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UN welcomes the transfer of LRA commander Ongwen to ICC

Xinhua, January 21, 2015 Adjust font size:

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday welcomed the transfer of Ugandan Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) commander Dominic Ongwen to the International Criminal Court (ICC), saying it marks an important milestone in accountability.

In a statement released by Ban's spokesperson, the UN chief said with the first LRA commander being brought before the Court, the transfer is a step forward in efforts to bring justice to victims of LRA violence.

The ICC announced earlier on Tuesday that Ongwen is on his way from the Central African Republic, where he was arrested last week, to the detention center of the ICC in The Hague.

According to the ICC statement, Ongwen will receive a medical visit and will appear as soon as possible before the ICC judges in the presence of a defense lawyer.

The UN Security Council also welcomed the transfer, viewing it as a positive step for the fight against impunity for the perpetrators of the most serious crimes of concern to the international community.

In a press statement, the Security Council also demanded LRA to immediately end all attacks, release all those abducted, and to disarm and demobilize.

Formed in the 1980s in Uganda, the LRA has for more than 15 years mainly directly its attacks against Uganda civilians and security forces, which dislodged it in 2002. It then exported its activities to Uganda's neighbors.

Joseph Kony, Vincent Otti and Okot Odhiambo are the other Ugandan LRA commanders indicted by the ICC. They are still at large. Endit