“This paper will not attempt to untangle the broader political standoff between the AU and the ICC. Rather it will interrogate the legal aspects thereof. First, the paper seeks to delineate the various obligations on African states in respect of Bashir, under the Rome Statute and the Genocide Convention. Second,it considers the nature of the obligations on African states parties such as Kenya in respect of the AU decisions, and in particular the demand for non-cooperation in respect of Bashir. Third, it presents two possible means of resolving the apparent conflict between the first (ICC) and second (AU) set of obligations: namely article 103 of the UN Charter and the doctrine of effective construction. Finally, it concludes with a discussion of the national legal dimensions of these competing obligations, focussing on South Africa and Kenya.”
