Sudanese women protest to visiting Annan over ICC

By MOHAMED OSMAN

KHARTOUM, Sudan, May 26, 2005 (AP) — Sudanese women met U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan after he landed in Khartoum on Friday and rushed to present him with a written protest saying any Sudanese suspected of war crimes should be tried at home instead of in an international criminal court.

Sudanese women hold banners and shout slogans during a protest against a series of U.N. resolutions against Sudan in Khartoum May 27, 2005. (Reuters).

Annan arrived in Sudan to assess the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the Darfur region, a day after telling a donors conference in Ethiopia that the world was facing a “race against time” to prevent Darfur’s situation from worsening.

At Thursday’s meeting in Addis Ababa international donors pledged US$300 million (euro239.56 million) in cash and more in kind to help the African Union expand its peacekeeping mission in troubled Darfur.

The African Union says it needs US$466 million (euro372.12 million) to more than triple its existing force of 2,270 and to equip it with six helicopter gunships, 116 armored personnel carriers and fuel by September.

Members of the Sudanese Women General Union met Annan after he landed and presented him with the statement protesting U.N. Security Council’s resolutions adopted in March on Darfur.

One of the two provides for the trial of Darfur war crimes suspects before the International Criminal Court. The second one strengthens an arms embargo and imposes an asset freeze and travel ban on those who defy peace efforts.

Sudan’s government rejected both of them. President Omar el-Bashir has said he would not hand over any Sudanese to an international authority for trial.

“In the name of women and children, and in the name of the elderly, we call for halting this scenario. Leave us to enjoy peace,” said the statement, which was handed over by union secretary Raja Hassan Khalifa.

Trying Sudanese outside the country would only spread chaos, threaten peace and stir sedition and tribal hatred, the statement said.

In a short statement Annan said he was in Sudan to assess progress in alleviating Darfur’s humanitarian situation, and the implementation of a peace agreement signed between the government and the southern rebel group in January this year.

He also stressed the need for the resumption of talks between the government and the Darfur rebels as soon as possible.

At least 180,000 people have died — many from hunger and disease — and about 2 million others have fled their homes in Darfur to escape the conflict.

The conflict erupted when rebels took up arms against what they saw as years of state neglect and discrimination against Sudanese of African origin. The government is accused of responding with a counterinsurgency campaign in which government-backed Arab militiamen known as Janjaweed committed wide-scale abuses against the African population.

Annan was expected to meet Sudanese Foreign Minister Mustafa Osman Ismail as well as members of the U.N. mission in Sudan.

He would fly to Darfur on Saturday and spend the day there before returning to Khartoum.

He was also expected to fly to the southern city of Juba, where the U.N. has peacekeeping troops stationed.

Annan also had meetings planned with John Garang, leader of the rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Army and Sudanese President Bashir.