African Union Supports Delay in Darfur Case
International Criminal Court Asked to Step Back
Feb 2, 2009
On Monday, February 02, 2009, the leaders and representatives of 53 African nations accepted the Sudanese president´s pleas to have the war crimes case against him delayed, if not suspended. The popular sentiment in many African political circles is that the activities of the International Criminal Court (ICC) have unduly interfered with the ongoing peace process in the region. Some African governments have also complained that the ICC has focused all its first cases on Africa, therefore bringing into question the integrity of ICC Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo. However, most jurists and observers have rejected the implication that the ICC is merely an instrument of neocolonialism.
African Union Commission head Jean Ping told a group of reporters that: “What emerged from the debate that we have is that we think there is a problem with the ICC targeting only Africans, as if Africa has been a place to experiment with their ideas”. He further added that: “We are raising this type of question because we don't want a double standard. But we are not against fighting impunity…We have to judge our criminals ourselves. That is why we have decided to constitute a high-level panel to help ourselves to try people accused”. Many observers are skeptical as to whether or not the African Union will actually be able to bring war criminals to trial on its own.
On The Ground
While legal and political forces clashed over the criminal case against the President of Sudan, the conflict in Darfur continued. On Sunday, February 1, 2009, the government of Sudan warned UNAMID, the UN mission in Darfur, to withdraw UN personnel and African peacekeepers from Muhajiriya, an area that was scheduled for attack by government forces. UNAMID spokesman Noureddine Mezni then told Reuters that: “…we are not going to leave while there are thousands of displaced people around our camp…The Sudanese government should be aware that their actions are endangering civilians and UNAMID”.
Bombing raids in Darfur were banned by several United Nations Security Council resolutions. Nonetheless, the government of Sudan has said that it has the right to attack what it considers to be rebel forces. On Monday, February 02, 2009, at the same time that the African Union was issuing its statement about the ICC, an intense bombing raid took place in Muhajiriya. UNAMID reported that thousands of civilians were further displaced by the attack, eliminating what little progress aid workers had achieved in alleviating the suffering of the civilian victims of this conflict.
Question of Time
Global analysts estimate that over 200,000 innocent men, women, and children have already died from government and militia attacks in Darfur. International observers are concerned that by the time the legal and political arguments are settled it may be too late for the people of Darfur. Many advocates are hoping leaders like American President Barack Obama will engage in a renewed international effort to strengthen peacekeeping and aid efforts in the region. For now, the small African peacekeeping force and United Nations aid effort in Darfur have proven to be inadequate since they are entirely dwarfed by the Sudanese government’s campaign of ethnic cleansing.
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