Kenya: Close to 50 Members of Parliament plan to travel to The Hague to join friends and relatives of Deputy President William Ruto at his trial next month. 0 inShare. The delegation is expected to dwarf that of victims’ representatives as the first trial for crimes against humanity committed after the 2007 election kicks off. The Standard On Saturday has learned that lawmakers from across Kenya plan to accompany the Deputy President to the legal proceedings in “a show of solidarity”. One of the MPs involved in the plan, Turbo’s Elisha Busienei, says the leaders will travel in four groups over the course of the first three weeks of Ruto’s trial. “ MPs are registering themselves in Nairobi,” Busienei said. “One group will accompany him to The Hague. I will be in the group that will accompany him back home.” He added two groups would visit the DP during the trial. He said the final number of people who register to travel would be out by Monday. Mr Ruto’s trial at the International Criminal Court alongside Radio presenter Joshua Sang is scheduled to begin on September 10. The first sitting will run for three consecutive weeks before resuming after a ten-day break. The two face charges of murder, deportation and persecution in the greater Eldoret area in the early part of 2008. ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda last week lost a battle to amend the charges to include crimes allegedly committed in Eldoret in late 2007, which she believed would have strengthened her case. Multiple sources said Ruto has met repeatedly with his legal teams in the last couple of weeks to prepare his defence. “His schedule has not been smooth sailing,” said a close aide who sought anonymity since he is not authorised to speak to the media. “Occasionally, he has been forced to hold meetings with his legal team at short notice to streamline issues in readiness for the trial.”
Posted on: Sat, 31 Aug 2013 07:59:47 +0000
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