US calls for implementing recommendations of UN report on S. Kordofan
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August 16, 2011 (WASHINGTON) - The United States on Tuesday welcomed a
report released this week by the United Nations Office of the High
Commissioner for Human Rights which documented events that occurred in
Sudan’s border state of South Kordofan during the fighting that
started last June.
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US Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice (AFP)
The report describes arbitrary arrests, extrajudicial killings,
alleged house-to-house searches and possible mass graves in the state,
which borders both Darfur and the newly created country of South
Sudan.
It stated that the allegations "if substantiated, could amount to
crimes against humanity or war crimes" adding that a probe needs to be
initiated.
"An independent, thorough, and objective inquiry be conducted into
alleged violations of international human rights and humanitarian law
that occurred during the hostilities in Southern Kordofan with a view
to holding perpetrators to account. Immunities of members of the
military and security forces, alleged to have been involved in
violations of international human rights and international
humanitarian law, be lifted to allow for prosecutions and trials in
compliance with due process and fair trial standards" the report said.
Sudan yesterday termed the information contained in the UN report as
“biased and predicated on no evidence.”
Susan Rice, the US ambassador to the United Nations, issued a
statement today welcoming the report and its recommendations.
"The United States welcomes the report of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights on the increasingly dire situation in
Southern Kordofan. We are deeply disturbed by the reports of
extrajudicial killings, attacks on civilians, mass graves, arbitrary
detentions, abductions, house to house searches, forced displacements,
and other clear violations of humanitarian law" Rice said in the press
release.
The US official stressed the need for "immediate, unhindered access
for humanitarian assistance and ongoing human rights monitoring as
well as for an independent inquiry to hold perpetrators of violence to
account".
"We urge all members of the UN Security Council to join us in pressing
for implementation of these recommendations".
It is expected that the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) will
hold a meeting to discuss the report though it is unclear if any
action would be taken. Last week Russia and China quashed US efforts
intended to condemn Sudan’s military campaign and aerial bombardment
in South Kordofan.
Today Sudan’s Justice Minister Mohamed Bushara Dousa issued a decree
to form a committee to "gather information and facts, visit sites of
the displaced and interview them as well as meet with government
authorities and citizens" in Southern Kordofan.
The decree set out terms of reference of the committee in assessing
the human rights situation and international humanitarian law in the
state.
(ST)
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