[JURIST] Numerous African and international nongovernmental organizations urged [HRW report] Zambia to reaffirm its membership in the International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] on Monday. The calls come in response to the African Union’s (AU) [official website] decision to adopt an “ICC withdrawal strategy” [JURIST report] back in February. Zambia, as a member of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) [official website], was a vocal party during the weeks of negotiations which lead to the Rome Statute [text, PDF] and was one of the first nations to sign and later ratify the document. If Zambia is to reaffirm its membership, it would join 14 other African nations who have reaffirmed their membership after the AU’s announcement.

The African Union and the ICC have had a tumultuous relationship over the course of the past year. In July an advisory board to the African Union accused ICC of narrowly focusing [JURIST report] its investigations on African government leaders since its inception in 2002. The Economic Social and Cultural Council (ECOSOCC) recommended that AU members should quit the ICC should lawmakers follow through with a proposed amendment allowing the prosecution and arrest of African heads of state. Opponents of the recommendation have voiced concerns that quitting the ICC would increase the risk of human rights violations. Human Rights Watch [advocacy website] also stated that giving African leaders immunity would defeat the purpose of the ICC’s creation [press release]. Later in February, Gambia announced [JURIST report] that it would remain in the ICC. Also in February a South African court struck down a proposal to leave the ICC resulting in the South African government’s decision to cancel [JURIST reports] its withdrawal in March. Following the AU’s announcement, many countries, including Botswana, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Lesotho, Mali, Malawi, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, and Tunisia have affirmed their membership to the ICC.