UN 'can't interfere with ICC rule'

2008-07-22 09:36

New York - The United Nations cannot interfere with the decision by the International Criminal Court (ICC) chief prosecutor to seek the arrest of Sudan's president for alleged genocide in Darfur, spokesperson Michele Montas says.

"The position of the secretary general is very clear," Montas said. "The ICC is an independent body. The secretariat of the UN cannot interfere nor be involved in anything that involve the ICC."

She made the remarks after African Union (AU) leaders on Monday asked the UN Security Council to delay any decision by the ICC on whether to indict Sudanese President Omar al-Beshir on genocide and war crimes charges.

Citing the need to "ensure that the ongoing peace process (in Darfur) is not jeopardised", Nigerian Foreign Minister Ojo Maduekwe told reporters that the AU was seeking "a delay within the rules of the Rome Statute, which created the ICC ten years ago".

He spoke after the AU's Peace and Security Council meeting at its headquarters in Addis Ababa.

It's not too late to cooperate

The 15-member Security Council could pass a resolution to defer for a period of 12 months any investigation or prosecution by the ICC and the delay might be renewed by the council under the same conditions.

Last week, ICC chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo accused Beshir of masterminding a genocidal campaign against three ethnic groups in Darfur and asked the ICC's three judges to serve the Sudanese leader with an arrest warrant on charges of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.

Meanwhile France's UN Ambassador Jean-Maurice Ripert said Paris' view was that "the Council should not interfere with the due process of law in terms of letting the ICC do its work.

He said it was up to the ICC judges to rule on Ocampo's request, a process, which he said could take up to three months.

"We remind the authorities in Khartoum that they have some obligations and commitments vis a vis the Security Council, which asked repeatedly for their cooperation with the ICC," he added.

Ripert was referring to the ICC demand that Khartoum hand over Sudanese secretary of state for humanitarian affairs Ahmed Haroun and Janjaweed leader Ali Kosheib, who were charged last year with a long list of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur.

"It's not too late for them (the Sudanese) to cooperate," the French envoy said.

- AFP