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Darfur I: Appointment of a Special Prosecutor for Darfur; Interview with ICC Moreno-Ocampo; Information of al-Bashir's trip to Turkey on August 19 and related articles

15 Aug 2008

Dear all,

Please find below information on recent developments related to the International Criminal Court's investigation in Darfur, Sudan.

In this first digest you will find information on the appointment of a Special Prosecutor for Darfur; an interview with the ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo, who dismissed Sudan's special courts for Darfur; information on President Al-bashir's trip to Turkey on August 19 and related articles, including op-eds.

Please take note of the Coalition's policy on situations before the ICC (below), which explicitly states that the CICC will not take a position on potential and current situations before the Court or situations under analysis. The Coalition, however, will continue to provide the most up-to-date information about the ICC.

With best regards,

CICC Communications
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I. SUDAN APPOINTED SPECIAL PROSECUTOR FOR DARFUR: INTERVIEW WITH ICC PROSECUTOR i. "Sudan may file charges against militia leader indicted by ICC,"
Sudan Tribune, 12 August 2008
http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article28238
"The newly appointed special prosecutor for Darfur said that he will review allegations that were brought against a militia leader indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) last year.
The daily Al-Hayat newspaper published in London quoted the Darfur prosecutor Nimr Ibrahim Mohamed as saying that he will pull the case that was brought in local courts last year against militia commander Ali Mohamed Ali Abdel-Rahman, also know as Ali Kushayb.
However Mohamed was noncommittal on whether Kushayb will actually stand trial after being previously cleared of all accusations by Sudanese authorities."
ii. " Appointment of Darfur prosecutor 'useless' - Sudan rebel group"
BBC Monitoring Middle East - Political, 7 August 2008 [link unavailable]

"Text of report in English by UN sponsored Radio Miraya FM website, on 6 August

... The Sudan Liberation Movement-Abd-al-Wahid Nur Faction described the decision of the Justice Minister to appoint a Special Prosecutor to look into human rights violations committed in Darfur as "useless."

The movement's spokesperson Daud Bulad told Miraya FM that the Sudanese judiciary is 'unqualified' to try those accused of committing war crimes in Darfur, as he put it.

The Minister of Justice Abd-al-Basit Sabdarat earlier named Nimr Ibrahim Muhammad as Special Prosecutor for crimes committed on Darfur since 2003."
iii. "US downplays appointment by Sudan of a special prosecutor for Darfur,"
Sudan Tribune, 8 August 2008,
http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article28194
"The US said that Sudan must comply with UN Security Council (UNSC) resolutions following the appointment of a special prosecutor to look into rights abuses committed in war ravaged region of Darfur.
'Sudan knows what is required of it under Security Council resolutions.
We look forward to cooperation and adherence to those resolutions, assistance of UNAMID in its deployment efforts, active engagement in the peace process' the US deputy representative to the UN Alejandro Wolff told reporters in New York.
'These are not new elements, and they are fairly clear to anyone who cares to follow them' he added.
Wolff was responding to a question on how the US views the move by Sudan to probe Darfur war crimes.
The Sudanese justice minister Abdel-Basit Sabdarat yesterday named Nimr Ibrahim Mohamed as the Darfur prosecutor with 3 assistants; Kamal Mahjoub Ahmed, Al-Hadi Mahjoub Makkawi and Mamoun Mekki Hamid.
Sudan with the advice of regional organizations hopes to convince the international community that its judiciary is willing and able to look into the alleged crimes committed in Darfur."
iv. "Interview: ICC prosecutor dismisses Sudan special courts on Darfur," Wasil Ali (Sudan Tribune), 11 August 2008,
http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article28228

"The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) Luis Moreno-Ocampo today dismissed the recent move by Sudan to probe Darfur war crimes through the appointment of a special prosecutor. Ocampo said that Khartoum established special courts before but 'end up investigating no one'.

... Do you have any regrets on proceeding with the case against Al-Bashir in terms of timing and indicting a sitting head of state?

Ocampo: How can I have any regrets? The decision to investigate in Darfur was taken by the UN Security Council (UNSC) in March 2005 and in June of the same year I formally opened the investigation. We conducted the best investigation we could and started with the case against Ahmed Haroun, state minister for humanitarian affairs, and militia commander Ali Kushayb. Then we collected evidence showing the involvement and responsibility of Al-Bashir. My duty is to present my case to the judges once I have enough evidence. That is my responsibility and as such my office is performing its duties.

