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Darfur II: More on the Prosecutor's Report at the UNSC; President Al-Bashir Visits Zimbawbe; Profile of the Prosecutor and Editorial by the UCICC on the AU's Role

07 June 2009

Dear all,

On 5 June 2009, ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo briefed the United Nations Security Council on the Court's investigation in Darfur, Sudan. In compliance with UN Security Council Resolution 1593, through which the situation in Darfur was referred to the Court, the ICC prosecutor is required to report to the Council every six months regarding progress in the investigation.

This is the prosecutor's ninth report to the Council and updates progress in the Darfur investigation since the prosecutor's last report to the Council on 3 December 2008.

This digest includes media coverage on President Al-Bashir's visit to Zimbabwe; a profile of the ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo and an editorial by the Coordinator of the Ugandan Coalition for the ICC, Mr. Joseph Manova on the role of the African Union in the Darfur situation.

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.


CICC Secretariat
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I. ACTRESS MIA FARROW AT THE UNSC ON DARFUR

i. "Darfuris name babies after ICC prosecutor: Farrow," Reuters India, 5 June 2009,
http://in.reuters.com/article/lifestyleMolt/idINTRE5546UR20090605

"Some refugees in Sudan's war-torn Darfur region have named their children 'Okambo' as a tribute to the International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo, actress Mia Farrow said on Friday.

'I've met at least 100 babies named Ocampo,' Farrow, a U.N. goodwill ambassador, told reporters following a U.N. Security Council meeting on Darfur. 'They spell it Okambo. ... So the name has been Africanized.'

The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued a warrant for the arrest of Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir in March, charging him with masterminding mass killings and deportations in Darfur in western Sudan.

The Sudanese government has rejected Moreno-Ocampo's charges and is refusing to cooperate with the court.

Moreno-Ocampo was at the United Nations to update the Security Council on activities related to the Bashir case and five others he has submitted to the court on possible war crimes in Darfur.

Breaking with standard U.N. practice, Moreno-Ocampo stood beside Sudanese U.N. Ambassador Abdalmahmoud Abdalhaleem, one of his most vocal critics, as the envoy addressed reporters at a press stakeout after the meeting.

Officials waiting their turn to speak typically stand to the side, out of view of TV cameras...."

ii. "Media Stakeout: Informal comments to the Media by Ms. Mia Farrow on the situation in Sudan," UN Webcast, 5 June 2009, http://www.un.org/webcast/sc.html or www.coalitionfortheicc.org/darfur


II. SUDANESE PRESIDENT AL-BASHIR ARRIVED IN ZIMBABWE

i. "Bashir defies arrest warrant," UPI, 7 June 2009,
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2009/06/07/Bashir-defies-arrest-warrant/UPI-29631244373903/

"Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir defied authorities with a trip to Zimbabwe while facing an international arrest warrant for alleged war crimes, sources said.

Bashir landed in Zimbabwe Saturday for a two-day African leaders' summit at Victoria Falls, CNN reported Sunday.

It was at least the third time Bashir has visited other countries since the

International Criminal Court in March issued an arrest warrant accusing him of complicity in war crimes and crimes against humanity in his government's battle with rebels in Darfur in western Sudan.

Bashir, who visited Qatar and Ethiopia after the warrant was issued, has denied the charges of the war crimes tribunal, based at The Hague in the Netherlands. The court has no powers of arrest and depends on countries to arrest suspects on the court's behalf....."

ii. "Sudan's president defies arrest warrant, visits Zimbabwe," CNN News, 7 June 2009,
http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/africa/06/07/sudan.president.zimbabwe/

"Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, who faces charges of crimes against humanity, visited Zimbabwe on Sunday for a regional trade meeting. Sudan president Omar al-Bashir is the first head of state ever indicted by the ICC.

Al-Bashir landed Saturday in the capital, Harare, for the two-day African leaders' summit of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA).

The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for al-Bashir on March 4, accusing him of complicity in war crimes and crimes against humanity in his government's campaign against rebels in Darfur in western Sudan. It was the first arrest warrant for a sitting head of state by the world's only permanent war crimes tribunal, based at The Hague in the Netherlands.

Sudan expelled 13 international aid agencies from the Darfur region after the warrant was issued.

Al-Bashir has denied the charges, calling them an attempt by Western powers to recolonize Sudan...."

iii. "Al-Bashir defies ICC again," Iol South Africa, 6 June 2009, http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=136&art_id=nw20090606154359422C287580

"Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir travelled to Zimbabwe on Saturday in defiance of an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC), state media reported.

Bashir has already travelled to Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia and Libya since the warrant was issued in March for alleged crimes against humanity in Sudan's conflict-ridden Darfur region.

Like Bashir, Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has had a stormy relationship with the West. Western donors blame him for economic turmoil in Zimbabwe and have called for broad reforms...."

iv. "Sudanese leader likely to overshadow Zimbabwe summit," Angola Press, 7 June 2009,
http://www.portalangop.co.ao/motix/en_us/noticias/africa/Sudanese-leader-likely-overshadow-Zimbabwe-summit,cc77d0fa-e087-4b82-9451-f7e7e89702e5.html

"A regional African economic summit starting in Zimbabwe on Sunday should lead to increased investment and stronger economic ties but may be overshadowed by the presence of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued an arrest warrant for Bashir for alleged war crimes in Darfur.

