Angola Becomes First Country to Join African Criminal Court

Malabo Protocol Presents Opportunities, Risks for Human Rights and Justice in Africa

Angola has officially become the first African Union member state to ratify the statute of the African Court of Justice and Human Rights, known as the Malabo Protocol. Fourteen other AU countries still need to ratify the statute before it enters into force.

The Malabo Protocol aims to add criminal jurisdiction over certain international crimes to the mandate of the yet-to-be-established court. The proposed court…