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From: Berhane Habtemariam (Berhane.Habtemariam@gmx.de)
Date: Mon Jul 26 2010 - 13:54:24 EDT
African nations divided over Bashir genocide charge
Sun Jul 25, 2010 6:30pm GMT
* Libya leads argument against group led by South Africa
* Resolution on International Criminal Court redrafted
* AU rejects ICC request to open "liaison office" in Africa
By Barry Malone
KAMPALA, July 25 (Reuters) - African countries are divided about whether
they should arrest Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir on suspicion of
genocide, diplomats at a summit told Reuters on Sunday.
Bashir was indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes
in Darfur last year. This month the court added genocide to the charges,
accusing him of orchestrating murders, rapes, and torture in the troubled
western region.
A draft of a resolution to be passed at the African Union (AU) meeting in
Ugandan capital Kampala, seen by Reuters on Saturday, contained two
contentious clauses that have triggered horse-trading behind the scenes at
the event.
But both paragraphs were removed after arguments that went on until 3 a.m.
on Sunday, AU and Western diplomats said.
The first clause advised African countries not to arrest Bashir if he
visited their nations -- even if they had signed up to the ICC as 30 African
countries have.
"(The AU) reiterates its decision that AU member states shall not cooperate
with the ICC in the arrest and surrender of President Bashir," the paragraph
said.
The second deleted clause attacked prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo.
"BASHIR DIVIDING US"
"Those two parts caused a big fight between the delegates," an African
diplomat, who was at the meeting, told Reuters. "Bashir is dividing us."
The latest draft resolution also "rejects for the moment" a request by the
ICC to open an "Africa liaison office" in Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa,
diplomats said.
Some African leaders say the court is obsessed with prosecuting Africans and
ignores war criminals on other continents.
AU Commission Chairman Jean Ping has said the decision to prosecute Bashir
has undermined peace efforts in Sudan.
AU summits have been marked by fights over issues such as Libyan leader
Muammar Gaddafi's "United States of Africa" plan and the ICC.
The rows often pit northern and western states -- rallied by Gaddafi --
against a group of countries seen by analysts as close Western allies and
usually helmed by South Africa.
"South Africa, Ghana and Botswana led the argument that the clauses should
be removed," a Western diplomat, who had seen the altered draft, told
Reuters.
"Libya, Eritrea, Egypt and some other countries who have not signed up to
the ICC fought strongly against that but they lost out in the end."
Bashir went to Chad this week in defiance of his arrest warrant on his first
visit to a full ICC member since he was charged. The court said Chad should
arrest Bashir, but Chad said after Bashir's arrival that it had no intention
to do that.
The defiant leader returned to his capital Khartoum untouched. The final AU
resolution on the ICC is expected to be agreed by heads of state on Tuesday.
(Additional reporting by Jeremy Clarke)
C Thomson Reuters 2010 All rights reserved
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