The Zambian government has described as ill-timed and ill-motivated, the indictment of President Omar Hassan al-Bashir of Sudan by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Foreign Affairs Minister Kabinga Pande says this is because despite the numerous obstacles in the way of the search for peace in Darfur, there is currently underway an all-inclusive political process sponsored by the United Nations (UN) and the African Union (UN).
Mr. Pande notes that the success of all peace initiatives depends on the cooperation of all parties, including the Government of Sudan.
This is contained in a statement released to ZANIS in Lusaka today on Mr. Pande’s address to the ministerial meeting of the AU Peace and Security Council, held in Addiss Ababa, Ethiopia, early this week.
Mr. Pande said the timing of the indictment and any further moves to pursue it are not in the best interest of the Darfur and other UN-supported peace process in that country.
He said any further moves by the Chief Prosecutor of the ICC to obtain an international warrant against the President of Sudan should hence be suspended together with any already issued warrant against other members of the leadership in that country.
Mr. Pande said many African countries are troubled by the selective manner in which the ICC has been targeting and charging persons accused of crimes against humanity
He said while supports whole-heartedly the court’s activities against impunity, she has trouble comprehending, let alone supporting some of the methods it employs in its operations as well as its timing of cases and motives behind that,” he said.
He said it has been observed that the focus of its investigations has been African despite common knowledge that such crimes are being committed all over the world and by some powerful nations.
Mr. Pande added that the targeting of sitting African Heads of State is particularly offensive.
“For this and other reasons, we find the Court’s indictment of President Omar Al-Bashir of the Sudan improper, ill-timed and ill-motivated. It is our view that the activities of the International Criminal Court on the Sudan constitutes a paradox. This is because the Court is sponsored by the UN, but can be seen to be working against the UN interests in that country,” Mr Pande said.
ENDS/AM/BMK/ZANIS
iwe a pande pakanwa. leave the sudanese alone. why does Zambia want to comment on everything. after having an egg face from the Zimbabwe issue we now want to jump and go to Sudan. why?????
blarr blarr blarr, be careful u dont know levys position on the ICC? One thing i know is Black Sudanese have been targeted by the so called White Arabs…and the President is claimed to have organised the thugs????
We should not always talk even when we have a mouth, i agree with Anonoymous
That’s the mighty problem we have; We never take time to rationally assess situations before midlessly identifying ourselves with people who have committed atrocious crimes.
To me it doesn’t look ill timed; It is high time the sitting president needed to be shown the red card by the international community before situations worsen. The man even made a rare visit to Darfur after this indictment. He doesn’t care for the many lives that are being lost there and is directly responsible for the atrocities. If he did care he could have shown more political will; if he was not behind this, he should have been more forceful against the Arab Janjaweed militias.
Why can’t Bush be arrested as well? al-Bashir and Bush have similar policies which have victimized minorities..
It pays to keep quite iwe Pande don’t talk just becoz u have a mouth
#6 Are you an arab or black african?
it’s none our business let the west africans deal with it.
the reason for the acusation has somthing to do with the oily relationship sudan and china. now by speaking against the indictment, zambia wants to remain in the favour of china. we are in a dilemma. on one hand we receive aid from america, and on the other we are for china. i wonder what happened to the non aligned movement.
can we leave the sudan issue alone
what are the nigerians doing about so called super power of west africa?
it
AU seeks to delay Al-Bashir indictment
Argaw Ashine
Daily Monitor correspondent
Addis Ababa
The African Union Peace and Security Council gathered in Addis Ababa on Monday and asked the UN Security Council to postpone the indictment of Sudan president Omar Hassan Al-Bashir.
AU Security Council chairman and Nigerian Foreign Affairs Minister Ojo Madueke said, after a Council closed-door session, that the AU would ask the International Criminal Court to delay the indictment by one year because of the ongoing peace effort in Darfur.
“The council expressed its strong conviction that the search for justice should be pursued in a way that does not impede or jeopardise efforts aimed at promoti
Is Sudan in West Africa? I thought it is in North Africa. Please advise or I have forgotten my Social Studies 25 years after grade 7.
#does not know where Sudan is.
why should he shut up when he has something to say or add?
actually his statement in summary he is saying we dont want to parttake in any matter, that is why does not want to support the indictment of the president.
if dont speak out for one another, you may endup being alone. so let him speak out
#12 does not know where Sudan is.
Concetrate on domestic issues when your leader is recovering.
pande please, let the sudan issue rest we have a numebr of issues to tackle in Zedi…. drought, levy’s illness, starvation… GOD please help pande keep quite!!!!!
#12 I do, nigeria is closer to sudan than we are ,so why are they not dealing with it.
The western super powers concentrate on Africa because of Africa’s poor governance and further, it’s much easier to fight China indirectly on African soil.
#12
sudan is in the middle of east and west africa!
Sudan could be in the mido of East and West Africa, but it is under North African countries grouping. Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Moroc and others are better placed to comment!!!
Sundan is in congo
its actually considered north east. its not even in the middle coz it has a coastline
It is dissappointing that Mr Pande could take such a stance on the charges laid against Al Bashir. The Prosecutor has charged Al Bashir with the most abominable offences known to human kind: gang rapes and killings of women and girsl for no other reason than the fact that they are black. Mr Bashir organised fake demonstrations hoping to blunt his shame. This is indefensible. The motivation of the ICC is irrelevant and criminals cannot be protected by dint of not ‘being the only ones”. The UN Security Council may by resolution postpone a case for one year and while this postponement may be renewed, it is unlikely that it will happen.
Pande you are lucky Mwanawasa is ill, this is what got VJ and Chitala fired. I know Zambia is concerned about the safety of our troops who are there under UN but use diplomatic ways or withdraw our soldiers since the situation is now becoming dangerous with the indictment.
This is a lesson to all African dictators that they are not beyond the reach of international Criminal Justice. Not even the fact that Sudan is not party to the ICC statute will save Al Bashir. There are now innovative ways in international criminal law to bring people like Al Bashir to justice. Someone asked why Bush cannot be brought before the ICC, the answer is simple. Who will lay the cahreges against the US knowing full well the clout it has within the UN System and even if it came to that they would veto any such move at UNSC level.
As Africans we need to start distancing ourselves from people involved in such heinous acts. For those of you who have not seen the application by the prosecutor, the charges against Al Bashir are so horrendous that even the most impervious people to human rights violations would be moved. The time has come for us all to see that there wont be any more happy endings for leaders who took people for granted and thought that they were above the law. Thank God, this kind of indictment will never be made against our dear LPM
Al Bashir’s janjaweed have killed over 300 000 Black Africans and over 2.5 million have been driven out of their homes into treacherous terrain where they will die of starvation. Al Bashir wants to end the histroy of the Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa people: People like most of us on this blog and it boggles the mind that a fellow black African Mr Pande should jump to Al bashir’s defence. What more damage can an indictment cause Sudan when so much has already been done. The Prosecutor must be commended that in a world where it appears blacks are expendable, there are people who stand up for the truth
Omar al Bashir is a racist just like apartheid! He does not deserve any sympathy from Zed. The war against SPLM and now Dafur is about nothing but racism. So r u telling me that sudenly Zambians r arabs suporting the arab thugs who r raping and killing our brothers just because they have kinky hair, thick lips and broad noses? To hell with this, not on our behalf. Let the arab league do their talking, we should either openly support the prosecutor or at best keep quiet, for the position we r taking is as good as taking our brothers to the gallows for execution by the Janjaweed! Imwe a Bashir ******* ****!
# 32, that’s very sensible.
This iss a respnse to a person calling himself “CHANSALI MP 2011”, you must know that Zambia is not made Bembas alone and that Zambia is Luapula or Northern Province. Zambia has 78 tribes and 9 Provinces. Bembas think they can bully every one around but they must know that, “you can fool some people sometimes but you can not fool all the people every time.” Tell that MICHAEL SATA of yours that his time he could have become Zambia’s President passed in 2006. He does not possess the qualities which Zambians are looking for in a President, let him try farming now.
Go to the streets, markets, Bars and other recreation centers and hear what people are saying about that SATA of yours then you w
We have our own domestic issues to deal with; Sudan is a major trading partner with china and also invests here! Who cares about the west! It’s because of there trade polices that we are poor.
For every penny we get in aid they steal 100!.
Pande can you please shut up.
The best way to kill a snake is to strike it on the head. The Sudanese president and his officials must be brought to book.
