa’s chaotic foreign policy approach, the narrow interests of individuals eclipse our nation's most sacred constitutional principles, yet again.”
The party said it would oppose such attempts by the ANC in Parliament.
“The DA’s chief whip in Parliament, Siviwe Gwarube, will in due course outline the party’s plans to block any forthcoming attempts by the ANC to escape their obligations under international law by using their fragile majority in Parliament.”
Cape Times