South Africa has confirmed its plans to exit the International Criminal Court.
A formal notice of withdrawal from the Rome Statute has been handed over to the United Nations. It’s the second African country to pull out of the ICC, after Burundi. It’s not clear, however, if South Africa requires parliamentary approval to do so, or whether it can withdraw from international treaties by executive action. The process is likely to take a year to complete. Several countries have expressed concern that The Hague-based court is biased against African states. The ICC is the first legal body with international jurisdiction to prosecute genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. It launched in July 2002 and has 124 member states. To date, only African leaders have been charged by the court.
South Africa maintains its withdrawal does not mean it’s no longer committed to protecting human rights.