They have let an ongoing genocide against innocent blacks in the oil rich Dafur region and must be punished for not acting when they know the genocide is still going on. Why are you supporting Sudan, is it because China also supports Sudan and is the biggest arms supplier to Sudan.
Clarify for us a little. I smell a rat.
#34 Good stuff…
#21. ONE ZAMBIA ONE NATION
You should be asking why Egypt isn’t doing anything not Nigeria.
Nigeria is too far from Sudan.
#23. Dr. Kabwela Kumanda
Sudan is in North Africa. South of Egypt and East of Chad.
#34 you must be out of your mind.i have never heard of chansali from the bembas.chinsali would sit well.next time you want to write something please have your uncle by your side.
I fully concure with 34. These chaps think this country is made up of 2 tribes only! Who’s Sata after all and where’s he been all this time?
#34 you must have skipped history and geography.your show of ignorance is such a threat to this forum.
This country has more than 11million people why should we have 5 families running our affairs for the last 44years. You’re either a Mwanakatwe, chipimo, mwaanga munkombwe ya! Awe mwee!!
Bush and blaire are to blame for Dalfour. Why did this issue only worsen after oil was dicovered in that part of sudan boardering dalfour ?. They knew they had no chance of sudan oil with al-bashire so they incited the locals to rebel. Just like the kurds in iraq. I think the African leaders know this. Bush throws arrest warrants at any one who dosent what to play his game, thank god he is going.
People must learn to think outside the box. Shaa!
#35. ONE ZAMBIA ONE NATION
You are lying.
Zambia trades more with the west (Switzerland in particular) than it does with any other country.
It even trades more with Switzerland than it does with China. It’s major importing partners are South Africa, UAE and Zimbabwe whereas it’s major exporting partners are Switzerland, China, UK, Tanzania. Sudan is not even on the list.
Stop lying and making these little asinine comments. Do some research. Stop showing your ignorance.
Why all these tribal issues and tissues?.sata does not speak for me.i don’t care if a bemba becomes president.
i agree with #46,lets not be like the three stupid cattle that let the lion to eat them one by one.We are all Africans(black Africans)we are all in danger of the next attack.If all our leaders keeps quiet Africa is going nowhere but in vain
#47, It’s a breather to finally have someone who actually talks facts! Bloggers are fond of lying through their teeth just to popularize some akaike ‘idealist’ view.
And you Mpande, leave us out of Sudan…let us be with our ‘STABLE’ state.
#32, You’re very right…only people with keen and not politically motivated interest get to understand that ‘Dafur’ is all about racial dominance by Arabs and nothing else.
i meant China thanks for the correction…
#47
Sudan supplies china oil in exchange for arms and china invests in ZED.
#47 #50,simple mistake..
Why you Zambians so timid? Let Pande speak out for Zambians. He should also call for George Bush to be arrested for war crimes in Iraq. Thousandas of Iraqis have died as a result of George W. Bush actions. Lets hear it Mr. Pande….
#56 George Bush is GOD,one rule for him and another for the rest of us.
Time out for Ba Mwine of Sudan. Black sudanese without any ounce of arabic blood have been subjected to so much atrocities just for being indegenous. Can someone explain the curse of being black and african? Let the man be prosecuted.
#58 read on the curse of ham and the great chain of being.
thanks #59. will do coz it really bothers me.
I think its `a step in the right direction.People must answer for the crimes they have commited.Pande is in entitled to his own opinion over the issue .however the manner in which he said it is damaging for our country as the opinion expressed seems to represent the views of an entire nation.
Unfortunately thats the average credability of the leaders we have elected currently….Very shamefull comments indeed made without any thoughts to the repacations whatsoever
Zed shouldn’t act to impress china,we need to define our values as a nation.Careful with the chinese regime they only be friend african heads of state and dontmind about nationals(Mugabe received weapons to whack his pipo from china the same forsudan). China is not even a good investor,they have brought prisoners from china to provide the labour in chambeshi.watch them with their bad human rights record!
God bless the poor and spare them from lack of everything. God save Africa and spare it from ignorance. Soon God, soon please.
Teach us the difference between what is wrong and what is right.
Send us hope. Give us strength.
Be our non-political friend.
