Hosted by the International Crime in Africa Programme (ICAP), ISS Pretoria office, Institute for Justice and Reconciliation (IJR) Cape Town, International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) Cape Town, Center for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation (CSVR) Cape Town

The Assembly of State Parties to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) convened its Review Conference in Kampala, Uganda, between 31 May and 11 June 2010. The Review Conference was the first opportunity since the ICC entered into force seven years ago for States Parties to consider proposals for amendments, most notably in relation to the crime of aggression. It was also a unique opportunity for States and other stakeholders, such as international organisations and NGOs, to assess and reflect on the progress made by the ICC to combat impunity for the most serious crimes of concern to the international community, namely genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.

The ICC is currently involved in five African countries. In March 2009, the ICC courted controversy when it issued an arrest warrant against the President of Sudan, Omar Al-Bashir for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur. Before this, three other African countries, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Uganda and the Central African Republic (CAR), self-referred cases to the Court. On 31 March 2010, the ICC Prosecutor initiated investigations into crimes against humanity allegedly committed in Kenya during the post-election violence of at the end of 2007 and in early 2008. In the lead up to and during the Review Conference, many African NGOs and international NGOs with a presence in Africa played an active role in raising awareness about the role of the ICC in Africa. Against this background, four South African NGOs will participate in this roundtable to discuss the deliberations at the Review Conference, including the impact of the ICC in Africa.