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Name
Editor
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Profession
Question
Dear Mr. Hafez,
First let me thank you for being with us here today.
As we all know the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Luis Moreno-Ocampo asked the court to indict the president of Sudan, Omar Hassan al-Bashir, on charges of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Darfur.
The ICC is expected announce a decision by late October ; First let me ask what you think the decision of the court will be? Does Ocampo have strong evidence that al-Bashir has actually committed a genocide?
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I think the ICC's Judges will accept the prosecutor application , if not all accounts but at least some of them. it is difficult to prove the genocide accounts but they might accept other charges.
Think there are many evidence to prove the prosecutor's application for indicting president al Bashair.
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Rasheed G
- United Kingdom
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Salam Mr. Hafez,
As an African and a Sudanese citizen, I am disgusted by the arrogance and the "Selective Justice" of the ICC.
I see the court as another example of the arrogance of the white man, who is out to discipline us Africans, whilst completely blind to crimes committed by powerful leaders elsewhere in the world. The inference here is that Africans cannot solve their problems without the directions and guidance from the colonial masters.
How can your organization help in promoting a more confident African based justice system?
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Yours
Rasheed G
London
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Dear Rasheed I do agree with you that there is double standard and if you are a power leader then you will be able to get away with any crimes you committed, but let us not forget that the African regimes do what they want of their people knowing that no one will help them to account, this culture of impunity must change. and if we have a mechanism by which we will be able to hold those who committed crimes against their people, why should we wait until we have universal justice to hold the others to account
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Ayman,
- United Kingdom
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Dear Mr. Hafiz,
I noticed that Sudanese government has recently increased its diplomatic activity to try to achieve peace in Darfur. The Arab league just proposed an intiative to work along with the UN and AU and mediate a peace deal as soon as possible. If a peace deal is brokered before October, which is not likely, would this influence the decision of court? Thanks for your answer.
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I don't think the diplomatic movement will influence the judges' discussions, those are two different processes. I don't think the Arab league's initiative stand any chance of success for very simple reasons, during the 5 years of this conflict the Arab league always supports the Sudanese government's position . I don't think they will be able to become an honest broker for peace, most to the big armed movements in Darfur have expressed their views on that already
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Mahmoud
- Egypt
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Dear Sir,
Alex de Waal, director of Justice Africa, wrote in an article in www.opendemocracy.net that ICC Prosecutor “is taking a step towards a world constitution in which the barriers of national sovereignty are swept away in favor of the rule of law with global reach.”
My question ties back to Rasheed’s, and this “global reach” is a bit exaggerated. Don’t you think so? Maybe “global reach among the poor nations” sounds more plausible.
What is you intake on that?
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Yes I have to admit that we are going through many changes in the issue of global reach, the issue of justice became an international issue. Any the sovereign country cannot claim sovereignty in all the issues related to crimes against humanity and war crimes, if you look at the Constitutive Act of the African Union article 4 stated clearly that countries cannot claim sovereignty and ask for non-intervention on this issues.
Think that is the right approach and it must expand and continue.
You can let some of the regime killing their people without being held account for that.
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Isma'il
- Sudan
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Greetings Mr. Hafiz. The Daily Telegraph (UK) has reported twice of a sex scandal involving Mr. Ocampo, and its Hague correspondent has called for Ocampo's resignation. The case had been developing just when the ICC Prosecutor, Ocampo, filed his charges against Al-Bashir (in a manner that has been criticized by your own colleague, Dr. Alex de Waal). Could this be another "wag the dog scenario" where the prosecutor is attempting to shift attention from himself?
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First let us separate between Mr Ocampo's personal difficulties and the issues of justice for the victims of the crimes in Darfur. If Mr Ocampo breaks the law, I think he must be held account for that and the ICC should take strong action against him , and even replace him with someone with credibility to carry its work through. |I think trying to use Ocampo's personal difficulties to undermine the work of the ICC is wrong.
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Safa
- United Kingdom
Profession
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Hello Mr. Hafiz,
One idea that the Sudanese officials have repeated after the Ocampu filed charges against al-Bashir is that these charges will only make the rebels more stubborn and unwilling to make concessions necessary for peace in Darfur. Some argue that these charges raised the rebel’s ceiling of demands. In this case I would like to ask your opinion on this; do you think Ocampo’s charges make peace even difficult to reach or the opposite is true?
Thank you,
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Achieving peace in Darfur is not an easy task. I have been following this since 2003 and we work with the AU and the UN to achieve that. Yes the armed movements might harden their stand and demand more from the Government of Sudan as they see it been weaken by the prosecutor's attempt to indict al Bashair.
