Criticism of ICC is unfair: Goldstone

The criticism that the International Criminal Court (ICC) is against African countries is unfair, Judge Richard Goldstone says.

"It is unfair to say the court is being used against African countries," Goldstone said at a lecture at the University of Johannesburg. He acknowledged that this was a perception because of Africans appearing before the court.

The ICC has opened up five investigations into the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Central African Republic, Uganda, Kenya and Darfur in Sudan.

Goldstone said, however, this would change in the near future as  individuals in Latin America were coming under investigation. He added that the ICC only began its activities after officials in those countries declined to open their own investigations.

In the case of Kenya, the country's parliament refused to begin an investigation into post-election violence in 2007. "It's a court of last resort, not a court of first resort," said Goldstone.