Sudan criticizes U.S. stance on ICC’s indictment of Bashir
July 18, 2010 (KHARTOUM) — Two Sudanese officials today blasted recent statements by U.S. in which they called on president Omer Hassan Al-Bashir to surrender himself to the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Statements made by U.S. president Barack Obama and State department called on Sudan to cooperate with ICC and noting that special envoy Scott Gration, who is currently in Khartoum, will convey this message to Sudanese officials as he did before.
However, Gration was quoted as saying that the recent ICC move against Bashir will complicate his mission given that the North controls the solution to crises in Darfur, South and counter-terrorism.
The Sudanese presidential assistant Nafie Ali Nafie was cited by state media as saying that the U.S. stance in supporting the ICC is inconsistent with any positive American work towards Sudan and diminishes its feasibility.
“U.S. position towards Sudan concerning ICC issue is lacking credibility and the ethical stand in itself” Nafie told reporters following his meeting with Gration.
“The U.S. excluded itself from the jurisdiction of the ICC to protect its soldiers who are killing innocent people in Iraq and Afghanistan and denying others their right to preserve security and sovereignty in Sudan” he added.
He said that U.S. State Department on the reflects the ethics of westerners and lack of principles adding that Washington is controlled by anti-Sudan lobbies.
The Sudanese presidential adviser Ghazi Salah Al-Deen Al-Attabani also echoed the same sentiments in a separate meeting with Gration accusing the U.S. of exploiting the ICC against Sudan and warning that these “two faced policies” could impact bilateral ties.
The U.S. is not a party to the ICC and has remained hostile to it. Washington had threatened to veto resolution 1593 referring Darfur case to the Hague tribunal adopted in March 2005 but eventually bent down to domestic and international pressure and abstained from voting after adding a clause exempting non-state parties of ICC from being investigated.
The U.S. has recently showed signs of warming up to the court despite its long standing fears that it may be used to bring frivolous cases against its troops.
Sudan insists that it has not ratified the ICC statute and therefore cannot be obligated to comply with the court decisions.
(ST)
murlescrewed
Sudan criticizes U.S. stance on ICC’s indictment of Bashir
The US envoy is clearly dancing to a different tune than one being played by President Obama and others in his administration. But things are more complex than they appear. Gen Gration is personally close to President Obama and whatever he says is nearer to the true policy than we are led to believe. When Bush was in the office, you knew exactly where things stood. Today, the NCP knows that US policy is riddled with inconsistencies that it is not credible.