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From: Berhane Habtemariam (Berhane.Habtemariam@gmx.de)
Date: Fri Aug 27 2010 - 14:34:52 EDT
Sudan's Bashir attends Kenya constitution ceremony
Fri Aug 27, 2010 3:35pm GMT
* Kenya chooses not to arrest Sudanese leader
* Bashir among regional guests at Kenya's festivities
* ICC judges report Kenya to the U.N. Security Council
(Adds EU reaction, paragraphs 10-12)
By Richard Lough
NAIROBI, Aug 27 (Reuters) - Kenya chose not to arrest Sudanese President
Omar Hassan al-Bashir on charges of genocide when he arrived on Friday to
attend the signing ceremony for the East African country's new constitution.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) accuses Bashir of war crimes, crimes
against humanity and genocide in Sudan's Darfur region, where the United
Nations estimates 300,000 have died in a humanitarian crisis sparked by a
brutal counter-insurgency campaign. Bashir denies the charges.
He was escorted into Nairobi's Uhuru Park, where the ceremony was taking
place, by Tourism Minister Najib Balala, a fellow Muslim.
Last month, the African Union criticised the ICC's warrant for Bashir and
called for its suspension. Kenya has ratified the Rome Statute which
established the ICC in 2002 and requires states to cooperate with the court.
The ICC has no police force and relies on member states to enforce its
arrest warrants.
The ICC's chief prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, is also investigating
possible crimes against humanity committed during Kenya's post-election
violence in 2008. He expects to issue arrest warrants before the end of this
year.
Kenyan Foreign Minister Moses Wetangula confirmed Bashir was invited
alongside other regional leaders for Friday's festivities. "His visit has no
impact at all on Kenya's future commitment to the ICC," Wetangula said,
without elaborating.
"TARNISH"
ICC judges reported Kenya to the U.N. Security Council and the Assembly of
States Parties, which oversees the work of the court, for allowing Bashir's
visit so they could take any measure "they may deem appropriate".
"Kenya has a clear obligation to co-operate with the court in relation to
the enforcement of warrants of arrest," ICC judges said in their decision.
Bashir made his first trip to a full ICC member state last month when he
visited Chad, which also did not arrest him.
The European Union's foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton urged Kenya to
arrest Bashir and ensure its own cooperation with the ICC over the 2008
violence.
"She urges Kenya to respect its obligations under international law to
arrest and surrender those indicted by the ICC," an Ashton spokesman said.
"She calls upon Kenya to continue to cooperate with the ICC in its
investigation into the 2007-2008 post-election violence."
Rights groups said Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki's hosting of Bashir raised
questions about the country's commitment to cooperate with the ICC on the
Kenyan investigations.
"Kenya will forever tarnish the celebration of its long-awaited constitution
if it welcomes an international fugitive to the festivities," said Elise
Keppler, senior counsel in the International Justice Program at Human Rights
Watch.
"Whether Kenya allows a suspected war criminal into Kenya is a test of the
government's commitment to a new chapter in ensuring justice for
atrocities."
Kenya hosted peace talks in a separate conflict between Sudan's north and
south and signed a peace deal in 2005.
Bashir's travel has been restricted mostly to nearby African and Middle
Eastern allies since the ICC warrant. Last year he was forced to cancel a
trip to Turkey at the last minute after Ankara came under intense European
pressure. (Additional reporting by Opheera McDoom in Khartoum and Aaron
Gray-Block in Amsterdam; editing by Andrew Dobbie)
C Thomson Reuters 2010 All rights reserved
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