October 16 2009 (WASHINGTON) — The Ugandan government should honor its international obligations and arrest Sudanese president Omer Hassan Al-Bashir if he sets foot in the country, a rights watchdog said today.
- Sudanese president Omer Hassan Al-Bashir (AFP)
This week Ugandan president Yoweri Musievini was quoted as saying that he invited Bashir to a special African Union (AU) summit on refugees that starts next week in his capacity as an African head of state.
Bashir is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for his alleged role in the war crimes committed in Sudan’s Western region of Darfur. Uganda, a signatory to the ICC’s Rome Statute, is required to apprehend the Sudanese head of state in the event he visits.
But Musievini has reportedly vowed not to act on the arrest warrant.
He reaffirmed his earlier position that his government is awaiting the disclosure of a report by the AU Panel on Darfur (AUPD) later this month for a position on the status of Bashir.
But Amnesty International (AI) warned Kampala against granting reprieve to Bashir.
“President Al Bashir is a fugitive from international justice charged with responsibility for crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur,” said Christopher Keith Hall, Senior Legal Adviser with Amnesty International Justice Project.
“The Ugandan government has an obligation to arrest and hand him over to the ICC should he enter Ugandan territory,” Hall said.
The AU summit in Libya last July has adopted a resolution to halt any cooperation of African states that are ICC states in arresting Bashir which would include Uganda.
However, a few weeks after the resolution Uganda reversed course and warned Bashir that he may risk apprehension if he decides to attend the Global 2009 Smart Partnership Dialogue conference for which he was invited.
Ugandan officials at the time gave conflicting positions on whether they would arrest Bashir but observers have said it was “well calculated’ on the part of Kampala.
However, Khartoum was angered by the incident and demanded that the Ugandan official who blew the first whistle on arresting Bashir be sacked.
Sudan state media made no mention of the invitation or any plans by Bashir to visit Uganda.
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