South Sudan: African Union must set precedent for African-led justice by establishing court for South Sudan

South Sudan: African Union must set precedent for African-led justice by establishing court for South Sudan

Ahead of the African Union Peace and Security Council (AUPSC) meeting on South Sudan on 30 November, Amnesty International and the South Sudanese Transitional Justice Working Group (TJWG) have called on the African Union to speed up the formation of the Hybrid Court for South Sudan (HCSS). The AUPSC must call on the African Union Commission to ensure an effective legal mechanism exists to investigate and prosecute serious human right violations and abuses in South Sudan including the deliberate killing of civilians, rape and other sexual violence, forced recruitment of child soldiers and displacement.

“The establishment of the court is a unique opportunity for the AU to demonstrate African leadership and to offer an African-led solution for the most serious crimes on the continent. It would demonstrate a real commitment to the organization’s principles and show that the AU stands with survivors and victims of crimes for which impunity cannot be tolerated,” said Muleya Mwananyanda Amnesty International’s Director for East and Southern Africa.

Amnesty International, and South Sudanese partner organizations in the Transitional Justice Working Group, released a briefing today urging the African Union Commission to establish the Court, which was part of a peace agreement signed by the government and opponents in August 2015, and again in September 2018.

“The formation of this Court should not have been delayed for so long. The AU must take long awaited and bold action. The failure to establish the Hybrid Court reflects a lack of political will in South Sudan’s government to hold those most responsible for serious crimes, which are likely to include senior political and military officials, to account,” said Muleya Mwananyanda.

Amnesty International and the Transitional Justice Working Group believe that the AU may and should unilaterally establish the Hybrid Court for South Sudan.

We are therefore recommending that the African Union Commission moves with speed and, in accordance with the peace agreements, finalise the statute of the Court. This should confirm its mandate to investigate and prosecute individuals suspected of crimes under international law and confirm its jurisdiction has supremacy over national courts. The statute should also guarantee the independence of the HCSS and confirm that the Court cannot be impeded or constrained by any statutes of limitations, or the granting of pardons, immunities or amnesties by South Sudanese authorities, or any other authority.

The accessibility of the HCSS for South Sudanese people and plans to ensure a lasting legacy of the HCSS in South Sudan must be explicitly ensured in the Court’s statute.

The AU Commission should also re-start discussions with potential host states, to identify the location of the seat of the court.

“Given the Government of South Sudan’s unwillingness to bring perpetrators to court and the absence of victim and witness protection mechanisms, Amnesty International and the Transitional Justice Working Group believe that the Hybrid Court should not be located in South Sudan for the time being. The Court must be located in another African state, but its statute should provide for the option to hold hearings in South Sudan or relocate the Court to South Sudan in the future as and when the situation on the ground becomes possible,” said James Ninrew, chair of the Transitional Justice Working Group.

Amnesty International and the TJWG recommend that the African Union Commission identify and recruit key staff who can start working remotely before the Court is fully established. They should include people in charge of investigations since collection and preservation of evidence is a priority.

BACKGROUND

The Hybrid Court for South Sudan is an AU-led hybrid court which will have the mandate to investigate and prosecute individuals bearing the responsibility for the serious crimes committed since 15 December 2013 in South Sudan – including the deliberate killing of civilians, rape and other sexual violence, forced recruitment of children, forced displacements, among other crimes.

The decision to establish the Hybrid Court was taken through the 2015 peace agreement signed by the Government of South Sudan and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army-In Opposition (SPLM/A-IO) and reiterated through the revitalized peace agreement (R-ARCSS) in September 2018.

At present, there is no other justice avenue available for South Sudanese victims of the conflict, the HCSS is the only hope.

Existing tribunals are not independent nor impartial enough and lack the necessary capacity to deal with most crimes on mass scale and for which people in power are likely to be suspected, as Amnesty International has previously documented, while the International Criminal Court (ICC) is not competent (South Sudan has not ratified the Rome Statute and the United Nations Security Council has not referred the situation to the ICC).