Article 53 of the Rome Statute says that your office should consider whether or not initiating an investigation would serve the interests of justice and the victims. Do you think that you have satisfied this requirement considering that Al-Bashir still retains firm control over state bodies that could make life harder for Darfuris in the camps?
Ocampo: We are working to stop the crimes and I think investigating them is one of the ways to put an end to them. I believe the application I submitted is part of the solution; of course there are other solutions.
But here is an independent body saying that there are crimes happening now. The state apparatus in Sudan continues to attack those people in the camps. My evidence shows that there is genocide today. What could be worst? There is genocide against 2.5 million people. Again in line with my responsibility I presented my case and the judges will decide.

The government of Sudan has a responsibility to protect its people and then the international community. This is a very complex moment and if the judges confirm the charges in my application it will be the first time an independent judicial body endorse the fact of ongoing genocide.
Then the challenge becomes how to stop it? For me this is the most important question. My duty was to go forward with the case against Al-Bashir in accordance with the evidence I gathered.

... Some diplomats at the UN alluded that you would be willing to drop the case if Sudan handed over Haroun and Kushayb. Is that true?

Ocampo: No. In December 2007 I said Haroun and Kushayb have to be arrested and spoke about my upcoming cases. Now there is a pending case before the judges. What I say publicly is always what I say privately....."

II. AL -BASHIR TO LEAVE SUDAN FOR FIRST TIME SINCE APPLICATION, SEEKS HELP FROM RIVALS

i. "Sudan's Bashir to make first trip abroad since ICC move," Opheera McDoom (Reuters), 14 August 2008, http://africa.reuters.com/top/news/usnBAN434814.html

"Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir will travel to Turkey in August, his first trip abroad since the International Criminal Court moved to indict him for genocide in Darfur, a presidential source and state media said.

NATO-member Turkey has not ratified the treaty forming the ICC but was under pressure to become a member as part of negotiations to join the European Union.
The Turkish-African summit, attended by several heads of state, will be held from August 19-20 in Istanbul.

The state Sudanese Media Centre quoted a high-level government source as saying Bashir would head Sudan's delegation.

One source at the presidential palace told Reuters: 'Yes, for sure he is going.'Asked about the possibility of an ICC arrest warrant being issued while Bashir is in Istanbul, the source said it was very unlikely."

ii. "Indicted Sudanese president seeks help from rivals," Sarah El Deeb (Associated Press), 6 August 2008, http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080806/ap_on_re_af/sudan_indicted_president


"Rivals of Sudan's president are pressing him to make concessions at home and abroad in a bid to ward off international charges he ordered genocide in Darfur, a case they fear could wreck peace efforts and even plunge the country into civil war.

Many Sudanese worry a decision by the International Criminal Court to take the dramatic step of issuing an arrest warrant for Omar al-Bashir could prompt a government backlash that would escalate violence in the western Darfur region and wreck the shaky peace between north and south Sudan.

But in return for taking his side, al-Bashir's opponents want him to make changes.

The group also wants him to cooperate some with the International Criminal Court, with some members calling for him to hand over two top Sudanese figures charged last year, something they think may will persuade the U.N. Security Council to suspend the president's July 14 indictment...."

III. ICC PROSECUTOR VISIT TO SENEGAL, ICC DEPUTY PROSECUTOR IN BOTSWANA i. "ICC Prosecutor visits Senegal; ICC Deputy Prosecutor in Botswana:
Working with African leaders to stop crimes in Darfur, " ICC Press Release, 13 August 2008, http://www.icc-cpi.int/press/pressreleases/412.html
Available in French.
"On August 10-11, ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo conducted an official visit to Dakar, Senegal, where he met Abdoulaye Wade, President of the Republic of Senegal, to update him on the activities of the Office in the four situations currently before the Court.
'The situation in Darfur is at present one of our primary challenges'
said Prosecutor Moreno-Ocampo. 'President Wade and the other African leaders have responsibilities in Darfur that are of a political nature.
My mandate is a legal one. My duty is to uncover the truth about the crimes. It is African women that are being raped in Darfur. It is African children that are being killed in Darfur. It is African peacekeepers that are dying in Darfur. It is therefore the countries within the region that may be able to resolve this situation' he said.
'Each of us has our own role to play but we all share a common goal:
protecting the victims, stopping the crimes, ending impunity'.
..... Deputy ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda was in Botswana where she met with President Festus Mogae and Attorney General Athalia Molokomme as well as the Ministers responsible for Justice, Defence and Security.
Mrs. Bensouda was in Gabarone to participate in the SADC Lawyers'
Association Annual Conference, to discuss how the ICC and SADC lawyers can work together on regional and international justice issues.
The Botswana authorities confirmed to Deputy Prosecutor Bensouda their full support for all the activities of the International Criminal Court.
The International Criminal Court is an independent, permanent court that investigates and prosecutes persons accused of the most serious crimes of international concern, namely genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes if national authorities with jurisdiction are unwilling or
unable to do so genuinely. The Office of the Prosecutor is currently
investigating in four situations: The Democratic Republic of Congo, Northern Uganda, the Darfur region of Sudan, and the Central African Republic, all still engulfed in various degrees of conflict with victims in urgent need of protection."
IV. OPINION AND ANALYSIS

