The communication was submitted to the Office of the Prosecutor on July 15 by former Government Spokesperson on Governance and Security Palgrave Boakye-Danquah and Africa Centre for Security and Counter Terrorism Analyst Emmanuel Kotin.
The petition comes as Ghana and Nigeria condemn what the two countries have described as “Afrophobic protests targeting African nationals in SA”. Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said both countries want the matter placed on the agenda at this week’s African Union (AU) summit.
University of SA Senior Lecturer in Political Sciences Dirk Kotze said SA has faced growing criticism from other African countries over the treatment of undocumented migrants, while the government has sought to manage the diplomatic fallout. “SA has generally been very much criticised, especially coming from other African countries,” Kotze said.
Kotze said there is also recognition that migration tensions are a global challenge and not unique to SA. “This is a matter which is a global issue, whether it’s in the US or Europe or other parts of the world also,” Kotze said.
According to Kotze, President Cyril Ramaphosa has indicated plans to send government representatives to other African countries to engage on the issue, while countries such as Malawi, Zimbabwe and Nigeria have cooperated with repatriation efforts.
Kotze said the ICC petition remains at a very early stage and does not amount to a formal court case. “It has been referred to them for an initial investigation. So it’s not that they have prepared a court case that will be presented to the court,” Kotze said.
Kotze said the petitioners had referred to crimes against humanity under Article 7 of the Rome Statute, but added that the prospects of the matter reaching that threshold appear limited. “There is, I think, very little potential for it ultimately to qualify for the notion of crimes against humanity,” Kotze said.
On suggestions that Ghana and Nigeria may seek to isolate SA diplomatically, Kotze said both countries have long-standing migration-related concerns involving citizens living in SA.
However, Kotze said the matter is unlikely to dominate the AU agenda, given other major crises on the continent. “The AU has so many issues that preoccupy their attention,” Kotze said.
Kotze said issues such as Sudan, continental health cooperation and the African Continental Free Trade Area are also competing priorities.
According to Kotze, Pretoria’s handling of the migration issue remains important for diplomatic relations, but the matter is likely to compete with broader continental concerns.
–ChannelAfrica–
