ICC sets status conference for DP William Ruto trial

THE HAGUE: The International Criminal Court (ICC) has scheduled a status conference today to discuss the way forward in the trial of Deputy President William Ruto and journalist Joshua Sang.

This follows the failure by the last prosecution witness to turn up for the second time Tuesday.

The status conference will provide an opportunity for the prosecution to state if they will continue waiting for the witness or close their case, said the ICC.

The court decided in February to have the witness compelled to testify via video link from an undisclosed location outside Kenya.

He was expected to start giving his evidence when the trial resumed on Monday.

But the witness failed to turn up, prompting Trial Chamber V(a) to adjourn the case to Tuesday. Since Monday, the chamber had been holding private sessions to discuss the case after which the judges decided to schedule the status conference.

Ruto and Sang are on trial for alleged crimes against humanity said to have been committed during the 2007-2008 post-election violence following the announcement of the presidential election results.

The chamber has previously ruled that when the prosecution closes their case, the defence will be allowed to make an oral application on why the two accused should be acquitted without being put on their defence.

But if that application is disallowed, they will then be allowed to call their own witnesses to support the defence case.

About eight witnesses have been forced to testify in the case after withdrawing their testimonies on grounds they had been bribed to wrongly implicate the two accused.

When applying to have the witness summoned to give evidence, the prosecution said he was crucial to their case.