ICC Terminates Proceedings Against Deputy LRA Commander Vincent Otti
By our reporter
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has terminated the criminal proceedings against Vincent Otti, the Deputy Commander of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) rebels.
Otti now becomes the third LRA commander who will not be tried for war crimes after DNA tests conducted on their remains confirmed that they died.
Others are Okot Odhiambo and Raska Lukwiya.
Out of the five senior LRA commanders, it is only Kony who is still at large.
In a press statement released on Friday, The Pre-Trial Chamber II terminated the proceedings against Vincent Otti, following a request made by the Office of the Prosecutor.
According to the statement, there are evidence that Otti died on or around October 2, 2007.
Otti was allegedly executed on the orders of Joseph Kony, the LRA Chief after the two men disagreed over the failed 2006 Juba Peace Talks.
He is alleged to have faced a firing squad after being tied on a tree stump outside Kony’s base inside Garamba National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Otti alongside the fugitive LRA Commander Joseph Kony, were charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity for their alleged roles in the over two decades’ long violence that rocked northern Uganda.
On July 8, 2005, Judges at The Hague-based court issued arrest warrants against Otti, Kony, Okot Odhiambo, Dominic Ongwen, and Raska Lukwiya.
Out of the five LRA commanders who were indicted, only Ongwen was convicted for war crimes and against humanity.
Maria Kamara, the ICC Outreach Officer and Spokesperson for Uganda confirmed the report to The Elephant, adding that the world’s court does not try a deceased person.
Audio File: Maria Kamara the Spokesperson for Uganda, talks to the Elephant on the Report.
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