15 Mar 2012

ICC / OCAMPO LUBANGA

The chief prosecutor for the International Criminal Court Louis Moreno Ocampo said Thursday that he would ask for the maximum sentence for Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga. “If we are going to ask for one year per child we should go far beyond the maximum of 30 years established by the statute. As we indicated in our opening statement we will seek a sentence close to the maximum.” ICC

Posted at: March 15, 2012 6:04 pm

Duration: 02:53

Available in: SD

DOWNLOAD

Full script

STORY: ICC / OCAMPO LUBANGA
TRT: 2.53
SOURCE: INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT (ICC)
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 15 MARCH 2011, THE HAGUE, NEATHERLANDS

SHOTLIST:

1. Wide shot, ICC Prosecutors Luis Moreno Ocampo and Fatou B. Bensouda entering press conference
2. Wide shot, Luis Moreno Ocampo taking his seat
3. Cutaway, journalists
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Luis Moreno Ocampo, Prosecutor, International Criminal Court (ICC):
"Our office, we're planning to contact all our witness in order to explain to them the details of the conviction. You got to understand that like Thomas Lubanga, most of our witnesses are members of the Hema community and they are considered by many, traitors. So they risked their life to tell the judges their painful experiences. We admire their courage and we show appreciation for what they have done for justice."
5. Cutaway, cameraman
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Luis Moreno Ocampo, Prosecutor, International Criminal Court (ICC):
"If we are going to ask for one year per child we should go far beyond the maximum of thirty years established by the statute. As we indicated in our opening statement we will seek a sentence close to the maximum." 
7. Cutaway, journalists
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Luis Moreno Ocampo, Prosecutor, International Criminal Court (ICC):
"After reviewing all the evidence we found that evidence is enough to present charges for murder and rapes against Bosko Ntaganda. We'll do that. As you know he was in those days the number three of Thomas Lubanga's militia. And in 2006 and international Criminal Court arrest warrant was issued against him for the same charges of child soldiers. What we are planning to do is add killings and rapes against him."
9. Cutaway, journalists
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Luis Moreno Ocampo, Prosecutor, International Criminal Court (ICC):
"The office is planning a visit to Kinshasa to meet President Kabila. We'll do both, thanks President Kabila for his strong commitment and support in the Thomas Lubanga case but also request the immediate arrest of Mr. Bosko Ntaganda, he could not be a General in the DRC army."
11. Wide shot, press conference

STORYLINE:

The chief prosecutor for the International Criminal Court (ICC) said Thursday that he would ask for the maximum sentence for Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga who was found guilty yesterday of recruiting child soldiers.

Briefing journalists in the Hague, ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo honoured the witnesses who participated in the trial.

He explained that most of the witnesses, like Lubanga were members of the Hema community and "considered by many as traitors."

Ocampo said stressed that they "risked their life to tell the judges their painful experiences," adding that he admired "their courage and we show appreciation for what they have done for justice."

The judge said in the Lubanga trial that a series of witnesses had been called during this trial whose evidence could not "safely be relied on."
   
The Court will sentence Lubanga next month (18 Apr), Ocampo said he would see "seek a sentence close to the maximum."

He also announced that after reviewing all of the evidence, the Court found that there was enough evidence to present charges for murder and rape against Bosko Ntaganda who was third man of Thomas Lubanga's militia.

In 2006 the ICC issued an arrest warrant against Ntaganda for the same charges of recruitment of child soldiers.

Currently, Bosko Ntaganda is as serving army general in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Ocampo said his office would be travelling to Kinshasa to meet with President Kabila, where they would request the immediate arrest of Bosko Ntaganda.