Rights
corner
Darfur
situation
Role
of ICC and justice for victims
Amnesty
International is concerned at the proposal by President
Obasanjo, Chairman of the African Union, to have an "African
panel for Criminal Justice and Reconciliation" for
Darfur, instead of the International Criminal Court (ICC).
"This
proposition undermines the confidence many countries,
including Nigeria, have put in the ICC as the institution
to judge the worst crimes committed in the world. Many
Darfuri victims have told that reconciliation can only
happen once truth and responsibility for the crimes committed
are acknowledged, perpetrators of serious crimes are brought
to justice and victims receive full reparations, including
compensation," Amnesty International said.
The
International Criminal Court, established with the strong
and crucial support of many African countries, is a permanent
court which is already actively investigating two situations
in Africa, in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda.
It has demonstrated that it will be able to respond more
quickly, more effectively and in a less costly manner
than any ad hoc tribunal which would require considerable
time and funding to establish.
Although
Sudan has not ratified the Rome Statute creating the ICC,
crimes committed in Sudan can be referred to the ICC by
the UN Security Council, according to Article 13(b) of
the Rome Statute.
"The
UN Security Council is still discussing a resolution on
Sudan, six weeks after the UN's own International Commission
of Inquiry on Darfur recommended the ICC as the most effective
way to bring justice to hundreds of thousands of victims
in Darfur. The opposition of the United States, China
and Algeria to the jurisdiction of the ICC over Sudan
only helps to protect the impunity of those responsible
for crimes against humanity and to delay any resolution
of the conflict in Darfur," Amnesty International
said.
Source:
Amnesty International.