Goodnight
What u have witnessed is like protecting the Apartheid era in South Africa, who ever gave us such a position is a stupid *****..that government is killing black african because of their skin and we are going to protect them?
its all about oil!!!..what a world we live in if we value oil above human life!!!
The ICC should start with Bush. It is surely unfair to target African leaders only. Thank you Zambian Government for proper judgement.
Do not criticise chinese investment. Kabili, ndimwe bopwalala. You are poor. Why keep the resources unexploited. The problem is that we, Zambian, we like talking too much. We are so lazy. We have all the resources but we can not our own affairs. Dont blame the chinese. Infact, they are doing more good for us. By the way, who is sponsoring the rebels in Durfor?
#59. ONE ZAMBIA ONE NATION
If the curse is meant for us. Can someone please explain to me why we (Africans) are Christians when the same ideology hates us and cursed us. This does not make any sense to me.
Non of the western leaders have been brought to book.So they want to start with the africans?What about Bliar,Bush and now Brown who will bring them to justice over Iraq and Afghanistan and 911(in side job)?
God help us we are deceived.
ICC my foot, when nationals of the US cannot be tried there, comeon guys who are they fooling???
#57, please, in your blog posts, leave out comparing a human being to our good Lord GOD – the Creator and Owner of everything in the Universe. Nothing is impossible with God, but human beings have linitations in what they can do.
#68, please show me the quotation where “the same ideology hates us and cursed us” – supposedly Christianity – from the Holy Bible.
TREAT EVERYONE WITH POLITENESS
EVEN THOSE WHO ARE RUDE TO YOU,
NOT BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT NICE
BUT BECAUSE YOU ARE NICE to them..
-unknown.
“One Zambia, one Nation.”
All in the head of man – EVIL
Yeah,ma monks should say somethin’ to prove tht govt is stable even without Levy
#57 don’t be an *****…Use small g instead of G
Give us the ability to see ourselves as others see us.
Let each of us do something good for someone else each day of our short lives.
Learn what is right and teach it.
Know what is wrong and teach that also.
Live a good life and you will live forever.
The ICC should start with George W. Bush and his gang of criminals / terrorists.
God help the American people not to vote for terrorists.
In Europe, Radovan Karadzic the fugitive Serbian leader accused of genocide and crimes against humanity has just been arrested by the ICC. Because European leaders know his guilt, none of them is defending this monster. In contrast, in Africa, a monster called Al Bashir of Sudan commits the same sort of offences and you have the AU and so – called leaders like Kabinga Pande (whose knowledge of foreign affairs is seriously shallow) jumping to his defense. What sort image of Africa are we projecting to the rest of the world?
I was in the capital of Sudan in 2006 and was almost arrested for getting a picture of the confluence of white and Blue Nile…I agree that the ICC needs to be seen to be democratic why blame the deads on the sudanese Presidnt when Bush has killed alot of poeple in Iraq a war not sanctioned by the UN?
Guys, why are you getting your panties wet over complex issues? You can’t fix a pot-hole in Mtendere and you want to talk about ICC and the Darfur?
*****s.
Can somebody tell the Foreign Affairs Minister Kabinga Pande to shut up but instead concentrate on internal affairs of this country. He should leave SADC and African Union spokesperson(s) to make such comments.
Iwe Kabinga keep quite you do`nt even know LPM`s position. Efi leleta ama strock ifya ku landalanda pa ba nenu. As if you yourselves are clean.Electro mulpractices in Zambia must be addressed not commenting on our friends issues as if we are better
Mr. Pande is not is even concerned about the Zambian peace keepers who are in Sudan, coz if he was he should have kept quite on this matter. He should be told that the Zambian peace keepers are in the South were everybody wants Al Bashir to be arrested for what he has done, now for him to come out and say the opposite of the Southerners does not show concern for the troops. Mind you, the south is not armless, they have all the weaponary that a modern army of Africa has. And the Zambian troops are right up there were tempers are high. Mpande be careful! They have already been subjected to undue threats by the south.
Can some one explain to me y black Africans have keept quite when our black brothers and sisters are being killed in SUDAN? Is it becoz ARABS are more powerful on the African continent COZ OF OIL WEALTH. What exactly is the problem in Sudan? IF black Africans were in solidarity during the apartheid in SA, What is the problem with current crop of African leaders? people with full knowledge on this issue i need ur comments
#57 can you stop blaspheming, are you sure Bush can be likened to God? You are also talking like Mpande, avoid saying things that you have little knowledge on.#61 Has a very good point, #69 Are you in touch with current affairs, are you sure there is no one from the west who has been indicted.
