Sudan: Al-Bashir Case - Will the ICC Cast Its Net to Myanmar and South America?
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The Nation (Nairobi)
OPINION
18 July 2008
Posted to the web 17 July 2008
Gitau Warigi
The validity of the International Criminal Court's indictment of Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir notwithstanding, the decision and others involving Congolese politician and warlord Jean Pierre Bemba and former Liberian President Charles Taylor, smack of a selective approach to justice.
The International Criminal Court's indictment of Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir may well turn out to be a case of seeking justice without the benefit of political commonsense - a case where a legitimate legal sanction will badly complicate the larger problem it is meant to resolve.
In a unified chorus, the Sudan government and ruling National Congress Party have lambasted ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo's indictment of al-Bashir for genocide and war crimes as "unprecedented and totally irresponsible."
Darfurian rebel groups have applauded the ICC, but the indictment could woefully backfire. Whether or not Moreno-Ocampo's motives in this matter are pure, he is up against some hard realities. The viability of peace negotiations in Darfur could be an early casualty, as could the larger stability of the State if al-Bashir, as is feared, digs in for a backlash.
Even the political opposition in Sudan, which loathes al-Bashir passionately, thinks Moreno-Ocampo's zeal will be counter-productive.
Constitutional collapse
"If any indictment is issued against the Head of State, it will create a constitutional collapse in the Sudan," the largest opposition party, the Umma, has warned.
Taj el-Sir Mohammed Saleh, of the Democratic Unionist Party, says the indictment "will reflect very badly on the peace process in Darfur and the south .... This must be stopped and we must look for another alternative."
Al-Bashir's own arch-enemy, the Islamist ideologue Hassan Tourabi of the Popular Congress Party, has likewise refused to back the ICC on this one. This is in stark contrast with the unanimity of support the Sudanese opposition gave to last year's ICC indictment of Cabinet minister Ahmed Haroun.
It goes without saying that a satisfactory resolution of Darfur depends a great deal on Khartoum's goodwill, which Moreno-Ocampo may just have destroyed. This recognition is shared by none other than the former US envoy to Sudan, Andrew Natsios.
"This indictment may well shut off the last remaining hope for a peaceful settlement for the country," the American has said.
Khartoum is making no secret that it will put up the fight of its life. The counter-offensive will begin on the African Union and Arab League fronts, to which Sudan belongs, and both of which have scheduled emergency high-level meetings on the crisis at Sudan's behest.
It is fast emerging that both bodies may back al-Bashir, not because they concur with him on Darfur per se, but rather for the same escalating concern that the ICC warrants will worsen the situation.
Besides, the ICC's sudden indictment amounts to pulling the rug from under the feet of the AU, which has been deeply involved in the international effort to find a lasting solution to the Darfur conflict.
Speaking for AU chairman President Jakaya Kikwete, Tanzanian Foreign Minister Bernard Membe urged the ICC to suspend its decision "until we sort out the primary problems in Darfur and Southern Sudan."
As a matter of fact, the fallout is not likely to be confined to Darfur. Southern Sudan, which worked out its own painstaking peace deal with the North in 2006, fears the indictment of al-Bashir will affect the ongoing implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement.
"Definitely, this will have a negative impact. Bashir is leader of the party that signed the agreement with the SPLM," said SPLM vice-chairman Riek Machar.
The semi-autonomous region has asked the UN Security Council to suspend the ICC warrants "in the interests of peace."
A delicate matter that is gathering a storm is the African perception that the ICC is biased and treats the continent as a soft target.
One of the very first statements issued by the AU in this regard condemned what it termed "the misuse of indictments against African leaders."
Relevant Links
Travelling overnight to Khartoum on Tuesday to meet al-Bashir, AU Peace and Security Commissioner Ramtane Lamamra complained that "targeting of AU officials is unacceptable."
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Just small correction. President of Yugoslavia Slobodan Milosevic was not tried by the ICC (International Court of Justice) created by the UN General Assembly but by a special court created by the UN Security Council called the International Criminal Court for the Former Yugoslavia. President Charles Taylor of Liberia is under trial at the Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL) created by agreement between Sierra Leone and the United Nations and for security reason, it is claimed moved to The Hague. Now the ICC steps in to prosecute President Omar Hassan al-Bashir of Sudan. Three different defendants and three… [Read Full Text]