ICC prosecutor reproaches UN for ‘inaction and paralysis’ on Darfur

“A deep sense of frustration, even despair” is the tone of the latest statement on the situation in Darfur, made to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) by Fatou Bensouda, Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC).On Wednesday, the Prosecutor presented her 17th briefing to the UNSC since the situation was referred to her in 2005 in terms of Resolution 1593. “Regrettably, each briefing has been followed by inaction and paralysis within the Council while the plight of victims of crimes committed in Darfur has gone from bad to worse,” Bensouda’s report begins.“The deep sense of my office’s disappointment should come as no surprise to this Council, given the serious concerns shared within the United Nations about the situation in Darfur,” it continues. Bensouda notes that, in particular, her office “shares the concerns of the head of UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Valerie Amos, that 300,000 people have been displaced in the first five months of 2013 alone, more than were displaced in the last two years”. She urges the UN to seriously heed Baroness Amos’s warning that “the international community cannot let Darfur slip off the radar”.Bensouda laments the on-going aerial bombardments in Darfur which, she says “can only be attributed to one party in this conflict”.“The use of sexual violence as a weapon of war; the deliberate imposition of restrictions on delivery of humanitarian aid even in the face of an urgent humanitarian crisis; and the on-going impunity for these crimes are major problems for Darfur and for all of us who care about what happens to the Darfuri victims who suffer the brunt of these crimes.”Bensouda cautions that business relations with Sudan, if not monitored carefully, “could have the effect of facilitating, funding and supporting crimes against civilians,” asserting that “normalisation of relations with Sudan should not come at such a high price to victims”.“I have noted in particular the Council’s concern about the actions of some individuals affiliated with the Government of Sudan and armed groups, who continue to commit violence against civilians, impede the peace process, and disregard the demands of the Council.”Bensouda asserts that “those individuals who commit crimes are inherently disinterested in the peace process or the demands of this Council. They do not put the true interests of Sudan first. And as long as they enjoy impunity for the crimes they commit, they will continue to represent a threat to international peace and security”.Ending impunityThe Prosecutor reminded the Council that the reason it referred the situation in Darfur to the ICC in the first place was “to address individual criminal responsibility for the most serious crimes of concern to the international community, with a view to ending impunity”.“We have done our part and it is up to this Council to live up to the legitimate expectations of Darfur’s victims, namely that individuals alleged to be responsible for their daily sufferings are brought to justice,” Bensouda said.“I echo the concerns of the African Union Peace and Security Council, publicised in March 2013, that the Government of Sudan must end impunity in Darfur by bringing all criminals to justice, must arrest and try those suspected of crimes against Unamid, and must facilitate the work of humanitarian organisations and the delivery of aid by cancelling visa restrictions for staff, which has been described as a federal government responsibility.”Bensouda’s statement encourages both the UN and the African Union to work together with her to monitor actual progress in this regard. “We have repeated this call too many times without effect; we cannot simply repeat history in having these discussions. My Office has taken note of some reports of prosecutions of rebels under the Government of Sudan’s anti-terrorism act, but of no real prosecutions of systematic crimes committed by government forces. This cannot be allowed to continue.”She noted recent reports of ICC indictee Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman, also known as Ali Kushayb, with the Sudanese Central Reserve Forces (known as Abu Tira) in clashes in Central Darfur in April 2013. “Witnesses have placed Kushayb at the centre of an attack on the town of Abugaradil, 30 kilometres south of Umm Dukhun, on 8 April, in a government vehicle, together with units from the Central Reserve Police, the Border Guards, and other government-affiliated militia.“My Office has noted many other such incidents in the past; this is part of an on-going pattern… the on-going involvement of ICC indictees Ahmad Haroun and Abdel Rahim Hussein in alleged crimes elsewhere in Sudan. These alleged crimes are of concern to the international community and require urgent and concerted action. Again, this is a question of potential individual criminal responsibility, not of group or organisational responsibility.”Critical analysisBensouda remarked that “the repeated travels of President Bashir, in particular to Chad, are also a matter of concern… this Council has failed to act on any of the seven formal communications from the Judges of the ICC regarding these matters”.The Prosecutor urged the UN to make “a critical analysis” before meeting formally with ICC indictees, for example, the 20-23 May visit of UN OCHA Head Valerie Amos to Khartoum, which included a meeting with ICC indictees President Omar Al Bashir, Abdel Rahim Hussein, and Ahmad Haroun.“While I appreciate the UN’s assessment that the meeting was considered to be strictly required for carrying out essential UN-mandated duties, I strongly encourage the UN to conduct an on-going critical analysis of such contacts. We must ask ourselves whether the gain to the UN is worth the costs of such contact. We must be careful not to embolden fugitives from justice to think that they will be rewarded for manipulating their way into positions of ‘indispensability’ even as they continue to commit crimes.”Bensouda concludes that “the time is long past due for this Council to act with courage and conviction by adopting appropriate measures within its mandate to ensure that Sudan fugitives are brought to justice sooner rather than later.”Photo: Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Fatou Bensouda briefs the Security Council on Wednesday 5 June, on the situation in Darfur, Sudan (UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe)