The African Union and the International Criminal Court : Lessons from Sudan for Africa

It is no doubt that Article 4(h) of the African Union (AU) Constitutive Act (Act) effectively sets the tone for conducting the affairs of African states in times of conflict and war. Congruently, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) as enacted, devoted Articles 5, 6, 7 and 8 to upholding the Statute. Furthermore, the United Nations Universal declaration of Human Rights Article 12, and the United Nations Charter Article 1 also abhor heinous crimes and voted for human dignity and peace. Assuredly, a common denominator among these international articles of faith is the prayer for peace and security of people. Nevertheless, they are copiously divided in preaching justice, solidifying security and promoting peace. This paper, through a desktop review of relevant literature, found that ICC's bias is an enduring source of insecurity for Africa. Thus, while the paper presses further that Africa's suspicion of the ICC and the refusal to cooperate in arresting Sudanese President al Bashir is spot-on, it recommends Africa's insolence to and withdrawal from the ICC as an effective instrument that can bring equality among ICC members, and peace and security to Africa.