Why Ocampo could shock ICC suspects

By Juma Kwayera
Some of the post-election violence suspects who were on the initial list of 20 that was later whittled down to six are likely to be key witnesses when the International Criminal Court opens trial for the six Kenyans it accuses of bearing the greatest responsibility, we can authoritatively reveal.
The trials of The Hague Six, expected to be public if the Pre-Trial Chamber II finds them culpable, will be a shocker as some of the witnesses to be invited are friends of the suspects.
As the country awaits the verdict of the pre-trial chamber, it is emerging that suspects that were initially on the court’s roster, turned out to be agents of the six.
The ICC has subsequently entered a deal with them in exchange for immunity from prosecution.
They are said to have agreed to testify against their accomplices in crimes against humanity that include mass murder, rape, destruction of property and inflammatory speeches.
The list of witnesses is based on telephone conversations, bank statements and CCTV footages of the meetings they attended. The evidence against suspects perceived to be from ODM is based mainly on audio recordings of telephone conservations done on orders of then ministers for internal security and information.
Evidence against the other three suspects from PNU is said to have been accumulated from video recordings and bank statements.
A highly placed source in Government divulged to The Standard on Sunday that contrary to the strong views held by the suspects that President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga betrayed them, ICC Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo has pooled his evidence from telephone conversations, closed circuit television (CCTV) footages and National Security Intelligence Service (NSIS) reports.
"Some of the suspects who were on the initial list agreed to be witnesses in exchange for immunity from prosecution. They are now under 24-hour ICC protection," said the official, who is privy to the discussions Ocampo has had with senior Government officials on the three occasions he has been to the country.
Contrary to allegations that some would-be witnesses have been coached to give evidence against some of the suspects, the ICC is said to be lining up 25 witnesses drawn mostly from the groups that planned and executed the violence.
"The witnesses are friends, relatives or political allies of the suspects," our source told. The six are Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta, suspended Minister for Higher Education William Ruto, former Industrialisation Minister Henry Kosgey, former Police Commissioner Mohammed Hussein Ali, Head of the Civil Service and Secretary to the Cabinet Francis Muthaura and Kass radio presenter Joshua Sang.
We have on authority of lawyers who have had an opportunity look at the evidence that one of the ministers on the list is likely to be absolved by the judges reviewing Ocampo’s application to institute proceedings against the suspects.
Among the witnesses is a former MP who is said to have run errands for one of the suspects.
Potential suspects, among them senior officers from the NSIS and Administration Police (AP), were spared trial in a sort of ‘plea bargain’ arrangement after they agreed to testify against the suspects.
The most startling revelations, however, are how Muthaura made the Ocampo list.
"He is on the list by default. Hussein Ali (former police commissioner) and John Michuki (the minister for internal security) were not on talking terms. The minister used to relay instruction to Ali via Muthaura. The audio recordings the ICC has are conversation between the head of civil service and the police commissioner," the source explained.
The inclusion of Muthaura is reported by The Economist thus: "A bigger surprise was the ICC’s decision to go after Francis Muthaura, Kenya’s most senior civil servant. As secretary to the Cabinet, the mellifluous Mr Muthaura may well be the closest adviser to President Mwai Kibaki...." Muthaura’s undoing was his facilitation communication between State and police and between line minister and then police boss.
Michuki and Ali reportedly fell out when the minister, who now heads the Environment docket, was linked to the presence of the Artur brothers (Margaryan and Sargasyan).
"At that time, the police commissioner never used to pick the minister’s phone calls. The minister delivered instructions to police chief through the head of civil service," the source disclosed.
Upon receiving the envelope containing the names of suspects from former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who was the chief mediator in Kenya’s peace process, Ocampo announced that he had been given a list of 20 suspects. He vowed to use Kenya as an example of how to deal decisively with impunity.
"To contribute to the prevention of crimes during the next elections, we must proceed promptly. We will. There’s a list of 20 suspects but it is not binding. We envision at least two cases against one to three persons in each case."
Some of the witnesses that have agreed to testify when the trials of the six gets under way attend some of the secret meetings convened by the suspects and report to The Hague.