Let’s travel back to Libya for a moment. Back to Libya in early 2011. Back before the dictator was dead – or even ousted. Before his son Saif was on the run. Back in those days there was a coup – and after that coup, there were three little indictments.
One for papa.
One for son.
And one for Abdullah Senussi.
Don’t let the name fool you: Senussi was the late dictator’s brother-in-law. Word on the street is that he was the head of military intelligence. Granted, word on the street also had Senussi dead on more than one occasion. What is certain is that the International Criminal Court has indicted Abdullah Senussi for crimes against humanity for his role in the Libyan civil war.
Where is Senussi now? On the run with his fellow wanted criminal Saif Gaddafi. The two are both widely believed to be in Niger, hiding out to avoid prosecution or death. Senussi huffed and he puffed, but his house has been blown down. May we humbly suggest relocating to The Hague?
If ‘janjaweed’ translates to “devils on horseback,’ and Ali Kushayb is their leader – well what was that mom said? If you can’t say anything nice?
Scratch that, let’s say it: Kushyab is the reaper. Ali Kushayb was provided with weapons and money by Ahmad Haroun in 2003 to lead the janjaweed to torture, rape, and murder the people of Darfur. He isn’t content to issue the order from behind a desk – by all accounts he directly participates in all his crimes. For Ali Kushayb, genocide’s no spectator sport.
Where is Ali Kushayb now? That’s a very difficult question to answer. Reports have him in Khartoum – Sudan’s capital – in 2009. Sudan has claimed to be holding the ICC-indicted man for trial. Yet as with Haroun, we’ve seen what Sudan’s current regime considers an investigation.
Unless Ali Kushayb is turned over to the ICC, he may as well still be at large.
Ahmed Haroun was, at one point, officially titled “Minister of State for Humanitarian Affairs” in Sudan.
Need that one more time?
Minister of State for Humanitarian Affairs.
Haroun is one of Bashir’s cronies, and one of the key players in the Janjaweed militia. The International Criminal Court has indicted Haroun for crimes against humanity and war crimes including rape, murder, torture, persecution — and many more. In 2007, he lead an investigation into human rights abuses in Darfur – and nothing ever came of it. Perhaps he was too busy with his raping and pillaging to worry about something as trivial as human dignity.
Haroun has said his actions are just part of his professional job.
Where is Ahmed Haroun now? In 2011, he was re-elected governor of Sudan’s South Kordofon. Re-elected? What? Oh, we get it – the election must have had a few things in common with that “investigation.”
In 1989, Omar al-Bashir was serving in the Sudanese military. One bloodless coup and four years later, he was the self-appointed president of Sudan.
Bashir quickly achieved worldwide notoriety with his controversial hits, including “Darfuri Genocide” with his backup band, the Janjaweed – and who could forget “Those Humanitarians Ain’t Nothin’ But Thieves” and “This Sham Election is Totally For Real (As Long As You’re Voting For Me)”? He was awarded the honor of being the first-ever sitting head of state to be indicted by the International Criminal Court in 2009.
Where is Bashir now? Still holding on to the rock star dream, touring wherever he can get a gig. While a few outstanding ICC-member countries have promised to uphold their obligation to arrest him if he dares enter – many countries are still receiving him as a guest. In 2011 alone, Bashir has seen China, Malawi, Kenya, and Djibouti – all without repercussion.
With Omar al-Bashir, the question may not be “where is he?” but rather “who will stop him?”
Recently, End Impunity asked the question “Where is Muammar Qaddafi Now?” At the time, no one knew. Today, that question has been answered once and for all.
Muammar Qaddafi was shot to death on October 20, 2011 in Sirte.
Rumors and video show the ousted dictator alive when captured. His death is lauded the world over, but perhaps had the ICC arrest warrant been executed instead of the man, humanity could have had its day in court.
Joseph Kony is no stranger to international attention. No mere one-hit wonder, Kony is wanted by the ICC on 33 counts, including charges for rape, murder, enslavement, and forced enlisting of child soldiers. Since the late 1980s, his Lord’s Resistance Army has massacred thousands – without any known political agenda.
