Sudan did not suspend Red Cross, says official
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March 25, 2014 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan's commissioner of humanitarian aid,
Suleiman Abdel-Rahman, has accused the International Committee of the
Red Cross (ICRC) of obscuring the government's measures which were
applied against it recently.
JPEG - 74.7 kb
ICRC trucks arrive carrying food, seeds and farming tools to be
distributed to families in and around Jebel Marra (Photo: ICRC)
Abdel-Rahman said at a press conference on Tuesday that ICRC has
obfuscated measures applied by his commission against it, pointing the
ICRC's legal advisor has arrived in Khartoum on top of a delegation to
sign the amended agreement with Sudan's foreign ministry.
He stressed that Sudanese authorities did not suspend ICRC activities
even for a single hour, announcing that consultations to adjust its
positions are underway with its officials who arrived in Khartoum last
week.
The Sudanese official said he expects that ICRC would be able to carry
out its normal activities after signing the amended agreement.
Last February, the Sudanese government suspended the work of the ICRC
saying that the latter needs to comply with the humanitarian work
guidelines and the voluntary work law in order to continue its
activities in the country.
A spokesman for the organization's office in Khartoum at the time said
that Humanitarian Aid Commission (HAC) sent them a letter asking them
to suspend their activities until they comply with certain conditions.
He said that among these stipulations is placing the ICRC budget and
funds at the disposal of the Sudanese Red Crescent and not to
undertake any activity on the ground before informing Sudanese
authorities about its nature and timing.
The ICRC began working in Sudan in 1978 according to its website. The
organization says it is helping people affected by the conflict in
Darfur, providing seed, tools, food and water and re-establishing
contact between people separated by the fighting.
The ICRC also promotes international humanitarian law and the
protection of civilians affected by the conflict.
In a related context, Abdel-Rahman noted the number of IDPs who fled
the recent military escalation in North Darfur state reached 101,141,
stressing that 6,000 of them have voluntarily returned to their
villages.
He affirmed there is currently 63 foreign aid groups operating in
Darfur compared to 208 groups in 2006, attributing it to the
improvement of humanitarian situation in the region.
Abdel-Rahman pointed to presidential directives to reconstruct what
war has destroyed in North Darfur state particularly service
institutions.
In a separate issue, the commissioner underscored adherence to the
tripartite initiative between Sudan's government, United Nations, and
the Arab League to deliver humanitarian assistance to areas controlled
by the SPLM-N.
He criticized the SPLM-N rejection of the initiative, pointing the
latter signed the tripartite initiative prior to the government
signing.
Abdel-Rahman noted that the UN delegation which recently visited
Khartoum had assessed the situation at Atash camp for IDPs, saying the
visit promotes trust, coordination, and cooperation with various UN
agencies.
He said the UN delegation hailed government efforts to secure
humanitarian work, noting that Khartoum awaits completion of the peace
process to deliver aid to areas controlled by the SPLM-N in South
Kordofan and Blue Nile.
Meanwhile, the director of organizations at HAC, Ali Adam, denied
banning the French aid group Agency for Technical Cooperation and
Development (ACTED), saying HAC's technical team in Central Darfur
state had assessed performance of the latter group against its 2012
and 2013 against its large budgets and the state's government decided
to stop its activities due to poor impact of its projects.
Immediately after the first arrest warrant of the International
Criminal Court (ICC) against Sudan's president Omer Al-Bashir in March
2009, Sudan expelled 13 aid groups from Darfur accusing it of
collaborating with the war crime courts.
Since then, the activities of foreign aid group in Darfur are strictly
controlled and more organizations were evicted through the years.
Sudan refuses to allow new aid groups to work in the region.
The government also banned the access of foreign groups to the
rebel-held areas in South Kordofan and Blue Nile as well as the
establishment of camps for the displaced civilians, stressing the
experience of Darfur camps should not be repeated in the two states.
(ST)
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