By Timothy Nsubuga

21^st Nov 2011:

Saif under arrest: He could run but couldn't hide

The leaders of Libya’s National Transitional Council [NTC] government have all but rejected the International Criminal Court’s [ICC] request to have the captured son of the ousted Libyan leader Col. Muammar Gaddafi [deceased] Saif al Islam transferred to The Hague to face trial for the war crimes and crimes against humanity for which he was indicted.

Revolutionary fighters loyal to the NTC captured Saif al Islam Gaddafi in the southern deserts of Libya last Saturday morning as the former First Son and heir apparent tried to flee into Niger.  He was then flown to the northern town of Zintan where he is being held as his fate is decided by Libya’s new leaders.

NTC’s Information Minister Mahmoud Shammam said yesterday that the Libyan people want to see Saif al Islam Gaddafi tried at home under international standards for the crimes he allegedly committed against the Libyan people.

The ICC’s Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo is due to travel to Tripoli today for pre-trial talks with the NTC authorities.  The ICC Prosecutor said he recognises the right of the Libyan state to try its own citizens and added that the main purpose of his visit is to ensure that Saif al Islam Gaddafi gets a fair trial “…because he is innocent until proven guilty by a competent court of law.”

As things stand however, no competent international war crimes tribunal [like the one set up in Uganda to try indicted Lord’s Resistance Army [LRA] leaders has been set up in Libya by the new NTC government that is still struggling to stabilise and gain full control over the many semi-autonomous fighting groups across Libya.

It is therefore more than likely that Saif al Islam Gaddafi will be held without trial for some considerable time, even though a host of world leaders and international human rights groups like Human Rights Watch are already calling for the immediate handover of Saif al Islam Gaddafi to the ICC.

Libya’s acting Prime Minister Abdel Rahim al-Kib reassured all concerned parties that Saif would get a fair trial.   “…I reassure our people and the world that Saif, and those with him will be given a fair trial in which international rights and norms will be guaranteed,” Mr al-Kib told a news conference in Zintan.

Speaking to Aljazeera TV however, a few angry Libyans did not see any point in putting Saif al Islam Gaddafi through a criminal trial and demanded that he be executed summarily like his father Col. Muammar Gaddafi.  END.  Please login to www.ugandacorrespondent.com every Monday to read our top stories and anytime mid-week for our news updates.