Can somebody tell me, is it an offence in our Zambian government to keep quite on issues that you are not sure of? Is it true that this is the position of our Zambia gov.on the ICC. If it is true, then I pity those guys(Zambian P/Keepers) in Southern Sudan. God help them, so that the SPLA and JEM dont get wind of it.
Mpande’s comment is like going aganist an African adage which says “Don’t insult a crocodile while your legs are still in water” You still have your people in Sudan, South in particular and you say such things. Maybe he has believed some minister who told the nationa that Zambian troops are very very far from were war is. Ask them (soldiers) they will tell you…
Hon Kabinga Mpande may be right in certain issues but he must realise that the world is always against the economically poor countries.Bush could have faced the Hague but he controls the world so…he survives.The fact that African leaders are defended should not encourage them to commit atrocities that we see in most african states.Human Rights violations are a crime,period.
We as Zambia are a developing country so we need to mind the relations we creaye and those we destroy on our path to development.Mind you sudan has 2 UN missions,so the rebels may take it that all Zambians are not neutral in administering peace in their country.
Let me end here, salama lekum.
#68 Because Ham was the father of black people, and because he and his descendants were cursed to be slaves because of his sin against Noah, some Christians said, “Africans and their descendants are destined to be servants, and should accept their status as slaves in fulfillment of biblical prophecy.”
Now there existed a myth of inferiority with apparent biblical roots. This theological basis provided the raw material necessary to convince the slaves that to resist their assigned inferior status was to resist the will of God. This myth became an authoritative myth because it was rooted in theology, and slave owners used this twisted theology to sustain a perverted sociology.
This process is known as sacralization, the development of theological and religious beliefs to serve the interest of a particular ethnic or racial group.
I knew that something did not sound right about the curse of Ham theory when I first heard it as a teenager. A white minister was giving me the biblical reason why my people and I had to endure the humiliation of American racism. Because I couldn’t prove otherwise and because my favorite Bible, the famous Old Schofield Reference Bible (5), which had become the official version of American fundamentalism, endorsed the curse of Ham theory, I had little recourse other than to accept it. After all, those promoting it were “trained” in the
Bible and theology at the finest fundamentalist institutions in our country-institutions, by the way, that at that time would not allow blacks to enroll as students. With the endorsement of the Old Schofield Bible, coupled with the legal status of American segregation, the myth was firmly established and embedded in the American psyche.
Never mind, of course, that the Bible says that Canaan, Ham’s son, was cursed, not Ham himself. Thus, only one of Ham’s four sons, not all four, were cursed. How then could all black people everywhere be cursed?
Never mind that the Bible places limitations on curses-only three or four generations at most (Ex. 20:5).
This is certainly sufficient to negate the Christian endorsement of the American enslavement of black Christians.
Myths, however, do not need facts; they simply need supporters. Because the myth of inferiority needed as much theological support as possible to make it stick, some Christians turned to the New Testament to corroborate the Old Testament verses on masters and slaves. These people quoted biblical passages on slaves submitting to their masters (e.g., Eph. 6:5-8; Col. 3:22)to contemporize the myth to the economic framework of the New World.
The Puritans were attempting to turn America into the “city set on a hill,” the manifestation of the prophesied kingdom of God on earth.
Slavery provided an economic base for implementing this theology, even among some of the theological and religious heroes of the colonial era. Some of the noted New England leaders who endorsed this perspective of slavery were George Whitefield, John Davenport, Evera Styles, and Jonathan Edwards. (6) They attempted to teach the slaves to docilely accept their inferior status, for to do so was the will of God. To fail to do so was to rebel against God and risk eternal punishment. (7)
With this comprehensive “biblical” strategy, the myth of inferiority took theological wings. These Christians forgot that the apostle Paul told masters to treat converted slaves as equal brothers in Christ (P
(Philem. 1:15-16). They forgot that the apostle Paul said that slaves had the right to try to change their status (1 Cor. 7:21). And they forgot that the masters’ authority over slaves was limited.
