Sudan's president charged with genocide
Chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court accuses President Omar Hassan Ahmad Bashir of intentionally trying to wipe out three tribes in the country's Darfur region.
UNITED NATIONS -- The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court filed charges today against Sudan's president for genocide and crimes against humanity, igniting a debate over whether the move would help end the violence in the country's Darfur region or cause the prospects for peace to collapse.
The prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, submitted evidence intended to show that Sudanese President Omar Hassan Ahmad Bashir intentionally tried to wipe out three tribes in Sudan's western region based on their ethnicity. Members of the Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa groups rebelled against the government in 2003. When Bashir's army failed to defeat the armed movements, he went after the people, Moreno-Ocampo told the judges.
Bashir's "motives were largely political. His alibi was a counterinsurgency. His intent was genocide," the prosecutor said. As the head of the state, the army and the ruling party, Bashir holds ultimate responsibility for the systematic attacks against civilians and methodical rape of women, Moreno-Ocampo argued.
While he does not have a smoking gun, such as a master plan authored by Bashir, Moreno-Ocampo portrayed his evidence from victims' testimonies, government documents and other sources as pieces of a puzzle that combine to form a disturbing picture.
"He used the whole state apparatus, he used the army, he enrolled the militia janjaweed. They all report to him, they all obey him. His control is absolute," said Moreno-Ocampo. The janjaweed are militias loyal to the government that have been accused of widespread violence against citizens in Darfur.
If the courts' three judges agree that the evidence supports a credible case, a process expected to take two to three months, they will issue an arrest warrant for Bashir. Sudan is unlikely to hand over the president, as the court requires, but the warrant would mean that Bashir could be arrested by international authorities if he left his country.
Although Bashir has few supporters in the international community, the prosecutor's move has divided human rights groups and U.N. agencies on whether it will be long-needed leverage against the government or will spark chaos.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed worry about possible retaliation against peacekeepers and aid workers in the region, and called on the government of Sudan to do its utmost to protect their security.
