The opening statements in the trial of Bosco Ntaganda before Trial Chamber VI at the International Criminal Court (ICC) concluded with the statements of the Legal Representatives of Victims Sarah Pellet and Dmytro Suprun, and of Mr Ntaganda’s Defence team led by Defence Counsel Stéphane Bourgon.
Bosco Ntaganda, aka The Terminator, is a former Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Force Patriotiques pour la Libération du Congo, who is accused of 13 counts of war crimes and five crimes against humanity committed in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Ituri region between 2002 and 2003.
The Terminator’s trial opened yesterday in The Hague, Netherlands, with the statements of the Prosecution but he also delivered an unsworn statement to the Chamber today.
The trial is expected to take several months and the start of the Prosecution’s presentation of evidence is scheduled for September 15, 2015. During the first part, the Office of the Prosecutor will be presenting the evidence at the Prosecution’s disposal, submitting to the attention of the judges a large number of documents which it has compiled in the case, as well as video footage. The Prosecution will also call witnesses to testify. When the Prosecution has finished examining each witness, the Defence Counsel is given the opportunity to cross-examine the witness.
Once the Prosecution has presented all its evidence, which will take a few months, it is the turn of the accused, with the assistance of their Counsel, to present the defence’s case. The Defence may call a number of witnesses to support their case. These will be examined by the Defence and cross-examined by the Prosecution.
2149 victims have been granted the right to participate in the trial and they are represented by legal representatives Sarah Pellet and Dmytro Suprun, who will present their views and concerns in the Courtroom.
Trial Chamber VI is composed of Judge Robert Fremr, Presiding Judge, Judge Kuniko Ozaki, and Judge Chang-ho Chung.