It was not within the mater’s rights to treat a slave in an inhumane manner. Masters were to apply the Golden Rule to slaves and were not to treat them as children of a lesser god. The God who rules both heaven and earth will show no partiality to those who commit evil against humankind, whether slave or free.
The colonial Christians forgot Paul’s writing to the Ephesians, which says, “For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, h
having abolished in His flesh the enmity” (Eph. 2:14-15). Barriers no longer exist between people’s fellowship with God or each other, Paul said,
They forgot the biblical truth that to be members of the body of Christ means that preferences based on class, culture, or race are totally unacceptable to God, and people who make such preferences are candidates for His judgment (James 2:9-13). Such biblical data, however, would not support the inferiority myth. Adding such biblical references would be telling the whole truth, and truth and myth do not mix very well. Therefore, early Americans had to be selective about what Bible verses to use to establish a theological basis to justify slaver
ry and perpetuate the inferiority myth.
Pande is supporting Al Bashir whose government has butched and misplaced many blacks but has been one of the anti Mugabe campaigners
#71 god to the american is GOLD ,OIL & DRUGS.Book of Genesis 9:20-27 ,is the verse you asked for have fun.
Yes, yes, bloggers, yes, yes, everything will be done according to what you say.
Iwe ka pande walaba ati ukusabaila ekwaletelele Nevers Mumba ukumutafya inchito. Na iwe LPM nga abwele akesa kutafyapofye inchito.
Get the guy dance to his own tunes,how many more innocent people should die.It´s high tym Mpande put his mind on wht is happening in Zed and let the ICC do it´s job.We don´t need no more truble,make Zed a perfect place and not concetrating on Sudan.
You are f*************d
Is it our Cabinet’s position or Mpande is just expressing his oppinion? Whatever it is, it’s in bad taste. Mpande shoud learn from what happened to Nevers Mumba and Mbita Chitala.
One Zambia One Nation thankyou for the detailed analysis.
The list is short G.W Bush, D.Cheney, Rumsfeld, Col. Powell must face IC to exculpate themselves for murder of more than 875,000 innocent Iraqis.
i do believe a certain Middle Eastern country was/is invaded without Security Council mandate…doesn’t the tens of thousands innocent civilians killed in the process also constitute a crime against humanity??The indictment of Bashir is fine ONLY if the same “courtesy” could be extended across the board.The legitimacy of the so-called ICC action is therefore brought into question.I’m no foreign affairs expert but our ministers comment may have some substance!!
Over 300 thousand Arab speaking Africans were targeted and Killed in Darfur at the hands of Govt sponsored militias and the Sudanese Air force. It is a paraodox for Zambia to shield Al Bashir from this Genocide and yet support the West on their campaign on dehumanize Mugabe, When all know that the west is responsible for the root courses of the misery in Zimbabwe while Sudanese conflict is a pure creation of the authorities
Dweeb you are welcome.
One Zambia, One Nation you have shared sense there (I nearly added for once…)Big up bro
# 85 All groups involved in the conflicts are Black Africans, However some people are labelled Arabs because they belonged to the Normadic tribe who frequently mixed with some Arabs around year 13-1500 adopted the Arab culture while the Fur and other groups were agriculturists who did not mix much with Arabs. Today all groups in Darfur are all Arab speaking. Being Arabic in Darfur is a social construct. All Govts in Sudan have promoted the Arabic Identity . Similary in Zambia most from the Northern part of Zambia have refered to themselves as Bembas when some are Lundas, Lambas,etc. The Identity of being Luvale or lushazi was considered not cool.
Conflict in Sudan is black on black
Masamba Asiyana and others all this talk about Bush & Co, Read Second Chance: Three Presidents and the Crisis of American Superpower, by “Zbigniew Brzezinski”.
Pande got an O.K. from State House before making the remark. Leadership vacuum is taking its toll
omar should be arrested,,african leaders are taking us for a ride,,they think being president is family or personal position
african union is agains the indictment. Zambia is part of the AU. it follows therefore that pande had to say somthing in line with the position of the AU.
Omar Hassan al-Bashir is the President of Sudan. He came to power in 1989 when, as a colonel in the Sudanese army, he led a group of officers who ousted the democratically elected government of Prime Minister Sadeq al-Mahdi.[1]
In October 2004, al-Bashir’s government negotiated an end to the Second Sudanese Civil War, one of the longest-running and deadliest wars of the 20th century, by granting limited autonomy to Southern Sudan. Since then, however, his government has been widely criticised for its role in the Darfur conflict. In July 2008, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court accused al-Bashir of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur, and requested that the court issue a warrant for his arrest.
