Suspended Kenyan Minister Ruto Will Hold Talks With ICC's Chief Prosecutor

William Ruto, the suspended Kenyan higher education minister, said he will meet the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, which is investigating post-election violence in the country.

Ruto left Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, last night for the meeting in The Hague. “I asked for an appointment” with Luis Moreno-Ocampo, he said in remarks aired on NTV, a broadcaster owned by Nation Media Group. He didn’t elaborate.

Ruto is among 10 individuals Moreno-Ocampo wrote to requesting a meeting because their names are mentioned in statements by witnesses about clashes in the East African nation between December 2007 and February 2008, the Nairobi-based Daily Nation newspaper reported today.

The fighting was triggered by a December 2007 vote that returned President Mwai Kibaki to office and which his political rival, Raila Odinga, said was rigged. The bloodshed ended with the signing of a power-sharing accord, brokered by former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, that left Kibaki as president and installed Odinga as prime minister.

In May, Moreno-Ocampo said he would present cases against six Kenyans by the end of the year. On March 31, the court’s pre-trial chamber authorized Moreno-Ocampo to pursue investigations into crimes against humanity allegedly committed during the conflict.

Ruto temporarily relinquished his post on Oct. 19 pending the conclusion of a fraud case involving the sale of land to a state-owned company. He denies any involvement.

Ruto plans to form a new political party for which he’ll run for the Kenyan presidency in elections scheduled for 2012, the Standard reported on Nov. 1.

To contact the reporter on this story: Eric Ombok in Nairobi at eombok@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Antony Sguazzin in Johannesburg at asguazzin@bloomberg.net