SPLM MPs urge Sudan ruling party to hand over Darfur suspects
May 7, 2007 (KHARTOUM) — Sudanese Members of state parliaments in Darfur province from the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) urged the dominant partner in the government of national unity, the National Congress Party (NCP) to hand over Darfur war crimes suspect to the international justice.
Members of the SPLM block in South Darfur Parliament have called on the government to lift immunity from the state minister, Ahmad Haroun, who is accused of crimes in Darfur and to hand him over along with Ali Kushayb to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, the Arabic language Al-Ayam reported.
Meanwhile, speakers in a workshop about Darfur in the National Assembly yesterday recommended the formation of a committee from parliament to negotiate with the non signatories of the Abuja Peace Agreement, and to hurry up in settling crime issues in Darfur which are under discussion in courts.
On the other hand the deputy chairman of the parliament, Atim Garang, accused the government of interfering in tribal conflicts in Darfur and for being biased to one side against the other.
Furthermore, a member of parliament from the SPLM in Al-Fashir, Ahmed Isa, criticized in a telephone call to Al-Ayam the proposals made by members of the ruling NCP to persuade crime witnesses in Darfur not to collaborate with the ICC.
Isa said that it is more useful for those members to call upon the government to hand over the suspected people to the ICC and not to provide them immunity. He explained that the issue is legal and not political. He affirmed that it is necessary for the Justice Ministry to lift immunity from the state minister, Ahmad Haroun.
In the same context the secretary-general of SPLM block of West Darfur, Salwa Adam, said that it was necessary to hand over the war crime suspects in Darfur to the ICC. “The government should hand over the suspects to The Hague since a suspect is innocent until he is convicted” she told Al-Ayam.
(ST)