The west want Omar arrested because he is supplying the Chinese with oil! They don’t about Darfur.
care
Al-Bashir was born on January 1, 1944 in the village of Hoshe Bannaga, Sudan, then part of the Kingdom of Egypt and Sudan. He received his primary education there, and his family later moved to Khartoum, where he completed his secondary education. Al-Bashir joined the Sudanese Army at a young age and studied at the Egyptian Military Academy in Cairo. He quickly rose through the ranks and became a paratrooper. Later, al-Bashir served with the Egyptian Army during the October War of 1973.[3] He is a native speaker of the Arabic language
Al-Bashir is married to his cousin Fatma Khaldid. He also has a second wife named Widad, who had a number of children with her first husband who died in a helicopter crash. Al-Bashir does not have any children of his own.
When he returned to the Sudan, Al-Bashir was put in charge of military operations against the Sudan People’s Liberation Army in the southern half of the country.[citation needed] Then a colonel, in 1989 Al-Bashir led a group of army officers in ousting the unstable coalition government of Prime Minister Sadeq al-Mahdi.[1] Under Al-Bashir’s leadership, the new military government suspended political parties and introduced an Islamic legal code on the national level.[5]
In 1999, Al-Bashir and the Parliament made a law which allowed limited political associations in opposition to Al-Bashir and his supporters to be formed, although these groups failed to gain any significant access to governmental power.[citation needed] On December 12, 1999, Al-Bashir sent troops and tanks against parliament and ousted Hassan al-Turabi, the speaker of parliament, in a palace coup.[7]
[edit] Civil war
Sudan has experienced a civil war that raged between the northern and southern halves of the country for over 19 years. The war resulted in millions of southerners being displaced, starved, and deprived of education and health care.[citation needed] Because of these actions, various international sanctions were placed on Sudan. International pressure intensified in 2001, however, and leaders from the United Nations called for Al-Bashir to make efforts to end the conflict and allow humanitarian and international workers to deliver relief to the southern regions of Sudan.[citation needed] Much progress was made throughout 2003, and in early 2004 Al-Bashir agreed to grant autonomy to the south
six years, split the country’s oil revenues with the southern provinces,[8] and allow the southerners to vote in a referendum of independence at the end of the six year period.[9]
As the conflict in the south of Sudan began to subside, a new conflict started in the western province of Darfur in early 2003. About 300,000 people have died and 5 million people have been forced from their homes, and are still under attack from government-backed Janjaweed militia.[10]
The United States Government claimed in September 2004 “that genocide has been committed in Darfur and that the Government of Sudan and the Janjaweed bear responsibility and that genocide may still be occurring.”[11] Al-Bashir d
Al-Bashir declared that the government had quashed the rebellion in February 2004, but rebels still operate within the region and the death toll continues to rise.[citation needed] On June 29, 2004, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell met with Al-Bashir in Sudan and urged him to make peace with the rebels, end the crisis, and lift restrictions on the delivery of humanitarian aid to Darfur.[12] Kofi Annan met with Al-Bashir three days later and demanded that he disarm the Janjaweed.[13]
In September 2006, Al-Bashir attended the UN General Assembly in New York and asserted that Sudan wants the African Union to stay in Darfur until peace is re-established.[citation needed] Shortly afterward
A high-level technical consultation was held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on 11-12 June 2007, pursuant to the 4 June 2007 letters of the Secretary-General and the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, which were addressed to President Omar Al-Bashir.[14] The technical consultations were attended by delegations from the Government of Sudan, the African Union and the United Nations.[15]
On 14 July 2008, the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Luis Moreno-Ocampo, alleged that al-Bashir bore individual criminal responsibility for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes committed since 2003 in Darfur.[2] The prosecutor accused al-Bashir of having “masterminded and implemented” a plan to destroy the three main ethnic groups, the Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa, with a campaign of murder, rape and deportation. The evidence was submitted to three judges who will decide whether to issue an arrest warrant.[16] If formally charged, al-Bashir would be the first sitting head of state charged by the ICC.[17] Bashir has rejected the charges and said, “Whoever h
“Whoever has visited Darfur, met officials and discovered their ethnicities and tribes … will know that all of these things are lies.”[18]
Our African Govmnts lead by AU keep on disappointing African people. African Govmts esp AU must speak against Human right abuses where it appears on this continet. BUT some African ‘Leaders’ choise to defend Mugabe and Al-bashir..This is the reason why our continet is the least developed. Development is anchored on sound democratic principles. You don’t need to visit Darfur to know about this. By the way the crime charges against Al-Bashir was a curve ball to mad-man Mugabe. As soon Mugabe heard about pending crime charges for Al-bashir, He rushed to negotiating Table.
