Banjul/The Hague – 12 July 2019

On 3 and 4 July 2019, the National Assembly of the Gambia hosted over 40 participants, representing more than 15 African States, to participate in the Working Group on the Fight against Impunity in Africa. Parliamentarians and experts met in Banjul to explore mechanisms designed to provide accountability for serious human rights violations and international crimes and inspire Parliaments from the region to take action to reduce the impunity gap in their respective countries and sub-regions.

Africa United Against Impunity

This event was the first of its kind, joining PGA’s Working Groups in Francophone Africa and Anglophone Africa, to create a forum where parliamentarians from the whole continent may meet, exchange around international criminal justice issues, and reflect on how to push back against impunity in their respective contexts. It was also the first occasion PGA Member from the region had to meet with their colleagues from the Gambia, since the Declaration on the situation in the Gambia (in French) they adopted during PGA’s 9^th Consultative Assembly on the International Criminal Court and the Rule of Law held in December 2016 in Dakar (Senegal). The Working Group was followed by a Gambia-specific session, which allowed for frank exchanges between local civil society members, members of the Human Rights and Constitutional Affairs Committee and PGA’s Secretariat on how to move accountability forward in the country.

Achievements in the fight against impunity are far from irreversible. As political will fluctuates, we need to constantly renew our commitment to the right of victims to justice and reparations. Mr. Sadikh Niass Secretary General of the Rencontre africaine pour la défense des droits humains (RADDHO)

Parliamentarians from the African nations represented at this Working Group underlined the relevance of the event to the situation of their respective countries and welcomed the experts’ presentations putting forward concrete measures to push back against the impunity currently enjoyed by perpetrators of serious human rights violations and international crimes. Among others, topics discussed included:

• Implementation of the Rome Statute

• Criminal liability of corporations and business executives

• Specialised investigative and prosecutorial units or divisions

• The project of an African Court of Justice.

Thinkers and Doers: Justice in Action

After vivid debates and exchanges of experiences, the parliamentarians attending the Working Group adopted a Plan of Action toward an end to impunity in Africa, which contains both global and country-specific commitments and objectives.