On February 5, 2021, Dr. Oumar Ba from Morehouse College, presented “Peace, Democracy, and Prosperity for All: Africa and the International Legal Order” at the Center for African Studies weekly Baraza. Dr. Ba is assistant professor of political science and earned his doctorate at UF. His publications include: States of Justice: The Politics of the International Criminal Court (2020); “Who are the Victims of Crimes against Cultural Heritage?” Human Rights Quarterly (2019); and “International Justice and the Postcolonial Condition.” Africa Today (2017).
Dr. Ba’s presentation touched on world-making and the international legal order from the perspective of the global South. In his presentation, Dr. Ba argued that the current international legal order is starkly different from the one that African states originally envisioned.
From the late 80s to 90s, African states in the global South attempted to broaden the list of international crimes added to the International Crimes Court (ICC) including, but not limited to colonialism. Western states continuously used their power to thwart taking responsibility for their actions. For example, the US Commissioner at the time argued that the term colonialism was political and emotional rather than legal in an attempt to trivialize the reality of the colonial project and absolve himself (and the US) from being held accountable. According to Dr. Ba’s research, which grounded in an analysis of archival material, African states had envisioned a truly universal court that would be independent of the security console and the political pressure of powerful states. Additionally, African countries wanted to create an international legal order that would rectify the inequality of the international system. The US Commissioner, at the time, argued that the term colonialism was political and emotional rather than legal.
By 1996, the final version of the code had been completely edited by Western entities to only include four of the 12 international crimes proposed in the original document. These were: aggression, genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. This created a deep mistrust between African states and international law. Many of these states felt that the court was not truly universal and reflective of their historical experience. Dr. Ba concluded his presentation by discussing how the code has affected African states today. Since the passage of the codes, the ICC has convicted primarily rebels of African origin. Ultimately, the ICC has not upheld its vow to confront the most serious crimes of concern to the international community as a whole and has held no one accountable for the traumas and atrocities the African continent had to endure at the hands of the colonial project.
Summary by: Elisabeth Rios-Brooks