Taha urges African countries to act strongly to suspend Sudan’s Bashir indictment

September 22, 2008 (NEW YORK) — Sudanese Vice President called upon the African Union Peace and Security Council today to take a strong stance for the suspension of the indictment of the Sudanese President by the International Criminal Court Prosecutor.


Sudan’s Vice President Ali Osman Taha speaks in parliament in the capital Khartoum on July 14 2008 (AFP)

In a meeting held Monday evening on the sideline of the United Nations Assembly General meeting, Taha urged the regional body to strongly request the UN Security Council to defer the prosecution and the investigation by the ICC.

"We hope that your meeting today comes out with strong and clear request to the Security Council to rectify the situation and overcome the request of the International Criminal Court Chief Prosecutor" Taha said today in New York.

"We also hope that the meeting of the General Assembly provides an opportunity for the Council to coordinate in this regard with all regional and international organizations that rejected the ICC prosecutor move, to work with it and the African countries members of the Security Council to achieve what is requested according to a clear mechanism and timeframe for action." Taha stressed.

The African Union had asked the U.N. Security Council to invoke article 16 of Rome Statue and suspend any indictment of Sudan’s head of state.

Libya and South Africa sought to force a suspension in the UNAMID extension resolution adopted on July 31 but failed to get the required number of votes and instead accepted a watered down paragraph taking note of the African Union (AU) concern regarding the ICC move.

Since the issue was not raised by any delegation.

Hopes for the introduction of an Article 16 resolution appear to be fading primarily due to the stances of the veto wielding Western members of the UNSC namely US, UK and France.

UK and France diplomats hinted to their desire to see concessions from Sudan before they would consider supporting such a resolution.

But the US, which had long standing opposition to the ICC, appeared uncompromising on bringing war crimes perpetrators to justice. Washington abstained from voting on the UNAMID extension resolution over the text which included reference to the AU concern over Bashir’s indictment.

Taha also urged the AU peace and Security Council to ensure the collaboration of "all the concerned parties" to bring rebels to the table of negotiations, saying government efforts to end the crisis could not be successful without reaching a peaceful solution with them.

He also spoke about Khartoum efforts to implement Abuja peace agreement particularly the deal reached with the former rebel leader who returned to Darfur to protest the ill implementation of the 2006 peace deal.

(ST)

6 Forum messages

Taha urges African countries to act strongly to suspend Sudan’s Bashir indictment 23 September 2008 06:19, by Mr Famous Big_Logic_Boy

Ha ha Sorry mr Taha it is too late like water been pour on the ground,can you collet them again or renew them back?? those of Fake AU,Libya will never do any thing to prevent the ICC move,get to know that one of your supporter Mbeki is our of position and he will never have any chance to act on the move,we don’t need a fuel we need water to destory the fire,mbeki was a man who used to fuel the issue of zimbabwe and he achieve nothing.Just pray for your turn mr al bashir messenger (Taha).

Taha urges African countries to act strongly to suspend Sudan’s Bashir indictment 23 September 2008 07:44, by JOHN CHOL

Dear readers,

Taha is asumming wrong title at the wrong place.Instead of calling himself the 2nd vice president he put on an opportunistic name of the vice prseident ingonring prefixs like 1st and 2nd that differentiate him with Mr. Salva Kiir. Mr.Taha, you seems to be too egoistic for power but be reminded that we have a minister of foriegn affairs who should be attending such meeting and talk on behalf of the sudanese communities. I suggest your role must be sitting in Khartoum drawing up log frames for genocide in darfur-the job you like most.

Taha urges African countries to act strongly to suspend Sudan’s Bashir indictment 23 September 2008 08:17, by miss JOOK

that’s very good if you noticed that John Chol. he is ignoring his title as the 2nd vp which is why i question whether the CPA still exists or has it been abused to death.

Taha urges African countries to act strongly to suspend Sudan’s Bashir indictment 23 September 2008 15:00, by Aurelious Simon Chopee

For long time that i had been watching and listening to all the news coverage about Darfur case and the ICC, Sudanese government officials and some Arab countries like Egypt, Libya, Lebanon etc, excluding Saudi Arabia which was to be the champion of this phenomenon, gave comments comparing the situation in Darfur and the one in Palestine. If i may ask, Is the attack on the civilian in Darfur the retaliation on what happened in Palestine? If not why compare the two situations as it had been championed by my 2nd vice president Taha. Taha should be made to understand that the Africans will not be all that fools to agree on the invocation of those charges because the monster had been campaigning for the clearence of African race possiblly to be replaced by Arabs from within or outside Africa. Therefore Mbeki, Mkapa, Umaru, Saleh and Jean should use logics very well for reasoning.

Del Simsim

Taha urges African countries to act strongly to suspend Sudan’s Bashir indictment 23 September 2008 16:47, by Dhieu Dok

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Why are you calling African countries to act so as to suspend the indictment of the criminal? Why not your fellow Arab brothers who are good at oppressing their own citizens. Your days are numbered given the exit of Mbeki from power and the renewed stance by Britain and France that they will not be obstacles to the court. Besides, China has already informed its ally not to rely on it for support in the United Nations Security Council. On the other hand, Russia is busy recovering from recent invasion of Georgia that has left their currency plummeting.

All these are symptoms of Beshir sitting in the court answering the fate of Darfuris who had been mercilessly murdered by forces of evil. My wonder is why Taha is embracing African leaders to stand with them in these difficult times? Were they consulted when Darfuris were murdered?

In the last few years, people were murdered in the name of Islam and all the Jihad shit. Go on with your holy terror instead of calling African leaders who are not parties to all the crimes committed by patients of racial inferiority complex.

Dhieu Dok

Taha urges African countries to act strongly to suspend Sudan’s Bashir indictment 24 September 2008 16:19, by Paul Opio

Just to inform Mr. Taha, that enough is enough and any thing documented should always be folowed, Bashir is not very unique from other criminals who have been sentenced to the ICC.

Laws must take it cause, we will never learnt that we are wronging others if we don,t have judges to judge us, i do agree with the Judges who have weighted all the attrocities committed in Sudan Both In Darfur and South Sudan, the Millions of Lives claimed by Bashir will never be brought back to live nor will he compensate them.

Let him definately see the ICC and define his Fate from there.

Any one who defend wrong person is always term to along side the wrong person, this justify that Taha himself is one of the Senior problematic Human being who wanted Sudan to remain lawless (state of anarcy).