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31.08.2012 Feature Article

International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor to Investigate charge of Genocide of Igbo

International Criminal Court ICC Prosecutor to Investigate charge of Genocide of Igbo
31.08.2012 LISTEN

As you recall, on March 10, 2012 BILIE filed a case against Nigeria in the ICC regarding Nigeria's ongoing genocide against the Igbo. Alarmed by the ICC prosecutor, Mrs. Fatou Bensouda's recent statement reported on July 4 2012 that Nigeria was not under investigations for crimes against humanity, BILIE's attorney sent another communication to ICC on July 7, 2012.

This is to report that we received on August 22, 2012 an acknowledgement of our filing by ICC; quoted here is an excerpt from that response which is dated “June 26 2012”:

“The Office [of ICC] is analyzing the situation identified in your communication with the assistance of other related communications and other available information. Under Article 53 of the Rome Statute, the Prosecutor must consider whether there is a reasonable basis to believe that crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court have been committed, the gravity of the crimes, whether national systems are investigating and prosecuting the relevant crimes, and the interests of justice.”

This is encouraging and a step in the right direction, and we trust, though we cannot guarantee, that ICC will rule and accept the case that crimes worthy of trial have indeed been committed by Nigeria as rightly charged in our original claims filed on March 10, 2012 (http://www.bilie.org/ICCComplaint.pdf), the gist of which we reproduce below:

“BILIE has filed two urgent communications with the International Criminal Court Prosecutor this year alleging state sponsored genocide against the Igbo people.

The claims which are supported by confidential witness statements request immediate intervention by the International Criminal Court Prosecutor to prevent and prosecute crimes against humanity on the following grounds:

1. The ongoing Boko Haram massacres target Igbo and other Easterners as part of an ongoing government policy of ethnic cleansing and genocide.

2. The government admits it is infiltrated by Boko Haram but denies there are any crimes against humanity being committed.

3. So-called government commissions and inquiries do nothing to prevent the crimes aside from creating a smoke screen for further crimes against the Igbo.”

The federal government of Nigeria however has repeatedly denied that genocide is occurring and has protected Boko Haram from international intervention.

The most recent example of this unholy alliance between Abuja and Boko Haram is the federal government's pleading with US secretary of State Hillary Clinton not to name Boko Haram as a terrorist organization.

BILIE not only urges the classification of Boko Haram as a terrorist organization but also the designation of Nigeria as a state sponsor of terrorism and the imposition of immediate sanctions and seizure of the foreign bank accounts used to fund Boko Haram.

Last year, “…at a press briefing at the UN headquarters in New York by the Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on the Prevention of Genocide, Francis Deng, and Special Advisor on the Responsibility to Protect, Edward Luck, [sic] the world body also said it would be "important not to drag or flash the word genocide" when talking about Jos crisis.” (Reported on January 21 2011 by AllAfrica.com) ( http://allafrica.com/stories/201101210801.html ) The full article suggests that even the UN has been trying to protect Nigeria while our people are being killed by Nigeria in a real case of genocide.

BILIE supports the total Independence of Biafra as the only practical, meaningful and lasting way to protect the Igbo and other peoples of Biafra from Nigeria. BILIE calls for the prosecution of those in the Nigerian government who support, enable, or fail to prevent the crimes against humanity being committed by Boko Haram.

Biafra Liberation in Exile (BILIE)
[email protected]
www.bilie.org
August 30, 2012

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