Pande has got nothing to do.
Al Bashir is a thug. Let him hang at the Hague, alaa.
Just blame his advisors on the African Desk at Foreign Affairs as Pande simply reads what he he is given. They are ill-advisors with no education, background or experience in political science or international relations. This is taking positions by guess work!!
What the Foreign Ministers is always part of foreign Policy. It sad that a Country can shield a Genocider. The decision by the AU security committee does not mean that all countries should agree, It will only be abide by it. Botwsana, Bukina Fasa,Nigeria, Liberia do not agree with the AU resolution on Zimbambwe. They still continue to undermine despite an AU resolution . Bukina Faso went to the extent of voting for Zim Sanctions at AU. Nigeria is on record to having indicated last week that they do not recognise Mugabe as a Head of State, Liberia and Bukina Faso soon after AU meeting. AU resolution do not make part of policies of National states
What the foreign minister says….
National States agreed through the United Nations to adhere and implement international arrest warrant. despite the resolution from the AU, Al Bashir is gone, He will not last for a long time as Head of state. Immunity does not count on Genocide charges. The AU has just requested to postpone the arrest warrant. The maximum to postpone an arrest warrant is 12 months. An indictment once issued can not be withdrawn. But Pande seems to not to be aware of the AU resolution and the Genocide law.
Northerns are thiefs that causes tribalism,they should also be reported to animal rights group for eating monkeys!.
I was taught in my profession that when you write down the name of a place, country, individual, organisation etc. you must double check the spelling and learn the correct pronounciation to the best of your ability. At a social level you should try to remember the names of individuals and address them by their names. It is called respect and courtesy.
#136 Hopefully you did not bleach your brain as well.
Pande has lost it
Karadic was arrested and now its gona be Bashir because he is very foolish for killinh innocent blacks while he is also a black . Africa should learn the next after Bashir is Mugabe so that we learn to keep peace. Abash Pande myopic Foreign Policy.
Karadic was arrested and now its gona be Bashir because he is very foolish for killinh innocent blacks while he is also a black . Africa should learn the next after Bashir is Mugabe so that we learn to keep peace. Abash Pande myopic Foreign Policy.
Sansakuwa Kanjangu says: Jul 26th, 2008 at 5:20 am
It is an astonishing kind of hereditary stupidity that sees Katangese stinkers on both sides of the Luapula river welded to the habit of electing proven thieves into office all the time. Look at Chiluba, Katumbi etc and now Katele Kalumba will be voted for in large numbers by these tailed low life premates of the Ituri forest we have the tragedy of being called neighbours and fellow countrymen to.MANY THANKS SANAKUWA…
I have said time and time again that the majority of Zambian politicians are a bunch of *****s. They want to address issues they hardly comprehend. I am alluding to Kabinga Mpande who thinks that it’s wrong for the ICC to issue an arrest warrant for the Sudanese criminal. He is an Arab who has consistently abused and victimised and committed genicide against the black people of the south Sudan. There is no excuse for anyone to commit heinous crimes against humanity. I personally feel the time is right to start bringing these criminals to justice. If the AU is not capable of stopping Al Bashir’s genocide, then someone else should be seen to take center stage to bring order to Sudan.
El Bbashir is a criminal who does not deserve any sympathisers.If the issue at hand is beyond our leaders comprehension the best is to keep quiet and let those that have a broader understanding comment.Its not everything that should attract our comments.
Kabinga Pande will be fired by LPM as soon as he awakes from his coma.He has made the same mistake as mbita chitala. Who did he consult before making such a statement,RB?
Ifintu na fipena ku Lusaka