|
ICC decision to arrest
President Al Bashir |
|
|
|
Cairo, on Marsh 4th 2009 The Arab Center for Independence of the Judiciary and the Legal Profession (ACIJLP), expressed its satisfaction with the decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court, concerning Prosecution’s application of 14 July 2008 for the issuance of a warrant of arrest against the Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Darfur region since 2002, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of unarmed civilians and the displacement of 2.700000 million more than other people, according to the indictment issued by the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court and the United Nations. The Center also finds that the decision to arrest a Head of State, who is still in power, is regarded as a termination of the stage represented in using the diplomatic immunities as a way to hide, and a beginning of a new stage where the diplomatic immunity does not represent the protection of those accused of the most serious crimes, such as war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Center confirms that the presence of the International Criminal Court and the cooperation of the international community with its mechanisms will reduce the culture of impunity, which was the main victim of its proliferation is the basic human rights, and the right to peace and security. While the Center welcomes the adoption of this resolution, it calls on the Sudanese government, in fulfillment of its international obligations and commitments as one of the States Parties to the United Nations, to stand for criminal justice, and not to put the political considerations above considerations of justice and human rights. Furthermore, Sudanese government should cooperate with the International Criminal Court by moving in the direction of delivery of each Mr. - Ahmed Haroon, Mr. Kushayb and the Sudanese President Omar Hasan Ahmad al-Bashir, to the International Criminal Court. The Center calls upon the Sudanese government not to take the reactions of retaliation, which would increase the suffering of the Sudanese people in Darfur, committing new crimes, and to put the priorities and interests of the Sudanese people and their rights and fundamental freedoms, above all considerations. The Center calls upon the international community to support the role of the International Criminal Court, and to activate and implement its decisions regarding the prosecution of the accused persons in the commission of crimes within its jurisdiction, and to prosecute in a just and fair trial, in protection of human rights and to put an end to impunity. The Center believes that this decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber I is a positive step towards achieving the international criminal justice and activating the role of international judicial mechanisms to protect human rights; as the trails of the International Criminal Court restrict to the international standards for fair and just trials to the accused of crimes falling within the scope of its jurisdiction on one hand, and ensure that sentences are to protect the rights of the victims on the other hand. |