Eldoret North MP William Ruto (left) followed by his wife Rachel, Kericho County Senator Charles Keter and radio presenter Joshua Sang (right) arrive at the ICC on 1 September 2011. Photo/FILE
Apart from Deputy President William Ruto’s immediate family, Kericho Senator Charles Keter stands out for having been in The Hague the longest.
Every week or two, a new set of MPs arrive to replace their colleagues but they all find Mr Keter there. Sometimes, even when the hearings go into private sessions, he remains in the public gallery alongside Mrs Rachel Ruto and June Ruto as others take a rest.
He has braved the sometimes chilly weather to be at the ICC buildings ahead of Mr Ruto and to join him in a prayer outside the court before the deputy president goes in for the trials.
Mr Ruto’s and Mr Joshua Sang’s trials began on September 10 and will be ending on November 1 before resuming after a break.
According to Mr Keter, being with Mr Ruto has made him learn a virtue of patience the deputy president has.
“We have come a long way. But what I have learnt is that he is a patient man because you can imagine being seated in court and listening to all those lies and still afford a smile which many people would not,” Mr Keter said in an interview.
Cotu boss Francis Atwoli had said he would not himself stand it when he made a stop-over in The Hague on his way to Geneva for an International Labour Organisation meeting.
To Mr Keter, the deputy president has shown extraordinary patience.
“In the evening he gets time to discuss the case with the lawyers including the weekends when he does not travel. What I have learnt is he is patient enough and he wants this thing out of his mind,” Mr Keter said of the deputy president.
According to the senator, their closeness thousands of miles from home has helped create a bond that transcends politics.
“In our free time, we discuss issues affecting our country. We discuss what is going on at home. At least we have had ample opportunity to discuss or get acquainted with what is happening at home and that is it,” he said.
During his free time, Mr Keter said he connects with his Kericho County, thanks to the Internet or goes sightseeing.
“Thanks to technology, I get into my laptop and I keep tabs with what is happening at my county or the constituency. In one way or another, I can say it has also provided me with the opportunity to relax because, after leaving the court, I return to my room or go sit with the deputy president, or to the gym or, when the weather permits, I go jogging,” he said.
This weekend, he too has travelled to Nairobi.
Mr Ruto was granted excusal from the trials until Thursday when he will be back in the courtroom, just two days before the session takes a break to pave way for the start of the trial of President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Speaking to the Sunday Nation, Mr Keter, however, said the experience is not one he enjoys, especially given that there are fewer engagements with his constituents.
He has also been missing crucial debates in the Senate where, he says, his contributions would have been beneficial.
“It is not an experience one is happy to be in, in the sense that you spend most of the day listening to stories. So it is really a waste of time for one to be here all that period,” he said of the witness testimonies.
The experience, according to the senator, becomes even worse when the court has to listen to the testimonies of the witnesses in private or closed sessions as the case may be.
During the private sessions, the people in the public gallery can see inside the courtroom but cannot hear what is being said.
On the other hand, during closed sessions, the blinds are drawn and the public can neither hear nor see inside the courtroom.
“It is a horrifying experience being here for a whole a month, very boring. Sometimes you wish it could be an open thing because, as it is, witnesses are given more protection than the accused, yet the law demands they both receive equal treatment,” he said.
According to Mr Sang, when former ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo first named the suspects to be charged with the post-election violence, he chose to do so in public.
“On the other hand, a witness who comes and lies is given maximum protection. That, to me, is really annoying,” he said.
But he says he has learnt to be patient from Mr Ruto who, he adds, encourages him to have faith and be patient.
“He has told me it’s good to have faith, and to be strong and patient,” said Mr Keter.
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