Sudan criticizes U.S. human rights record citing Iraq
NAIROBI, May 6 (Reuters) – Blamed by the United Nations and the United States for committing atrocities against its own people, Sudan on Thursday slammed Washington’s own human rights record citing the treatment of Iraqi prisoners.
The U.S. on Monday walked out of the UN Human Rights Commission following Sudan’s re-election to the watchdog body, accusing Khartoum of ethnic cleansing in its western Darfur region. Sudan has denied it is involved in ethnic cleansing.
Sudan has been the target of worldwide criticism, including an expression of concern from the Geneva-based commission in late April. It has been accused of backing Arab militia who have been killing, raping and destroying the villages of black Africans in the Darfur region.
“The United States is one of the biggest human rights violators, whether in Iraq or in other parts of the world,” Sudanese foreign minister Mustafa Osman Ismail told reporters on arrival in Nairobi to attend a regional meeting on the Somalia peace process.
“We are not saying there are no human rights violations in Sudan, but we are doing our best (to stop it),” he said.
In the African regional group at the UN rights body, which rotates candidacies for commission posts, Sudan, Guinea and Togo — all called undemocratic by rights groups — this week filled seats on the commission. A fourth went to Kenya.
African nations ensured that Sudan gets a seat on the chief U.N. human rights watchdog, which angered rights groups who wanted more liberal democracies to win a place.
Ismail accused the United States of turning a blind eye as its soldiers tortured Iraqi soldiers.
The U.S military is investigating claims of prisoner abuse after photos emerged showing Iraqis stripped naked and tormented by their U.S. captors at a Baghdad jail.
He criticised Washington for not establishing an independent inquiry into the issue, despite pressure from international organisations and other western countries.
“What the U.S soldiers are doing there, torturing people with electric shocks punishments, all these have been shown on the TV,” Ismail said.
“Instead of establishing an independent inquiry to find out about it and to punish the American soldiers for doing this dirty job, they are saying that they are going to do their own investigation.”