Sudan moves to block UN body from considering Darfur report
March 13, 2007 (GENEVA) — Sudan on Tuesday accused a U.N. panel of bias, and moved to block the U.N. Human Rights Council from considering its report accusing Khartoum of orchestrating Darfur attacks.
Al-Mardi said in a prepared speech that Sudan “strongly and resolutely” opposes any consideration by the council of the report.
“Any attempt to confer legitimacy on this mission will constitute a serious and dangerous precedent in the eyes, not only of the Sudan, but also of many members of this esteemed council,” he said.
He asserted that two of the six team members had failed to participate, which made the mission “no longer valid.”
It “cannot, therefore, be in a position to effectively and objectively discharge its mandate specified in the decision of its establishment,” he said.
U.N. officials said Indonesian Ambassador Makarim Wibisono had withdrawn from the panel, but that he was the only one to do so. Gabonese Ambassador Patrice Tonda had to return to Geneva while the panel was waiting in vain for Sudanese visas, but he remains a member of the panel, the officials said.
Al-Mardi also complained that the Mexican Ambassador Luis Alfonso de Alba, president of the Human Rights Council, failed to adequately consult groups of delegations before making the appointments to the team.
De Alba appointed the panel members after more than a month of protracted private negotiations among members of the council, which has shied away from criticizing the Sudanese government for its role in the rights abuses.
“The selection came as a result of and in response to unjustified pressures,” al Mardi said. “No consideration was paid to our legitimate and objective reservations and concerns.”
(AP)