Reacting to the decision by Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger to deposit formal notifications of withdrawal from the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, Marceau Sivieude, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for West and Central Africa, said:
“This decision by the governments of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger threatens to deny thousands of victims the possibility of truth, justice and reparations. For more than a decade, Amnesty International has documented crimes under international law committed against civilians during conflicts in each of these countries. Many of these crimes could fall within the jurisdiction of the ICC.
Withdrawing from the ICC amounts to a headlong retreat by these governments from their international law and justice obligations.
Marceau Sivieude, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for West and Central Africa
“Amnesty International has also repeatedly urged these governments to strengthen their judicial systems, so that they can investigate, prosecute and conduct fair trials for all gross human rights and international humanitarian law violations. However, impunity continues to prevail.
