Sudan should arrest ICC war crimes suspects – rights groups
April 25, 2008 (THE HAGUE) — Human rights organizations around the world launched today a “Justice for Darfur” campaign, calling for the arrest of two Sudanese suspected of committing war crimes by the International Criminal Court (ICC) since April last year.
The organizations behind the campaign, including the Amnesty International, Aegis Trust, Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies, Coalition for the International Criminal Court, Human Rights First, Human Rights Watch and Sudan Organization Against Torture, have joined forces to call on the United Nations Security Council, regional organisations and individual governments to press Sudan to cooperate with the ICC.
The members of “Justice for Darfur” are urging the UN Security Council to pass a resolution calling on Sudan to cooperate fully with the ICC and immediately arrest Harun and Kushayb and surrender them to the court.
They further called on states and regional organizations – including the European Union, a strong supporter of the ICC and a key player in bringing the Darfur crimes to the ICC prosecutor – to press Sudan to cooperate with the ICC and comply with the warrants.
On April 27, 2007, the ICC issued two arrest warrants against Sudan’s former State Minister of the Interior Ahmad Harun and Janjaweed leader Ali Kushayb for 51 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Today the two men – who face charges of persecution, rape, and killing of civilians in four West Darfur villages – remain at large.
The Sudanese government has publicly and repeatedly refused to surrender either Ali Kushayb or Ahmad Harun to the Court. Instead, Ahmad Harun has been promoted to State Minister for Humanitarian Affairs, responsible for the welfare of the very victims of his alleged crimes.
As well as having considerable power over humanitarian operations, he is responsible for liaison with the international peacekeeping force (UNAMID) tasked with protecting civilians against such crimes.
The other suspect, Ali Kushayb, was in custody in Sudan on other charges at the time the ICC warrants were issued, but in October the government announced he had been released, reportedly due to “lack of evidence.”
“The Sudanese government has shown blatant disregard both for the authority of the Security Council and for the victims of their brutality,” said Richard Dicker, director of the International Justice Program at Human Rights Watch. “So far, Sudan has faced no consequences for this brazen snubbing of the Court and the Council”.
(ST)