Sudan ex-PM defends Darfur initiative, calls for ICC deferral

October 29, 2008 (KHARTOUM) – The leader of the largest Northern opposition party in Sudan defended the new initiative launched by president Omer Hassan Al-Bashir aimed at resolving the Darfur crisis.

Sadiq al-Mahdi former Sudanese Prime Minister and leader of the opposition Umma party told the Kuwaiti daily Al-Jarida that fears by parties which boycotted the ‘People of Sudan’ initiative was “unjustified”.

“I can safely say that the fears of those who did not attend the forum and parties opposed to it were not real” Al-Mahdi said.

“They had 3 concerns…that this gathering is of face value with no mandate…that any resolution would be passed automatically by the National Congress Party (NCP) majority…that the forum was held for the sake of the NCP. All their reservations are meaningless now” he added.

The deliberations of the forum that was held in the town of Kenana in White Nile focused on ways to restore the authority of law, consolidation of peace process, ensure the return of IDP’s and refugees and to avoid resort to military means to resolve divergences.

The forum elected the chairpersons of seven panels of the consultations.

Darfur rebel movements and some opposition parties boycott the consolations. The rebels accuse Khartoum of trying to divert the international community and delay the resolution of the conflict. Others political parties speak about prefixed resolutions and blame government for ignoring them.

Today Sudan announced that the recommendations of the forum that were supposed to be unveiled on October 30 would be delayed.

Al-Mahdi accused certain parties of wanting to complicate Sudan’s problems and not solve it.

“They think that the issue of Darfur and the International Criminal Court (ICC) should be used for regime change. Any solution in Sudan through clashes and confrontation will turn the country into another Somalia” the Umma leader said.

In mid-July the ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo announced that he is seeking an arrest warrant for Al-Bashir.

The ICC’s prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo filed 10 charges: three counts of genocide, five of crimes against humanity and two of murder. In early October ICC judges have officially started reviewing the case in a process that could possibly drag on to next year.
The opposition leader has previously been one of the supporters of the ICC. However following the indictment of Al-Bashir he appeared to have shifted his position.

He called on the UN Security Council (UNSC) to defer the ICC prosecution for one year “to give a chance to change some factors”.

Al-Mahdi stressed that he still wants the ICC to continue working the Darfur case and expand its mandate to prosecute those who carry out military coups against democratically elected governments.

The Umma chief criticized the ICC prosecutor saying he relied on second hand information without going to Darfur.

Khartoum has said that the ICC’s investigation is lacking because it was not conducted inside Darfur. However Ocampo said that security situation on the ground does not enable him to protect witnesses in Darfur.

The ICC prosecutor said he screened 600 potential witnesses in 18 countries out of which only a 100 were identified to provide testimonies. This is in addition to report provided by the UN Commission of Inquiry and other sources.

Al-Mahdi was ousted as prime minister in a bloodless military coup in 1989 by President Omar Hassan al-Bashir and has been one of the most outspoken critics of the government ever since. However lately he has taken a more favorable position towards the government saying the latter became more accepting of other political parties.

Last May the Umma party and NCP signed an agreement last week better known as “National Reconciliation Agreement” which largely outlines a number of fundamental principles that both sides share the same views on.

The agreement was criticized by other opposition parties and even members of the Umma party.

(ST)