Sudan/ICC - reactions

Pro-Beshir camp dubs arrest warrant declaration of war, opponents offer genocide evidence

Article published on the 2009-03-04 Latest update 2009-03-04 16:28 TU

Anti-Beshir protesters outside the ICC
(Photo: Reuters)

Thousands of Sudanese demonstrated in Khartoum against the international warrant against President Omar Al-Beshir after the International Criminal Court called for the leader's arrest. Beshir's supporters dubbed the move a declaration of war on the country and on the Muslim world, while the Darfur rebel movement Jem offered to provide evidence of genocide.

"The public reaction was expected," reports Khartoum correspondent Amin Abdelatif. "People are rallying behind Beshir."

He told RFI that, whether they support Beshir or not, "they believe that this decision touches the sovereignty of the country".

"I think this is a war declaration against Sudan and this is the culmination of a conspiracy against Sudan," says Dr Abdallah Al-Achaal, an Egyptian former official who advised Al-Beshir when the ICC originally announced it would investigate the Sudanese President.

Al-Achaal insists that "the indictment is based on many falsifications" and promised that the Islamic Conference, the African Union and the Arab League will take the case to UN Security Council.

"I think we will have some sort of confrontation between the Arab and Islamic world and the West now and this is the declaration of war against us," he says.

Darfur rebels in the Justice and Equality Movement (Jem) welcome the warrant.

"This is a very strong message for all the dictators of the world that there is no impunity and nobody can kill people without any question," says spokesperson Khalil Ibrahim.

But he is clearly disappointed that the charge of genocide is not being pursued at the moment.

"The Justice and Equality Movement is ready to bring more evidence," he says. "We are sure that Omar al-Beshir also practiced genocide.

The decision "cuts through all of Khartoum’s denial of responsibility for the horrors of Darfur in a way that no Security Council ever could," according to Richard Dicker of the US-based campaign Human Rights Watch.

He does not attach much importance to the absence of genocide charges.

"First and foremost, the crime of genocide is an exceedingly difficult one to assert because of its definition," he told RFI. "And, more importantly, Beshir is charged with exceedingly grave crimes that include widespread murder, torture and rape, committed against civilians as part of a government plan.

"There is no mistaking the seriousness of those criminal counts."

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon urged Sudan's government  to guarantee the safety of civilians in its territory after the warrant was issued and called on it to co-operate with the court.