Johannesburg - The South African Communist Party (SACP) says it rejects the arrest warrant issued to Russian President Vladimir Putin by the International Criminal Court (ICC) based in the Hague, Netherlands.
According to the Communist Party, the arrest warrant, based on ‘frivolous charges’ comes on the eve of an important proposal for peace in Ukraine by Chinese President Xi Jinping during his state visit to Russia, and the BRICS Summit due to be hosted by South Africa.
The SACP said this in a statement that after having held its annual augmented central committee meeting over the weekend in Johannesburg.
The meeting included expanded representation from SACP provinces and districts, as well as from the Young Communist League of South Africa.
According to the SACP, the ICC was established to try individuals charged with the gravest crimes of concern to the international community: genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and the crime of aggression.
"Unfortunately, imperialist powers continue to manipulate this multilateral institution and use it for judicial imperialism. Despite many calls and ample evidence, the ICC has consistently refused to charge the likes of Netanyahu, Bush, Clinton, Blair, and Obama, who have destroyed countries and killed thousands of people in Palestine, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, and Yugoslavia, with the continued occupation of other countries’ territories like Syria, Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, and the Korean peninsula," the Party said.
It called on the South African government to ensure that President Putin attends the BRICS Summit and afforded safe passage.
"Furthermore, the SACP calls upon the government to act with speed in withdrawing from the ICC and repealing the Implementation of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court Act 27 of 2002," read the statement.
The Star