Analysts say Bashir's attendance would divert attention from the first big international event held under the new unity government of President Robert Mugabe and his rival, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai. The two-day Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) summit, in the resort town of Victoria Falls, will focus on the launch of a customs union for its 19 member states stretching from Swaziland in the south to Egypt in the north...."

v. "Sudan's Bashir in Zimbabwe visit," BBC News, 7 June 2009,
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8087699.stm

"Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir, indicted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes, is in Zimbabwe for a conference, state radio says.

.... Mr Bashir is the first sitting head of state to be indicted by the world's first international rights tribunal.

The ICC has accused President Bashir of two counts of war crimes - intentionally directing attacks on civilians and pillage - as well as five counts of crimes against humanity, including murder, rape and torture.

It is not the first time he has travelled abroad since the indictment. Among other trips, he went to Qatar in late March, and in April he was in Ethiopia.

Ahead of the summit opening, Mr Bashir visited President Robert Mugabe, host of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa meeting, in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe's state radio reported.

The summit will discuss aid and investment for Zimbabwe."

See also: "Indicted al-Bashir arrives in Zimbabwe," AFP, 7 June 2009 http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jd_JZmhdw6XWClfpenWt9g-dqNNAD98LQ0H00

III. PRESS ON AL-BASHIR'S ATTENDANCE TO COMESA MEETING

i. "Mugabe calls on Africans to end their conflicts," Gulf Times, 7 June 2009,
http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=295712&version=1&template_id=39&parent_id=21

"Zmbabwean President Robert Mugabe yesterday called for an end to conflicts ravaging African economies as regional leaders met to launch a huge customs union.

Mugabe, who took over the chairmanship of the continent's largest trading bloc, the 19-member Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa), said regional integration was the only path to real progress.

.... Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir, who faces an international arrest warrant for war crimes in Darfur, was among the audience...."

ii. "-Mugabe launches customs union at regional summit," LSE, 7 June 2009,
http://www.lse.co.uk/MacroEconomicNews.asp?ArticleCode=afnef6ydfkw6t22&ArticleHeadline=update_2-mugabe_launches_customs_union_at_regional_summit

"Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe launched a new customs union at a major African economic summit on Sunday, hoping it will boost investment and strengthen economic ties on the world's poorest continent.

...Hosting the summit could boost the standing of Mugabe, whom critics have accused of human rights abuses and reckless policies they say wrecked Zimbabwe's economy.

But Western donors have told the new government aid will not flow unless economic, political and social reforms are implemented.

.... The summit is also attended by Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir. The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued an arrest warrant for Bashir for alleged war crimes in Darfur...."


IV. SPECULATIONS: ICC PRESIDENT SONG TO MEET AL-BASHIR?

"ICC president and al-Bashir meet face-to-face at Comesa," Talk Zimbawbe, 7 June 2009, http://www.talkzimbabwe.com/news/117/ARTICLE/4810/2009-06-07.html

"President Omar al-Bashir and the president of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Sang-Hyun Song will meet face-to-face at the Common Market for East and Southern African states (Comesa) meeting taking place in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe this weekend.

In March this year the ICC issued an international warrant for President al-Bashir's arrest on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity over the six-year conflict in Sudan's western Darfur region.

Al-Bashir has denied the charges. Song has been touring Africa to try to drum up support for the court, which is slowly becoming discredited on the continent.

The court has been widely maligned on the continent over its indictment of the Sudanese president.

Many African countries, including South Africa, criticized the ICC's decision last year to indict al-Bashir for war crimes and crimes against humanity, arguing the indictment should have been deferred by a year to give peace a chance in Sudan.

While rights activists on the African continent have generally welcomed al-Bashir's indictment, many African politicians and ordinary citizens accuse the court of "targeting" Africans.

The ICC is investigating human rights abuses in Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic as well as Sudan, but has failed to investigate alleged human rights abuses in Iraq and Afghanistan by United States and British servicemen.

.... Song said he would be pushing African countries to enact their own legislation on war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide to "to make trials in The Hague less necessary".

Al-Bashir has reacted defiantly to the warrant, visiting at least six countries since the issue of the international warrant...."


V. MORENO OCAMPOS' PROFILE: RIGHT ABUSERS MUST BE STOPPED

"NEWSMAKER: rights abusers must be stopped, starting at the top - ICC Prosecutor," UN News, 5 June 2009, http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=31047&Cr=ocampo&Cr1=

"Holding leaders accountable for human rights abuses can take time, but they must face justice, according to Luis Moreno-Ocampo, who has made a career of going after top officials, starting in his native Argentina and more recently in The Hague as Prosecutor for the International Criminal Court (ICC).

