There is "inconsistency" in how the law is enforced by the ICC, as it has been targeting mainly leaders of African nations, senior member of South Africa's governing African National Congress (ANC), Mmapaseka Letsike, told the media.
Her comment comes as South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa recently stated that the ANC had decided the country should leave the ICC due to the court's unfair treatment of certain countries.
Subsequently, the announcement was "clarified" by South Africa's presidential office, which stated that the country would still be an ICC member.
"This clarification follows an error in a comment made during a media briefing held by the governing African National Congress on South Africa's status with regard to the ICC […]. South Africa remains a signatory to the ICC in line with a resolution of the 55th National Conference of the ANC – held in December 2022 – to rescind an earlier decision to withdraw from the ICC," the statement read.
In March this year, the Hague-based court issued an arrest warrant against Russian President Vladimir Putin on the grounds of the alleged "unlawful deportation" of Ukrainian children to Russia. The decision triggered heated debate in South Africa over whether the nation should be a part of the international body.
ICC membership obliges South Africa to follow its rules and warrants, meaning that the country would theoretically have to arrest Vladimir Putin when he visits South Africa during the forthcoming BRICS summit scheduled for late August.
Previously, leaders of countries such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Central African Republic, the Ivory Coast, Kenya, Libya, Mali, Sudan, and Uganda have been targeted by the court.
Rwandan President Paul Kagame has criticized the Hague-based court for its perceived prejudiced attitudes towards the continent, adding that this was the reason the country did not become a signatory to the ICC.
"Rwanda did not become signatory to ICC because this was not justice. It was politics disguised as international justice. When they commit crimes, and they have committed many against Africa, why doesn’t it apply to them?" the president stated.