A member of the elite World’s Ten Most Wanted list, Kony’s work was highlighted in the documentary film “Invisible Children.” He has forced young boys to kill or be killed and young girls into sexual slavery – yet he claims to be sent by god to bring peace to Uganda. Note to Kony: invest in a dictionary.
Where is Joseph Kony today? Even U.S. President Barack Obama wants to know. In October 2011, he sent troops to Uganda to assist central African governments in shutting down Kony’s LRA. Kony operates in lawless and remote land in Uganda and connected regions, relying on none but his machete and his fervent belief his is the will of god. Stayed tuned to this tale – perhaps The Hague will soon be Kony’s new home.
Young Bosco Ntaganda may have once fought on the right side of the fight, having been a member of the Rwandan Patriotic Army that fought against the genocidal Rwanda regime in 1994. Bosco must love the fight more than the cause, because all he has done since is cut a warpath of violence through the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Shortly after his stint in the Rwandan army, Bosco joined the Union of Congolese Patriots. Under his lead, UPC made a name for themselves by imprisoning, torturing, and murdering the opposition. Bosco has since moved on to act as a general in the Congolese Army, and earned the nickname “The Terminator.” (We can only imagine why.) The International Criminal Court took note of Bosco’s ambitions in 2006, awarding him an arrest warrant for building an army of child soldiers.
Where is Bosco Ntaganda today? Coming and going as he pleases in DRC – enjoying fine dining, silencing his critics with a reign of blood and terror, and snubbing the ICC’s recognition of his ‘achievements.’ The Democratic Republic of Congo has snubbed the ICC as well. ICC Chief Prosecutor Moreno-Ocampo says there is “no excuse” for Bosco not having been arrested.
Do you really want to know? If you want the horrible crimes it’s been committing for twenty five years to stop, you and all of us need to know, and we need to push the international community to act. Indicted war criminal Joseph Kony leads this army, but it is more than one maniacal man. Learn the answer to “Who is the LRA?” from our friends at Invisible Children, in this powerful video.
Who is the LRA from INVISIBLE CHILDREN on Vimeo.
End Impunity Brigade member McKenna Powell distributed EI materials and spoke about the LRA at her art installation:
“I was pretty quick to choose my topic, which was mostly sprouted by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a religious group that rebelled against the government of Uganda starting in 1987. Joseph Kony, a leader of the LRA, is still wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC). This Christian group committed a lot of atrocities which included rape, pillage, and kidnapping of children for military purposes…” Read More
Some boys want to be just like dad, and some boys don’t. Saif al-Islam Qaddafi was born the second son to Libyan dictator Muammar Qaddafi in 1972. He never knew a Libya not under his father’s rule.
In earlier days, when the Qaddafi regime knew more tranquil times, the man widely considered heir to the rule was.. holding an art exhibition? In 2002, he exhibited his paintings in London to harsh reviews from critics. Qaddafi’s background was clear in his artwork: one even featured his father. The exhibit was called “The Desert is not Silent” in an omen of strife to come.
His career as a painter did not flourish, but his career as a power-hungry daddy’s boy did. Although holding no official office, Saif al-Islam Qaddafi has long been a mouthpiece for his father. He has admitted to torturing Bulgarian medics to extract false confessions in 2004. In 2009 he held a standoff with the US for “humiliating” his father. In 2011, as civil war broke out in Libya – the party-loving son of a dictator took to television to threaten “a river of blood” if protests did not cease immediately.
Where is Saif al-Islam Qaddafi now? Still rallying the lingering followers of the Qaddafi regime. He is rumored to be seen on video as recently as late September, still brandishing assault weapons. It was said rebels had captured him in August 2011, but either reports were untrue or he escaped shortly thereafter. A warrant for his arrest has been issued by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity.
Saif al-Islam Qaddafi has gone from painting the canvas to painting the streets with blood. Like father, like son!
