France pressed CAR on disinviting Sudan's Bashir as ICC judges calls for his arrest - Sudan Tribune: Plural news and views on Sudan

France pressed CAR on disinviting Sudan's Bashir as ICC judges calls for his arrest - Sudan Tribune: Plural news and views on Sudan

December 1, 2010 (KHARTOUM) – The judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an order today asking the government of the Central African Republic to arrest the Sudanese President Omer Hassan al-Bashir once he arrives for the country’s Golden Jubilee Independence Day celebrations.

President of the Central African Republic Francois Bozize (AFP)

Bashir was close to embarking on the one-day trip which was never made public by state media but reported by the Al-Rayaam pro-government newspaper on Tuesday. The Sudanese leader is wanted by the ICC on charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity he allegedly orchestrated in Darfur.

In a statement, the ICC’s pre-trial chamber said CAR officials should "take all necessary measures to arrest Omar al-Bashir and transfer him to the Court, in the event and at the moment that he arrives in the country’s territory," noting that the CAR has "the obligation to execute" ICC arrest warrants as a state party to the court’s Rome Statute since 2001.

Otherwise the CAR has to inform the judges on why it cannot execute the warrant.

However, the visit by Bashir was confirmed to be cancelled in the early hours of the day for what it turned out to be the result of French pressure.

An aide to CAR President Francois Bozize told Reuters the no show by Bashir followed a long conversation late on Tuesday between Bozize and French Cooperation Minister Henri de Raincourt, who was present.

"I think Bashir’s absence is a result of the conversation between the French minister and the head of state," the aide said. "Not only France finds this invitation very embarrassing but it would cause us big problems if Bashir came."

In Khartoum, a presidential source told Reuters Bashir had decided not to attend the event, without elaborating on the reasons.

Yesterday, a number of rights groups in CAR have urged the government to honor its obligations and arrest Bashir should he enter the country or bar him entry in the alternative. The ICC is currently trying former Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) vice-president Jean-Pierre Bemba on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity for crimes blamed on his militia in the CAR in 2002 and 2003.

The incident is another diplomatic setback for the Sudanese leader who managed to visit two ICC treaty signatories namely Chad and Kenya without being apprehended. Kenya in particular faced heavy international criticism for failing to arrest al-Bashir in August, including from U.S. President Barack Obama. Kenya then ducked out of hosting a regional summit al-Bashir was to attend in October.

This week Libya asked Bashir to stay away from the Africa-EU summit held in Tripoli to avoid a mass walkout by EU members. Khartoum angered by the exclusion cancelled its participation at the gathering on all levels and slammed "hypocrisy" of the European bloc.

One observer told Sudan Tribune that the Sudanese government is particularly concerned over the prospect of having Bashir isolated amongst neighboring countries despite having gained full backing of the African Union against the ICC.

Today the African Union Peace and Security Council called for the suspension of ICC proceedings against Bashir by the UN Security Council (UNSC) in order to ensure implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) between North and South Sudan.

(ST)