The ICC opened research on Venezuela in 2018 following a remission of several countries. The Maduro Administration tried to stop the case, claiming that internal investigations were being carried out, but the Court rejected that position in 2023 and authorized the resumption of the investigations for alleged crimes against humanity committed since 2014
The NGO Access to Justice warned on Thursday, August 7, on delays and a “turning point” in the case of Venezuela before the International Criminal Court (CPI), after the agency asked its prosecutor Karim Khan to depart from the investigation, for three weeks, considering that there are reasonable reasons to doubt its impartiality.
“The most worrying thing is that there may be more delays in a case that has already advanced very slowly for the victims,” said the non -governmental organization in a note.
Access to Justice stressed that, in 2024, it was revealed that Khan’s sister -in -law, lawyer Venkateswari Alagendra, was hired for the legal team of the Government of Nicolás Maduro.
“Although this relationship was public, the fact that such a close relative worked for the investigated government generated an obvious appearance of conflict and doubts about the objectivity of the prosecutor,” he added.
Recently, the CPI Appeals Chamber concluded that Khan maintains a “family, professional and hierarchical relationship” with Alagendra, which compromises – at least in appearance – its impartiality.
*Read also: CPI orders Karim Khan to separate from the Venezuela case by “conflict of interest”
The trigger was the presence of Alagendra at a hearing in November 2023. The Arcadia Foundation and Venezuelan lawyer Robert Carmona-Borjas later requested the “challenge” of the prosecutor for “conflict of interest” given the “family, professional and hierarchical” relationship between Khan and Alagendra.
The complainants indicated that the lawyer is not only direct familiar, but that she and Khan worked together in the past in high profile cases, including the defense of William Ruto (current president of Kenya) and SAIF to Islam Gaddafi (investigated for crimes in Libya).
The judges concluded that the combination of personal and labor ties between Khan and Alagendra could generate a reasonable perception of partiality, something that violates the principles of the Rome Statute, the foundational treaty of the Court, which prohibits the participation of the prosecutor in situations where their objectivity can be questioned.
The ICC opened research on Venezuela in 2018 following a remission of several countries. The Maduro administration repeatedly tried to stop the case, claiming that its judicial system is carrying out internal investigations, but the Court rejected that position in 2023 and authorized the resumption of the investigations for alleged crimes against humanity committed since 2014.
If Khan does not voluntarily request his excuse within the deadline granted, the judges can proceed to their formal challenge, which could open an internal crisis in the office of the CPI prosecutor, which is already under pressure after issuing arrest orders against the Israeli prime minister, Benjamín Netanyahu, by, among others, the use of hunger as a weapon of war in Gaza, and against President Rus. Putin, for the deportation of Ukrainian children.
On the other hand, the UN Department of Internal Affairs is investigating suspicions of sexual harassment against Khan, which forced him to temporarily depart from the position in May due to the tensions caused by this situation in the CPI. The two attached prosecutors have assumed office management and Khan has not made more public appearances since then.
With information from the EFE agency
*Journalism in Venezuela is exercised in a hostile environment for the press with dozens of legal instruments arranged for the punishment of the word, especially the laws “against hatred”, “against fascism” and “against blockade.” This content was written taking into consideration the threats and limits that, consequently, have been imposed on the dissemination of information from within the country.
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