Sudan says no evidence received against Haroun
August 3, 2008 (KHARTOUM) – The Sudanese government said it will not bring a minister accused of war crimes to justice without evidence.
“We will not file complaints against Haroun on behalf of Ocampo or any other foreign party” he said.
The judges of the ICC issued their first arrest warrants for suspects accused of war crimes in Sudan’s Darfur region a year ago.
The warrants were issued for Ahmed Haroun and militia commander Ali Mohamed Ali Abdel-Rahman, also know as Ali Kushayb. Sudan has so far rejected handing over the two suspects.
Sabdarat also said that his government will not allow any outside party to come and evaluate the judicial system.
“The Sudanese judiciary is independent and above any suspicions” he insisted.
The Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa carried a number of proposals to the Sudanese president Omar Hassan Al-Bashir last month on the row with the International Criminal Court (ICC).
One of the suggestions by the Arab League chief was for Sudan to accept an African court to look into Darfur right abuses under ICC supervision.
Moussa also proposed either trying Haroun or Kushayb internally or sending them to the ICC. However Sudan appears to have rejected this imitative.
The Arab League plan was aimed at convincing the UN Security Council (UNSC) to invoke Article 16 which allows the UNSC to suspend the ICC prosecutions in any case for a period of 12 months that can be renewed indefinitely.
The ICC’s prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo asked pre-trial judges in mid-July to issue arrest warrants for Al-Bashir.
Ocampo filed 10 charges: three counts of genocide, five of crimes against humanity and two of murder. Judges are expected to take months to study the evidence before deciding whether to order Al-Bashir’s arrest.
Sudan’s justice minister also said that laws on war crimes and humanitarian code may be introduced if they appear not be included in the penal code.
Sabdarat further said that setting up a special court for Darfur takes time in terms collecting evidence and bringing witnesses. He disclosed that there are cases filed with the authorities that will be make it to court “in the right time”.
Last month the prosecutor of the ICC revealed in an interview with the ‘Time’ magazine that the Sudanese government sent an envoy to inquire about how far up the chain command he is willing to go in his investigations.
The unidentified Sudanese envoy asked Ocampo if handing over Haroun would stop investigations of people above him.
“Suppose Haroun comes to The Hague and says he was only following instructions do you have to investigate the person who gave the instructions?” Ocampo disclosed the dialogue between him and the Sudanese envoy.
Sudan has not ratified the Rome Statue, but the UNSC triggered the provisions under the Statue that enables it to refer situations in non-State parties to the world court if it deems that it is a threat to international peace and security.
(ST)