KHAYA SITHOLE: Brics summit panic attack
SA's panicked approach to the Brics summit imbroglio means critical steps and principles may have to make way for hasty solutions that will create new issues
Over the past week, as SA inched closer to a day of political and diplomatic believing. In seeking a solution to two primary headaches that have been escalating over the past couple of months, it initiated the deployment of envoys to the US and continued engagements around the logistics of the Brics summit.
The issuing of an arrest warrant for Russian president Vladimir Putin by the International Criminal Court (ICC), which compels SA to arrest him if he lands here, has created a political and legal headache not seen since 2015. Back then, Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir arrived with the yoke of an arrest warrant. Instead of arresting him, in line with its commitments to the ICC, SA let him go rather than deal with the fallout of arresting a foreign head of state. The ensuing litigation resulted in confirmation by our courts that SA remains obliged to effect such arrests for as long as it remains a member of the ICC. ..
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