{UAH} Kenya says Uhuru won't attend UN General Assemby

NAIROBI (AFP) - Kenya's president will not attend the UN General Assembly because his deputy will be away on trial at the International Criminal Court, State House said Friday, warning future cooperation with the ICC was in jeopardy."Whereas very important multilateral and bilateral meetings had been planned for President (Uhuru) Kenyatta during the week, including a speech to the General Assembly, we very much regret that he cannot be out of the country at the same time as the deputy president," a statement said.

 

It added that Kenya's ambassador to the UN, Macharia Kamau, had been recalled to Nairobi for "consultations".The statement said Kenyatta and Vice President William Ruto, both of whom are accused by the ICC of crimes against humanity linked to 2007-2008 post-election violence, had so far "cooperated fully" with the Hague-based ICC.But it warned that "the political space for continuous cooperation was rapidly being eroded and the country was weary that the dire consequences of these developments seemed to be lost on the ICC."It was not immediately clear if the warning meant that Kenyatta and Ruto were considering not turning up at their trials -- a move that would trigger the issuing of international arrest warrants and force Kenya into diplomatic isolation."The deputy president presented himself to the Hague court of his own free will and has submitted himself to the jurisdiction of the court. Kenya expects the ICC to show the same level of cooperation thus demonstrated with a state party," it said.The statement, which quoted from a diplomatic note sent to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, complained that the ICC's scheduling had forced Kenya into a position where it will not be represented at the General Assembly."Owing to these developments, Kenya will for the first time since our independence 50 years ago not be represented at a political level during the High Level Week of the United Nations General Assembly that the president was scheduled to attend," the statement said.Kenyatta, Ruto and former radio boss Joshua Arap Sang are accused of masterminding some of the political unrest that left at least 1,100 dead and more than 600,000 homeless.Kenya's 2007 elections were marred by allegations of vote rigging, but what began as political riots quickly spiralled into a wave of ethnic killings and reprisal attacks, the worst violence in the country since independence.Kenyatta and Ruto were arch-rivals during the violence, their respective Kikuyu and Kalenjin ethnic groups fought bitterly. But they were elected on a joint ticket in peaceful polls in March this year.The trial of Ruto and Sang began last week, while Kenyatta's trial is scheduled to start in the Hague on November 12.