Ex-LRA rebel commander Ongwen transferred to Norway to start 25-year jail term

The former Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) rebel commander, Dominic Ongwen has been transferred to an undisclosed detention facility in Norway to begin serving his 25-year jail term.

Ogwen was transferred yesterday Monday, according to a statement from the Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC). This comes more than two years after the Trial Chamber IX sentenced Ongwen to 25 years of imprisonment on May 6, 2021.

Ongwen was convicted and sentenced on February 4, 2021, after being found guilty of 61 crimes comprising crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in northern Uganda between July 1, 2002 and December 31, 2005. The conviction and sentence were confirmed on December 15, 2022, by the appeals chamber.

According to the ICC statement, the ICC presidency on November 9 this year designated Norway as the state of enforcement for the sentence of imprisonment of Ongwen, according to article 103 of the Rome Statute.

The presidency noted that the enforcement of the sentence of imprisonment shall be subject to the supervision of the court and shall be consistent with widely accepted international standards governing the treatment of prisoners.

“The transfer of Mr Ongwen to Norway occurred with the close cooperation of the Norwegian authorities and the support of the Dutch authorities. The ICC relies on the support from states for the enforcement of its sentences and is highly appreciative of the voluntary cooperation of Norway in this case," the statement reads.

The ICC presidency noted that the enforcement of the sentence of imprisonment shall be subject to the supervision of the court and shall be consistent with widely accepted international standards governing the treatment of prisoners. Ongwen is the fifth person transferred by the ICC to a state that has indicated its willingness to accept sentenced persons.

He is the first of four other top LRA commanders who were indicted by the ICC in 2005 to have been sentenced by the global court. The others are the LRA leader Joseph Kony, still alive, Vincent Otti, Raska Lukwiya, and Okot Odhiambo all pronounced dead. Ongwen was taken into the ICC custody in 2015 after surrendering from the Central African Republic.  

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