Sudan's Bashir to be sworn in
2010-05-27 11:22
Nairobi/Khartoum - President Omar al-Bashir, wanted over allegations of war crimes in Darfur, is to be sworn in on Thursday after winning Sudan's first multiparty elections in 24 years.
The elections last month were marred by an opposition boycott, allegations of fraud, and logistical problems.
But the biggest controversy surrounding al-Bashir's re- inauguration is over the attendance of foreign diplomats, whom the New York-based Human Rights Watch says should not be going.
The United Nations is sending the heads of its two peacekeeping missions in the country, despite an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant against al-Bashir for allegedly overseeing mass murder and rape in the restive Darfur province.
He is the only sitting head of state wanted for war crimes.
In an open letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, HRW Executive Director Kenneth Roth said sending diplomats to al-Bashir's inauguration would damage the UN's credibility.
"Attending the inauguration of an individual subject to an ICC warrant for serious atrocity crimes would send a terrible message to victims of such crimes in Darfur and around the world that their suffering is not reason enough to dispense with ceremonial support for their alleged abuser," he wrote on Monday.
The ceremony comes just a day after ICC judges told the UN Security Council that Sudan was protecting former minister of humanitarian affairs Ahmed Haroun and a militia leader, both wanted by the court, rather than hand them over.
The leaders of five African countries - Eritrea, Chad and Djibouti among them - are attending the ceremony before Sudan's parliament.
It is also believed that low-level diplomats from European Union nations will attend the ceremony, something that HRW feels is at odds with the EU's attempts to pressure Sudan into co-operating with the ICC.
"The EU can't have it both ways," said Elise Keppler, International Justice Programme senior counsel at Human Rights Watch. "It should be consistent in its efforts to bring justice for crimes committed in Darfur."
Once Al-Bashir, who won 68% of the ballot, is officially sworn in, he will face the challenge of a referendum on independence for the autonomous Southern Sudan, set for January.
The mainly Muslim north and Christian and Animist south fought a decades-long civil war, which was officially ended by a 2005 peace deal that provided for the referendum.
Analysts say the south is certain to vote for independence. Many fear this could spark a return to bloodshed unless crucial issues, such as the north-south border - where much of Sudan's oil wealth lies - are resolved.
- SAPA