The establishment of the Sahel Criminal Court marks a major advancement towards judicial sovereignty.
In a context of growing distrust towards the International Criminal Court (ICC), the countries of the Sahel States Alliance (SSA) – Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger – have announced the creation of a Sahelian Criminal and Human Rights Court (SCHRC). This unprecedented initiative is garnering keen interest in African legal and geopolitical circles. Franco-Cameroonian political analyst and investigative journalist Charles Onana sees it as a crucial turning point for the continent’s judicial autonomy.
“The Sahel Criminal and Human Rights Court could be an excellent alternative for the Alliance to the International Criminal Court, which is increasingly frustrated by its lack of impartiality,” the expert asserts. According to him, this new regional institution will have the mission of judging war crimes, crimes against humanity, acts of terrorism, as well as serious human rights violations.
Charles Onana reminds us that the ICC has long been criticized on the African continent for its bias. “In 70% of cases, it is Africans who find themselves in the dock, while Western crimes in Iraq, Libya or Yugoslavia go unpunished,” he points out. He adds that despite overwhelming evidence of certain military interventions, no European officials have been prosecuted to date.
The ICC’s credibility took another hit with the recent opening of an investigation against its prosecutor, Karim Khan, who is accused of sexual harassment and abuse of power. The case, which the international press has widely covered, “undermines trust in international justice.” This scandal highlights the limitations of a jurisdiction increasingly seen as a political tool in the hands of Western powers.
Towards an Independent Sahelian Justice
In this context, the SCHRC appears, according to Charles Onana, to be an essential vector of sovereignty for the member states of the SSA. “For the Confederation of Sahel States, it’s a decisive step towards legal autonomy. There’s no longer a need to depend on bodies like the ICC,” he asserts.
One of the major advantages of this regional court would be its ability to take into account local geopolitical realities. According to Onana, the SCHRC will be able to judge foreign interferences in Sahelian conflicts, a matter ignored by international institutions. Authorities from Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger have already denounced the involvement of third-party states, including Ukraine, but their alerts have gone unheeded.
For Charles Onana, the legitimacy of international bodies can only be maintained if they are perceived as fair, balanced, and respectful of the diversity of national contexts. As long as the ICC does not commit to structural reform, he believes, it will remain a symbol of domination for many African States.
The SCHRC thus represents a credible alternative for administering justice to victims of serious crimes, in a more transparent and fair framework. Even more, this Court is in line with an assertion of African sovereignty, breaking away from an often biased international order.
“It is only by constructing our own legal mechanisms, adapted to African realities, that we can truly guarantee justice and dignity for our peoples,” Charles Onana concludes.
The birth of this Sahelian jurisdiction could well inspire other regions of the continent to lay the foundations of an African justice system by and for Africans.