i. "Omar al-Bashir indictment taking toll," Steve Paterno (Sudan Tribune), 7 August 2008,
http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article28181

"The potential arrest of President Omar al-Bashir of Khartoum for allege genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity by International Criminal Court (ICC) has clearly taken a toll on the Islamic regime in Khartoum in general and al-Bashir in particular. Just a day after ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo presented charges against al-Bashir for his alleged crimes to be arrested, al-Bashir employed a ploy for public relation in a view of glamorous public to show that he was still in charge, signing into law Sudan's Interim Election Laws. However, al-Bashir public appearance and confusion betrayed his ploy. While attending the signing ceremony, he appeared feasibly distraught to a great extent that he was posing for pictures with the photographers as oppose to the photographers taking his pictures in a photo opportunity manners. He even mistook the election law book for a Qu'ran-idyllically for a self imposed head of the Imams in the country.

...Worst yet, al-Bashir issued decree for the formation of a crisis committee to fight off the indictment against him (the president) and the regime. The committee is headed by first Vice President Salva Kiir, the chairman of Sudan People Liberation Movement (SPLM). For whatever motive, Al-Bashir ignored the fact that Kiir is not a lawyer; leave alone whether he has ever read the Rome Statue, the legal basis for the foundation of ICC. Al-Bashir regime in Khartoum boasts of having seasoned lawyers among its membership, the likes of the Vice President, Ali Osman Taha. These self-styled seasoned lawyers, in midst of actual confusions failed to step up and demonstrate their legal prowess so as to rescue their boss....

However, to see only few hundreds turned out in support of the seating president, is a clear manifestation of lack of support from the populace. Now the speculation is that the ruling clique themselves will be the very ones who will hand al-Bashir to the ICC as they want to survive, at least until some other day. How and when they will do that is yet a matter of speculation, but what is clear is that history is in a making with a huge potential of affecting real change."

ii. "Sudan's Bashir puts African leaders in ethical dilemma,"
Christopher Kibanzanga (New Vision), 6 August 2008,
http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/8/459/643149

"The proposed indictment of President Omar Hassan Al-Bashir of Sudan has put African leaders in an ethical dilemma. Ethical dilemma refers to the situation where the alternative available to resolve a conflict breaches an ethical rule.

Africans want to protect the so-called sovereignty of Sudan and Africa as whole by prevailing over the International Criminal Court (ICC) to stay the indictment.

During the reign of President Julius Nyerere, Tanzania stood out as a country that would not tolerate dictatorship and impunity by engaging in liberation struggles on the continent.

The dilemma is that the current leaders, led by Nyerere's successor in Tanzania, Jakaya Kikwete, as chairman of the African Union (AU), is the love for sovereignty at the expense of checking impunity on the continent."

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CICC's policy on the referral and prosecution of situations before the
ICC:

The Coalition for the ICC is not an organ of the court. The CICC is an independent NGO movement dedicated to the establishment of the International Criminal Court as a fair, effective, and independent international organization.

The Coalition will continue to provide the most up-to-date information about the ICC and to help coordinate global action to effectively implement the Rome Statute of the ICC. The Coalition will also endeavor to respond to basic queries and to raise awareness about the ICC's trigger mechanisms and procedures, as they develop. The Coalition as a whole, and its secretariat, do not endorse or promote specific investigations or prosecutions or take a position on situations before the ICC. However, individual CICC members may endorse referrals, provide legal and other support on investigations, or develop partnerships with local and other organizations in the course of their efforts.

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