AU’s ICC withdrawal: DA condemns ANC’s lack of commitment to human rights

It is shameful and condemnable that South Africa set the precedent for the AU resolution for a ‘collective’ withdrawal from the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The ANC-led government has used its influence on the continent, not to uphold and fight for human rights, but to send a clear signal that those who are accused of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity on the continent, can escape accountability and justice.

As was the case with the violence in Burundi and the DRC, our government and the ANC lack the courage and determination to speak up for human rights and democracy when it matters most.

Under the Zuma-led ANC, our country has moved further and further away from the human rights-based foreign policy spearheaded by the late President Nelson Mandela.

The DA will continue to fight South Africa’s decision to withdraw from the ICC, and reminds the ANC that we currently have an application before the North Gauteng High Court to have the notice declared unlawful.

It is high time our government recommits to democracy, human rights and peace on the African continent and elsewhere, and we will not rest until this happens.

Issued by Stevens Mokgalapa, DA Shadow Minister of International Relations and Co-operation, 1 February 2017