But the main question is the government of Sudan's main objective which has never been finding a peaceful settlement to the conflict they always believe they can defeat the rebels by military means and what they are doing is right now in Darfur is waging attack of the armed movements bases and attacking IDPs camps kiliing many of them, for example in Kalma and Zamam.
We want all the parties in the conflict to be serious about the peace process and not to create unnecessary obstacles to the process.
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Iman
- Egypt
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Salam Mr. Hafiz,
I would like to ask what the your organization's official response to ICC's charges against President al-Bachir and what is your organization's general stance on Sudan. One thing that bothers me about this whole Sudan and Darfur conflict is that it has been very politicized and it has lost it "justice oriented" international interest.
If you go online, you find so many sources on Darfur, including many organization who are just out there to advance blind-folded US Neo-con agendas in Africa.
I hope justice Africa is really out there for justice.
Thanks for taking your time and asking my questions above.
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Dear Iman first I want to assure you that our organization's main objective is to work for peace and justice in Africa we have made a lot of contribution to advance the peace process in Darfur through our support to the AU and the UN, and always working with other stakeholders to find a sustainable peace. I do agree with you there are many organizations with different agendas exploiting the situation in Darfur but I think the Sudanese should be blamed for all that as they are not serious enough in resolving their problems.
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Editor
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Mr Hafiz,
You said, "We want all the parties in the conflict to be serious about the peace process and not to create unnecessary obstacles to the process. "
My question is who has the leverage to influence these parties in a divided world opinion. China wants something, the US and the West want another. These are the possible parties who can really exercise some influence, but they don't agree.
What do you think of that.
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You are right that the international parties everyone has it is own interest, but if we go back to the main sources of the conflict, mainly I blame the Sudanese regime for making the conflict do out of hand and its willingness to do anythings to hold the power by any means and cost.
Things are getting more difficult now I think we were in a better position in 2003/04 that now as the armed movements have splitted into many factions with no coordination between them , and the government of Sudan has played part to that always. To influence the stakeholders I think we need joint efforts regionally and internationally, no one party will be able to carry that alone.
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Abedelghani
- Algeria
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Everybody calls the disaster in Darfur a Genocide, when the United Nations never calls it so. Does your organization describe what's happening in Darfur.
I wish organizations in the world describe the killings of more than 200, 000 people in our country since 1992 a genocide and file charges against Algerian army commanders. But the world seems unfair.
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Without getting into the issue of numbers I think what happened in Darfur led to a lot off loss of lives, where they are 200,000 or 9,000 that is sad.I strong believe in justice one life is matter for me and anyone who commit such crimes must be held to account whether in Algeria, Darfur or elsewhere.
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Yazeed
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What are the avenues for justice against leaders who oppress and kill in the third world if we don't want to go the ICC and other 'first world' routes? How do we not stand by and watch African leaders such as in Sudan ensure suffering among their own people, while not bowing down to Euro and American agendas? We want justice, but without terms and conditions of the west. Your opinion, please ?
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I do agree with you that justice must be universal and not selective, but at least in the Democratic world leaders don't kill their countries' men and women, because there are rules of law and they will be held accountable not like the most of the third world where leaders can do what they want and get away with it.
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taymour
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To what extent the Sudanese government can manage this crisis?
and what was the response of the OIC to the accusation, isn't the organization supposed to do an action?
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The government of Sudan is trying to mobilize the Sudanese public opinion in support of al Bashair, and turn the issues into war between the international community and Sudan, I think they have no way but to deal with this issues seriously and to avoid putting Sudanese people against the international community.
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Ibrahim
- Sudan
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Ok, many times you said the Sudanese government is the one to blame.
How about the rebels, whom you said have split into different groups without coordination. This means these groups can kill in independentally as they which, who has said anything against them and who is going to bring charges against them. If non, at least respected NGOs like your should say something about that.
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I have mentioned the issues of the armed movement many times and I believe some of them become part of the problem by using the conflict to serve their own interest and not the interest of Darfuri people.
I don't defend the armed movements. some of them committed crimes and they must be held accountable for that and the ICC is looking at that and I am sure they will bring charges against them if they find enough evidences. No one must be immune from justice if found committing crimes.
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Editor
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The session has ended. We would like to thank Mr. Hafiz Mohammed for taking the time to answer our questions, and all those who participated in the dialogue.
We apologize for not being able to answer all the questions due to time limitation.
