Lyn Frans
With International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor Karim Khan taking a temporary leave, one of his deputies is expected to take the lead in the ongoing proceedings against former president Rodrigo Duterte.
Kristina Conti, ICC assistant to counsel and one of the lawyers representing the victims of the drug war, believes that it could be deputy prosecutor Mame Mandiaye Niang who would lead the prosecution team. Ngang will be assisted by Nazhat Shameem Khan to oversee ongoing investigations and prosecutions, communicate effectively with the public and the media ensuring that the court’s work is not disrupted.
Niang, a seasoned lawyer from Senegal, is one of the two deputy prosecutors of the ICC.
He was elected Deputy Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court on 10 December 2021 by the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute at its twentieth session. He was sworn in on 7 March 2022.Mr Niang is a graduate of the École nationale d’Administration et de Magistrature in Dakar, Senegal. He has held senior positions in the Senegalese judicial system. He has been Prosecutor general of the Appeals Court of Saint Louis, in Senegal, Director of Criminal Affairs and Pardons at the Senegalese Ministry of Justice, “Auditeur” at the Senegalese Supreme Court, attached to the Prosecutor General, Trial Attorney at the Regional Tribunal of Dakar, and Magistrate at the Regional Tribunal of Dakar.
Also Read:Karim Khan To Step Aside Until Probe Into Alleged Misconduct Ends
He has extensive international experience within the United Nations system, having served in various positions at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), including Legal Officer, Senior Legal Officer and Chief of Staff of the Registrar, Regional Representative of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Southern Africa, with jurisdiction over the countries of SADEC, and Judge at the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and the ICTR.
Mr Niang has published dozens of articles in law reviews in French and English, and co-authored several books on international humanitarian law and criminal procedure. He was a visiting lecturer in many institutes and academic institutions including the “Ecole nationale des Assistants sociaux et Educateurs spécialisés”, the Dakar “Centre de Formation judiciaire”, the University of Rwanda, and the Institute of International Law attached to Makere University in Uganda.Niang is a member of the “Union des Magistrats sénégalais” and the Senegalese Section of the International Association of Criminal Law.
Nazhat Shameem Khan was born and brought up in Fiji. She studied law in the United Kingdom, at the universities of Sussex and Cambridge.
She was called to the Bar of England and Wales at the Inner Temple and at the High Court of Fiji. She practised law as a prosecutor from 1984 to 1999. She was appointed Fiji’s Director of Public Prosecutions in 1994.
In 1999, she was appointed Fiji’s first woman High Court judge. She was responsible for the criminal jurisdiction of the High Court and also sat in the Court of Appeal of Fiji on an ad hoc basis.She left the judiciary in 2009, and opened her own practice, focussing largely on human rights, work place governance and litigation skills training.
In 2014, she was appointed Fiji’s ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva and Vienna, and to Switzerland. In 2021, she was elected President of the Human Rights Council in Geneva. In December 2021, she was elected a Deputy Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court.
On May 16, The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Karim Khan, was asked by the tribunal to take a temporal leave of absence pending the conclusion of UN-led Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct against him.
The OIOS has been conducting the external investigation since December, following complaints raised with the ICC’s oversight body.
The ICC said that Khan would remain on leave until the inquiry concludes, though a timeline for its completion remains unclear. During his absence, the court’s two deputy prosecutors will assume his responsibilities.
Lawyers for Khan said he rejected all claims of wrongdoing and had only stepped aside temporarily due to intense media scrutiny, which had made it difficult for him to carry out his work effectively.
“Our client remains the prosecutor, has not stepped down and has no intention of doing so,” UK-based law firm Carter-Ruck said in a statement.
The decision by the International Criminal Court to authorize Deputy Prosecutors Niang and Shameem Khan to step in during Khan’s temporary leave highlights the institution’s commitment to maintaining continuity and integrity in its opThe decision by the International Criminal Court to authorize Deputy Prosecutors Niang and Shameem Khan to step in during Khan’s temporary leave highlights the institution’s commitment to maintaining continuity and integrity in its operations. This move is particularly significant given the serious nature of the ongoing investigations into alleged sexual misconduct. However I wish the court can simply ask the Chief Prosecutor to step. down
Great move. It underscores the importance of accountability and transparency within the ICC, ensuring that all proceedings continue to uphold the highest standards of justice while addressing these critical issues. The involvement of Deputy Prosecutors shows a proactive approach to leadership during challenging times, which is essential for maintaining public trust in the judicial process.