Citizens for Global Solutions Calls on President Bush to Ensure Accountability in Darfur
– January 26, 2005
– Heather Hamilton: (202) 415 4524
– Charles J. Brown: (202) 546 3950 ext 115
The International Criminal Court is the Only Practical Option to End the Atrocities
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Following the delivery today of the United Nations’ Commission of Inquiry’s report on Darfur to Secretary-General Kofi Annan, Citizens for Global Solutions called on President Bush to support a Security Council referral of the situation to the International Criminal Court (ICC). The letter also called on the President to provide access to the evidence of genocide already gathered by the U.S. Department of State. The Commission’s investigation is likely to reveal not only that genocide, war crimes and/or crimes against humanity took place, but also identify those individuals responsible for these acts, and the options available to the international community to hold these individuals accountable. Citizens for Global Solutions strongly believes that a referral of the Darfur situation to the ICC is the only pragmatic, immediate way to help end genocide and bring those responsible to justice.
Charles J. Brown, President and CEO of Citizens for Global Solutions, was the spokesman for the U.S. government delegation during the Rome conference that created the ICC treaty. In regards to the situation in Sudan, he noted that, “The U.S. determined genocide was occurring in Darfur last September. The situation has only deteriorated since then. Now is the time for President Bush to re-engage with the international community to find a swift solution to the crisis in Sudan. The ICC is the only credible option capable of beginning an investigation immediately.”
As Brown’s letter to the President noted, other possible options in Darfur include an ad hoc tribunal and a hybrid international and domestic tribunal. Both pose significant problems. A new ad hoc international court could take years to organize, during which time the killings would continue with impunity, evidence would be destroyed or lost, and victims or witnesses would be murdered. In addition, any option that involves the Sudanese government, including use of the Sudanese judicial system and the creation of a new hybrid Sudanese/international tribunal, would be tainted by Khartoum’s participation in the genocide.
International Criminal Court, which was created in 1998 to try cases that deal with genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity – in other words, situations like that now unfolding in Darfur. Referral of the situation in Darfur to the International Criminal Court would not create any legal liability for the U.S., nor would it subject U.S. citizens to ICC jurisdiction. As Brown notes, “When I served as spokesperson for the U.S. delegation to the Rome Conference, America’s position was that prosecution of citizens of nations that have not ratified the Rome Statute should only occur when authorized by the Security Council, and it’s my understanding that this is still the U.S. position. America’s acquiescence to a Security Council referral of the Darfur situation to the ICC would only lend credence to this previously-stated policy.”
Moreover, current U.S. law gives President Bush power to support a referral to the ICC; specifically the American Service Members Protection Act (ASPA), which allows the U.S. to provide “assistance to international efforts to bring to justice . . . foreign nationals accused of genocide, war crimes or crimes against humanity.” Referral of the situation in Darfur to the ICC would not harm the U.S. and would help ensure those guilty of atrocities are brought to justice.