Sudanese envoy blasts media over coverage of Bashir’s Nigeria trip
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July 17, 2013 (WASHINGTON) – The Sudanese ambassador in Nigeria Taj
al-Sir Mahjoub today rapped the media over what he said was unfair
focus on president Omer Hassan al-Bashir’s attendance of a health
summit in Abuja this week.
JPEG - 28.8 kb
Sudan’s President Omer al-Bashir takes part in the African Union
Summit on health focusing on HIV/AIDS, TB and malaria in Abuja on July
15, 2013 (PIUS UTOMI EKPEI/AFP/Getty Images)
The Nigerian government decided to receive the Sudanese leader for the
African Union Special Summit on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria,
despite an outstanding arrest warrant for him by the International
Criminal Court (ICC) in connection with war crimes, crimes against
humanity and genocide allegedly committed in Sudan’s western region of
Darfur.
Officials in Abuja said despite being theoretically obliged to execute
the warrant as members of the Hague- based court, they are nonetheless
adhering to an African Union (AU) decision instructing members not to
cooperate with the ICC with regards to Bashir.
Human rights groups condemned Nigeria’s decision saying it is an
affront to victims of the decade-long conflict in Darfur which the
United Nations says has killed 300,000 people and displaced millions
others but which Khartoum disputes and puts the toll at around 10,000.
They also stressed that AU resolutions cannot override Nigeria’s
obligations under the Rome Statute which it became a signatory to in
2001.
But despite rolling out the red carpet for the Sudanese president and
pledging not to apprehend him, Bashir’s stay in Nigeria was abruptly
cut short amid reports that he “fled” over a case filed in a local
court by the Nigeria Coalition on the International Criminal Court
(NCICC) to compel the government to arrest him.
Yesterday, diplomatic sources told Pan-African news agency (PANA) that
the move by NCICC in court was the “last straw” for Bashir prompting
him to rush back home.
A similar trip by Bashir in 2011 to Kenya, another ICC member, without
being arrested prompted a civil society group to file a case in court
which ended up with the issuance of a provisional arrest warrant for
him by a Kenyan judge hat remains in effect till this day.
Sudanese officials said that Bashir had other unspecified engagements
to attend to in Khartoum and that it is not uncommon for presidents to
leave conferences before they is concluded.
On Tuesday, the New York Times (NYT) quoted delegates at the
conference as saying that Bashir abruptly left the room in the middle
of an official lunch on Monday.
Furthermore, during the afternoon session, when Bashir was scheduled
to speak, he could not be found confirming the unexpected nature of
his absence even by the organizers of the conference and the hosts.
The Sudanese ambassador explained Bashir’s absence by saying that he
had a bilateral meeting at the time with Ethiopian Prime Minister
Hailemariam Desalegn.
However, he did not say why his country has not notified the hosts
beforehand on this meeting during his turn to speak.
According to ’This Day’ daily the envoy also said he advised Bashir to
go home to attend to pressing issues between Sudan and South Sudan,
which demanded attention.
Mahjoub also expressed fury that no similar attention was given by the
media to Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta who himself is awaiting trial
at the ICC for his alleged role in the post-election violence of 2007.
However, unlike Bashir, the Kenyan president has cooperated with the
court throughout the process which likely allowed him to avoid the
isolation imposed on his Sudanese peer and as such he was not served
with an arrest warrant.
He also lambasted inaccurate accounts in the media over Bashir’s stay
in Abuja including Nigerian press houses.
"Some said he fled under heavy security, that was totally false. After
he finished his pre-arranged meetings, he went up to his room, had his
mid-day prayers and waited for those that would take him to the
airport: those of us from the embassy and some on the delegation. So,
which heavy security were they talking about?" Mahjoub asked.
“He did not entertain the thought of fleeing Nigeria, he is not a
coward and he would not run away. If he has to face a situation, he
would do so squarely.....The president wanted to continue at the
summit till the next day but we sized up the situation: he attended
the first session, he had met with those he wanted to meet with, had
listened to the interventions, and the remaining summit would not take
more than two hours the next day for the communique," he added.
He also lauded Nigeria’s stance against the ICC warrant and its
refusal to execute it.
"Nigeria, as a responsible part of the AU, would not allow such a
thing to happen. If Nigeria had succumbed to what the ICC wanted, how
can it present itself as a leading figure in Africa," he said.
"The ICC has become a political organ, no doubt about it. The UN
Security Council, three of who are not part of the ICC refused to
intervene in the matter when it was brought before the Council by the
AU," he noted.
On Wednesday, the Nigeria-based The Guardian newspaper interviewed
unnamed AU officials who shed more light on Bashir’s awkward stay in
Abuja.
The AU officials said Bashir left on Monday evening without attending
any of the official sessions of the summit, despite making a brief
appearance at the venue.
“He hurriedly left the VIP room amidst heavy security while the main
conference was going on at the main hall,” the official told the
newspaper.
The newspaper said that Bashir appeared at the International
Conference Centre in Abuja where he was welcomed briefly by President
Goodluck Jonathan before the beginning of the day’s programmes. He,
however, stayed put at the special VIP waiting room provided for
participating heads of states, Presidents, Health Ministers and top AU
officials.
“He was not available when he was called to make presentation, neither
did he participate in the group pictures. He did not also attend the
dinner hosted by President Goodluck Jonathan on Monday evening” the AU
official said.
“The only public appearance he made was when President Goodluck
Jonathan stepped out to welcome him to the conference centre. He
relocated to the VIP room and hurriedly left later after a meeting
with host President Jonathan; Chairperson of the African Union, Dr.
Hailemariam Dessalegn and Chairperson of the African Union Chairperson
Commission, Dr. Nkosazana Zuma and a few other officials” he added.
The source said the decision for the Sudanese President to leave the
Conference Centre without attending any of the official sessions might
have been reached to reduce the ‘overbearing heat’ from the
international community over his presence.
The United States, EU and Britain have all issued statements
criticizing Nigeria for hosting Bashir this week.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) welcomed what it perceived as the fruits of
civil society pressure forcing the Sudanese leader to rush home.
"Business as usual is over for this head of state suspected of the
most serious crimes committed in Darfur. Al-Bashir faced intense
pressure for his arrest from local activists when he tried to visit
Nigeria, including court action. Moreover, the examples of former
Liberian president Charles Taylor and Bosnian Serb military commander
Ratko Mladic, who were surrendered for international trial for grave
crimes after years of safe haven, show that the highest-level
fugitives can and do ultimately face justice. But Nigeria and other
governments should better play their part in securing his arrest as
soon as possible. The victims deserve to see justice done and he
belongs in custody" HRW Associate Director at International Justice
Program Elise Keppler said yesterday.
(ST)
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