John Dramani Mahama On International Criminal Court: "Africa Feels Targeted"

"It's like only African leaders are being arraigned before the ICC," criticized Ghanaian President Mahama. "Africa feels targeted, rightly or wrongly." Full interview on DW’s "Conflict Zone with Tim Sebastian", October 7, at 17.30 UTC.

Despite pressure from the ICC, Mahama voted for immunity from prosecution for crimes against humanity for himself and other African leaders. The President defended his decision, claiming that the ICC and the African Union "are two recognized international organizations. You can not take the ICC's opinion over the African Union's."

The President denied his government was doing too little to fight corruption in Ghana: "We are committed to exposing and sanctioning corrupt politicians."

On economic development in Ghana, Mahama said: "The economy is not like a motor vehicle where you just tighten up some bolts and the engine is good and running."

John Dramani Mahama, born in 1958, served as Minister of Communications from 1998 to 2011, after studying history and communications in Ghana as well as psychology in Moscow. In July 2012, he became President of Ghana following the death of his predecessor John Atta Mills. Mahama was officially elected six months later.

Tim Sebastian invites national and international decision-makers to his weekly DW show. "Conflict Zone" airs every Wednesday at 17.30 UTC and will be available online on demand.

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