Rugged Hank

Education Technology Day must be extended to prisons

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Typically thought of as being an easy to clean area of the home, hard floors have risen in popularity in recent decades. Globally, hard floors are the most common floor type,2 and research released today by Dyson has uncovered poor cleaning habits that mean hard floors are likely to be harbouring an array of hidden nasties. This comes as 32% of Brits – equating to 21.6 million people in the UK – will use the same dirty mop head for six months or more before replacing it. What’s more, one in 20 also admit to keeping the same mop for a year or longer, and one in 10 think it is acceptable to use the same mop 100 times, spreading dirt around their floors every time they use it. Cross contamination is a primary issue for most common and traditional mopping methods with germs and bacteria further being unknowingly spread around homes as Brits use dirty water to clean floors.3 45% only change the water to new water between rooms, whereas 41% wait even longer until it looks dirty. This could mean that floors are being washed with dirty water, adding more dirt rather than taking it away. Surprisingly, almost one in 10 (9%) even admit to not changing the dirty water at all when mopping. Over a quarter (28%) admit to mopping their floors once a fortnight or less while over half (53%) admit they don’t regularly clean behind appliances and leave dirt to build up for as long as six months at a time. image002.jpg On how to achieve a perfect barefoot clean feel after mopping, Geli Lee, Dyson Engineer and Home Cleaning Expert offers their top tips for eliminating dirt around the home: 1. Create a cleaning schedule to stay on top of dirt build-up. In the last year, there has been a 15% global reduction in the number of people who maintain regular cleaning schedules. 47% of the British public admitted to only being motivated to clean when they spot visible dirt or dust.4 Regular floor cleaning with a wet hard floor cleaner like the Dyson WashG1™ removes more stubborn dirt than vacuuming alone. It is important to have a debris free surface, clear any clutter from the floor or other surfaces. Choose the right machine: Different vacuums are designed for different floor types and home sizes. Some machines will be engineered with hard floors in mind and will struggle on thick pile carpets, for example. Choosing the right machine for your home will make a big difference to the ease and speed with which you’re able to clean your home. Clean your floors ‘little and often’. Washing your floors frequently in areas that receive more foot fall will help to stop dirt building up and getting trodden into your floor. Using a dedicated wet floor cleaner on hard flooring such as the Dyson WashG1 is helpful for this, as the versatile format means it vacuums and washes the floor simultaneously. Cleaning schedules have also become less regimented. In recent years only 41% of people claim to have a regular cleaning schedule, and 60% admit to cleaning reactively; being motivated to clean only when there is visible dirt or dust5. It’s perhaps not surprising, that a fifth of people are still concerned their floors are dirty after they’ve mopped them (22%) and one in four6 feel extremely worried about indoor dust at home. Geli Lee, Dyson Engineer and Home Cleaning Expert reveals why it is important to change the way we mop: “Cleaning your hard floors properly and regularly is important for maintaining a healthy environment around your home. Without a proper cleaning routine, dirt may unknowingly build up and spread around your home. It is evident from our research that current mopping habits mean British households aren’t cleaning their floors as effectively as they should. “From ignoring problem areas where dust and debris build up, cross contamination with dirty water to not replacing mop heads or inconsistent cleaning, current mopping behaviours may be making floors dirtier as opposed to cleaner. Moving away from traditional methods, wet floor cleaners like the Dyson WashG1 simplify the floor cleaning experience and provide a modern efficient and hygienic solution” To help take the guesswork out of mopping, the brand new WashG1 is Dyson’s first dedicated wet floor cleaner that tackles wet and dry debris in one go. Engineered for hygienic cleaning and maintenance, the WashG1 is revolutionising wet floor cleaning, removing the need for multi-products and multi-steps to achieve a barefoot clean feel around the home. To put the product to the test, Dyson have cleaned one of London’s most iconic landmarks The Victoria and Albert Museum. From cleaning the grand marble floors housing the most prestigious exhibits, to cleaning up leftover food in the Gamble Room Cafe, the WashG1 had a dirt busting tour of the museum leaving it spotless. Images can be found here. The WashG1 introduces Dyson’s engineering expertise to cleaning hard floors. With a 1 litre clean-water tank to cover flooring up to 290m2, the Dyson WashG1 uses a combination of hydration, absorption, and extraction technologies to remove wet and dry spills and stains simultaneously. The Dyson WashG1 is available to purchase now from Dyson.co.uk, retailing at £599.99.