As a young lawyer, Mr. Moreno-Ocampo was appointed Deputy Prosecutor in the military junta trials against Argentinean generals and other authorities accused of human rights crimes during the so-called "dirty war" years from 1976 to 1983, when thousands disappeared.

"The first case was against some of the top commanders of the junta, including the former president, so we started right at the top," he said in an interview with the UN News Centre, as part of its Newsmaker profile series.

Nine senior commanders, including three former heads of State, were indicted during the trials, and five were convicted.

Initially, the country was not behind the prosecution of its former leaders, Mr. Moreno-Ocampo recalled, noting that even his own mother criticised the proceedings.

....As Prosecutor, he has opened investigations in the Central African Republic (CAR), the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda, as well as in Sudan's strife-torn Darfur region.

As he had during the junta trials in Argentina, Mr. Moreno-Ocampo again went after those alleged to have sent out orders to commit some of the worst atrocities imaginable, the most high-profile being Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir.

'I focused on the top people. Because of my experience in Argentina I knew we could not prosecute middle- ranking officers, which made our lives more difficult,' he said.

.... In March, ICC judges issued an arrest warrant for Mr. Al-Bashir, the first sitting head of State to be indicted by the Court, for alleged war crimes committed in Darfur, where an estimated 300,000 people have died and another 3 million have been displaced by fighting since 2003 between rebels and government forces and their allied Arab militiamen, known as the Janjaweed.

The Sudanese President has been indicted on two counts of war crimes and five counts of crimes against humanity, but the ICC pre-trial chamber found there was insufficient evidence to charge him with genocide, noting that if the prosecution presents additional evidence the warrant could be amended at a later date.

'The important thing is for the international community to send a strong message that this cannot happen, a head of State cannot commit crimes against his own citizens, and he has to be stopped,' stressed the Prosecutor. 'Omar Al-Bashir has to face the Court.'

Mr. Moreno-Ocampo stressed this point again as he updated the Security Council today on his investigations into crimes in Darfur.

'International experiences as the case of Slobodan Milosevic and Charles Taylor, or national experiences, tell us that the implementation of a judicial decision against a head of State is a process that can take time, months or years,' he told the 15-member body.

'In the end, however, they all faced justice.'

To date, six of the 13 men indicted by the ICC are still at large, including Mr. Al-Bashir. One has been confirmed dead and another suspected to have died, while four are in custody awaiting trial in The Hague."

VI. EDITORIAL BY THE UGANDAN COALITION FOR THE ICC

"African Union must back justice for crimes," by Joseph Manova for The Monitor (Uganda), 8 June 2009 Mr Manoba is a lawyer and coordinator of the Ugandan Coalition for the ICC.
http://www.monitor.co.ug/artman/publish/opinions/African_Union_must_back_justice_for_crimes_86101.shtml

"Systematic acts of rape, murder and pillage are some of the crimes that have characterised the unending violence against the Darfuri people in Sudan. Are the Darfuri tribes not human that these crimes should be perpetrated against them at will and the criminals who attack them should not be held accountable? The leaders of Sudan, the African Union and each and everyone of us know that the Darfuris are human beings whose cultures are pieced up together with the rest of the world.

So, why should it be that after being subjected to genocidal violence consistently, the people of Darfur should not have the support of the AU and African leaders and scholars in the effort to end the attacks and to hold those responsible accountable? Surely these leaders are acting politically to the indictment of Sudan's President, Omar al-Bashir, rather than with the suffering of the Darfuris in mind. The AU announced at its February summit that it will hold a meeting of states that are party to the ICC to review cases against African personalities and this meeting is scheduled to take place on June 8 and 9. At this meeting, African leaders should support, not undermine the holding of perpetrators for the worst crimes to account. The government of Uganda's involvement will be important as it is both party to the court and a current Security Council member. Should the crimes committed against the Darfuris be justified by the arguments put forth for suspending the indictment, including that the fragile peace in Southern Sudan will crumble, or that the perpetrators of crimes committed against Iraqis or Palestinians should be first held accountable?

President al-Bashir, diplomats and members of the public who have voiced these arguments should be reminded that the Darfuris were born free and entitled to enjoy the rights to life, to protection and to justice, among others. These rights are not conditioned on whether people in Iraq or elsewhere also are free to enjoy their rights. They are individual rights guaranteed to in accordance with the constitution of Sudan and with international law. Those who oppose the indictment instead of condemning the injustices the Darfuris have suffered ought to be reminded that the ICC, which is responsible for the indictment of al-Bashir, is an international criminal tribunal with fair trial and due process guarantees. Suspects brought before the court have a right to defend themselves against the charges.

Who is a president of an African country that he or she should not be held accountable if suspected of perpetrating serious crimes against the people he or she ought to be protecting? It should be Africans to hold accountable a person of authority such as a head of state or government when s/he is suspected to be responsible for violence and other crimes against innocent civilians.

.... The state has the responsibility to protect and ensure that genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and other horrible acts are not perpetrated on innocent civilians and to make sure that those responsible are brought to justice. When the state fails in these responsibilities, it is only right that the international community should step in."


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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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ICC
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2500 CM the Hague
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