Typically thought of as being an easy to clean area of the home, hard floors have risen in popularity in recent decades. Globally, hard floors are the most common floor type,2 and research released today by Dyson has uncovered poor cleaning habits that mean hard floors are likely to be harbouring an array of hidden nasties. This comes as 32% of Brits – equating to 21.6 million people in the UK – will use the same dirty mop head for six months or more before replacing it. What’s more, one in 20 also admit to keeping the same mop for a year or longer, and one in 10 think it is acceptable to use the same mop 100 times, spreading dirt around their floors every time they use it. Cross contamination is a primary issue for most common and traditional mopping methods with germs and bacteria further being unknowingly spread around homes as Brits use dirty water to clean floors.3 45% only change the water to new water between rooms, whereas 41% wait even longer until it looks dirty. This could mean that floors are being washed with dirty water, adding more dirt rather than taking it away. Surprisingly, almost one in 10 (9%) even admit to not changing the dirty water at all when mopping. Over a quarter (28%) admit to mopping their floors once a fortnight or less while over half (53%) admit they don’t regularly clean behind appliances and leave dirt to build up for as long as six months at a time. image002.jpg On how to achieve a perfect barefoot clean feel after mopping, Geli Lee, Dyson Engineer and Home Cleaning Expert offers their top tips for eliminating dirt around the home: 1. Create a cleaning schedule to stay on top of dirt build-up. In the last year, there has been a 15% global reduction in the number of people who maintain regular cleaning schedules. 47% of the British public admitted to only being motivated to clean when they spot visible dirt or dust.4 Regular floor cleaning with a wet hard floor cleaner like the Dyson WashG1™ removes more stubborn dirt than vacuuming alone. It is important to have a debris free surface, clear any clutter from the floor or other surfaces. Choose the right machine: Different vacuums are designed for different floor types and home sizes. Some machines will be engineered with hard floors in mind and will struggle on thick pile carpets, for example. Choosing the right machine for your home will make a big difference to the ease and speed with which you’re able to clean your home. Clean your floors ‘little and often’. Washing your floors frequently in areas that receive more foot fall will help to stop dirt building up and getting trodden into your floor. Using a dedicated wet floor cleaner on hard flooring such as the Dyson WashG1 is helpful for this, as the versatile format means it vacuums and washes the floor simultaneously. Cleaning schedules have also become less regimented. In recent years only 41% of people claim to have a regular cleaning schedule, and 60% admit to cleaning reactively; being motivated to clean only when there is visible dirt or dust5. It’s perhaps not surprising, that a fifth of people are still concerned their floors are dirty after they’ve mopped them (22%) and one in four6 feel extremely worried about indoor dust at home. Geli Lee, Dyson Engineer and Home Cleaning Expert reveals why it is important to change the way we mop: “Cleaning your hard floors properly and regularly is important for maintaining a healthy environment around your home. Without a proper cleaning routine, dirt may unknowingly build up and spread around your home. It is evident from our research that current mopping habits mean British households aren’t cleaning their floors as effectively as they should. “From ignoring problem areas where dust and debris build up, cross contamination with dirty water to not replacing mop heads or inconsistent cleaning, current mopping behaviours may be making floors dirtier as opposed to cleaner. Moving away from traditional methods, wet floor cleaners like the Dyson WashG1 simplify the floor cleaning experience and provide a modern efficient and hygienic solution” To help take the guesswork out of mopping, the brand new WashG1 is Dyson’s first dedicated wet floor cleaner that tackles wet and dry debris in one go. Engineered for hygienic cleaning and maintenance, the WashG1 is revolutionising wet floor cleaning, removing the need for multi-products and multi-steps to achieve a barefoot clean feel around the home. To put the product to the test, Dyson have cleaned one of London’s most iconic landmarks The Victoria and Albert Museum. From cleaning the grand marble floors housing the most prestigious exhibits, to cleaning up leftover food in the Gamble Room Cafe, the WashG1 had a dirt busting tour of the museum leaving it spotless. Images can be found here. The WashG1 introduces Dyson’s engineering expertise to cleaning hard floors. With a 1 litre clean-water tank to cover flooring up to 290m2, the Dyson WashG1 uses a combination of hydration, absorption, and extraction technologies to remove wet and dry spills and stains simultaneously. The Dyson WashG1 is available to purchase now from Dyson.co.uk, retailing at £599.99.

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